Yttria-stabilized zirconia thin film electrolyte produced by RF sputtering for solid oxide fuel cell applications

Thin film (40–600 nm) yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) electrolytes for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) were deposited on NiO-YSZ anodes and fused silica substrates by RF sputtering, using low applied power without the use of post deposition annealing heat treatment. YSZ film showed a nanocrystalline structure and consisted of the Zr.85Y.15O1.93 (fcc) phase. The film was dense and the YSZ/anode interface was continuous and crack free. According to preliminary in-plane conductivity measurements (temperature range 550–750 °C) on the YSZ film, the activation energy for ionic conduction was found to be 1.18 ± 0.01 eV.