Influence of elastic properties on superplasticity in doped yttria-stabilized zirconia

We report the first principles calculations of elastic and electronic properties of yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconium dioxide (YZP) doped with GeO2GeO2, TiO2TiO2 and SiO2SiO2. Electronic structure and isotropic elastic properties of YZP do not change upon addition of dopants. Addition of dopants affects the shear C66C66 elastic constant that decreases with the increasing dopant concentration. A simple model that connects elastic softening to enhancement of superplasticity in doped fine-grained zirconia ceramics is proposed.