Effect of the energy deposition modes on the structural stability of pure zirconia

One of the most important goals in materials science is to be able to design materials with specific properties. Irradiation seems to be a powerful tool for the design of advanced materials because of its ability to modify over different scales the microstructure of solids. Nowadays, it is clearly proved that irradiation induces order–disorder phase transitions in metallic alloys and in some ceramics. Recent investigations on pure monoclinic zirconia have clearly shown that a displacive phase transition can be induced by irradiation. In this work, the impact of the energy deposition modes on the structural stability of pure monoclinic ZrO2 is discussed in detail. Based on experimental evidences, a microscopic model is proposed to explain the displacive phase transition observed in this material after irradiation by low and high energy ions within the Landau theory framework. Even if defects generated by low and high energy ions are quite different, these defects are able to quench the same tetragonal phase in pure zirconia.