Mechanically Activated Solid-State Synthesis of Nanocrystalline Yb4Zr3O12.

Nanocrystalline ytterbium zirconate Yb₄Zr₃O₁₂ (δ-phase) was synthesized by the solid-state method with preliminary mechanical activation of a stoichiometric mixture of the corresponding oxides. The processes occurring in the course of the synthesis were studied by X-ray powder diffraction, IR spectroscopy, and thermal analysis. The average size of Yb₄Zr₃O₁₂ crystallites obtained by annealing a mechanically activated oxide mixture at 900, 1000, 1100, and 1200°C was calculated by the Scherrer formula and was 12, 17, 27, and 41 nm, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]