Investigation of the mechanical properties of various yttria stabilized zirconia based thin films prepared by aqueous tape casting

In this study various yttria doped  zirconia based thin films were prepared by the aqueous tape casting method. The rheological property of the paste was studies. The phase content and microstructure of the samples was investigated by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope, respectively. The mechanical properties of thin films were studied by Vickers microhardness and nanoindentation methods. It was found that microhardness, nanohardness and Young’s modulus of thin films are not dependent on yttria content, but toughness of the samples improved by increasing tetragonal phase content of the samples.