Pressure effect on ionic conductivity in yttrium-oxide-doped single-crystal zirconium oxide

In this study, the authors investigated the effect of pressure on the ionic conductivity of a 9.5 mol% yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) single crystal. The experiment was conducted in the elastic region, and the oxygen ion transport number was unity (t{sub ion} > 0.). A conventional four-probe DC method was used to measure the ionic conductivity of the rectangular-shaped sample under uniaxial pressures up to 600 atm at 750 C in air. Measured ionic conductivity decreased as applied pressure increased. Based on henry Eyring`s absolute reaction rate theory, which states that the calculated activation volume has a positive value ({Delta}V{sup 2} = 2.08 cm{sup 3}/mol of O{sup {minus}2}) for oxygen ion transport in the fluoride cubic lattice, they concluded that the results they obtained could be explained by an oxygen ion transport mechanism. This mechanism can explain the fact that the interionic distance increases during oxygen ion transport from one unit cell to neighboring unit cells