Stabilization of cubic Na-modified ZrO₂: a neutron diffraction study

Neutron diffraction patterns, collected at room temperature and, with in situ thermal treatment, from 981 to 1173 K, on a zirconia sample containing 3 wt% of sodium, show the presence and the stability of the cubic form of zirconia from 298 to 1073 K. The analysis has also demonstrated the presence of a significant amount of the tetragonal form of zirconia, which cannot be clearly detected using conventional X-ray diffraction. We report and discuss the Rietveld refinements performed on the samples, analysed at 298 and at 981 K. The cubic form appears to be stabilized by the incorporation of sodium ions, which randomly replace the zirconium ions, thus forming a substitutional solid solution.