Fabrication and Thermophysical Properties of La(2-x)Zr(2-y)O7 Nanocrystal by a Sol-Gel Method

Non-Stoichiometric La2Zr2O7 (La(2-x)Zr(2-y)O7) Nanocrystal was synthesized by a simple sol-gel method. The crystalline structure, oxygen vacancy concentration, thermal expansion coefficient, as well as the fracture toughness of as-prepared materials were charactered by XRD, TG-DSC, PL spectra, dilatometer, and electronic universal testing machine respectively. The crystal structure of La2Zr2O7 is of the cubic type while lattice parameter increases with the deviatation of Zr4+ and La3+ from Stoichiometric La2Zr2O7 increasing. The average linear thermal expansion coefficient of non-stoichiometric La2Zr2O7 is obviously bigger than that of La2Zr2O7 in the temperature range between 150 degrees C and 950 degrees C. The fracture toughness of La(2-x)Zr(2-y)O7 increases with x and y increasing up to x = 0.3 and y = 0.25.