Crystallization and oxygen loading in pulsed laser deposited YSZ-films

Yttria-stabilized zirconium dioxide (YSZ) as an oxygen ion conductor is widely used in technical applications, for example as solid oxide fuel cells. Thus, it is important studying the film stability at higher temperatures. In this contribution, amorphous YSZ films prepared by Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) at room temperature and annealed in argon/vacuum or oxygen atmosphere are presented. In a first thermal treatment in high vacuum up to temperatures of 800 C a loss of oxygen and crystallization of the film is achieved. Further heating in oxygen atmosphere leads to a reversible reloading of oxygen in the film. At this, changing the heating time and temperature enables to obtain different levels of oxygen in the samples. The weight change during outgasing and reloading was measured by thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA). The structure of different oxygen states and dynamics of crystallization was characterized by in-situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) and ellipsometry.