Low-temperature damping anomaly in an yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystal

Dilational and shear internal friction and four elastic parameters (Young's modulus, the shear modulus, the bulk modulus and the Lame parameter) have been cyclically measured between 68 and 400K in an yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia polycrystal ((Y)TZP), using an ultrasonic pulse wave of frequency 3.8MHz. A 200K peak in the shear friction, which was observed in repeated cooling runs, decreases with increasing repetition number, suggesting a martensitic-like transition due to short-range cooperative movement of oxygen ions in the (Y)TZP lattice.