Phase composition and ionic conductivity of zirconia stabilized with scandia and europia

Sintered specimens of zirconia-10 mol% scandia pure and codoped (up to 1.25 mol%) with europium sexquioxide were prepared by solid-state synthesis, aiming to stabilize at room temperature the high-conductivity cubic phase. High-temperature X-ray diffraction and differential scanning calorimetry results reveal that small amounts of the codopant reduce the enthalpy of phase transition, and full stabilization is evidenced for 1 mol% europium sexquioxide. The low-temperature (<600 °C) ionic conductivity increases with increasing codopant content.