Grain-boundary microstructure and solute segregation were studied in 0.3mol%CuO-doped and 3mol%Y2O3-stabilized material by using transmission electron microscopes which were equipped with EDS and electron energy-loss spectroscopy. This revealed grain boundaries of various thickness; ranging from a sharp boundary with no extra phase, to boundaries with an amorphous phase that was up to 2nm thick. There were also pockets, filled with an amorphous phase, at the triple junctions of the grain boundaries. Segregation of Cu and Y were observed; not only in the amorphous regions, but also along sharp grain boundaries with no extra phase.

Grain Boundary Structure and Solute Segregation in CuO-Doped 3mol%Yttria-Stabilized Zirconia. T.Onda, S.J.Lloyd, H.Suematsu, H.Yamauchi, A.L.Greer, K.Kurashima, Y.Bando, M.Hayakawa: Materials Transactions, 2001, 42[1], 145-50