Plasticity in ZrB2 micropillars induced by anomalous slip activation

Room temperature deformation behaviors of ZrB2 micropillars, fabricated by focused ion beam technique from differently oriented grains of polycrystalline ZrB2, were investigated under micro compression. Considerable anisotropy was found showing ∼80% higher yield (σY) and rupture (σr) stress values for the basal oriented pillars (σY,basal=13.4GPa,σr,basal=13.4GPa) compared to the prismatic pillars (σY,prism=6.4GPa,σr,prism=7.6GPa). Micro-scale plasticity was detected in prismatic oriented pillars, revealing the activation of the {101¯0}〈112¯3〉 type slip system both in the form of single- and multiple-slip which is anomalous for ZrB2 and has not been reported so far in the relevant literature.