Deposition of Yttria Stabilized Zirconia by the Thermal CVD Process

Yttria stabilized zirconia(YSZ) films were deposited on porous NiO substrates and quartz plates by the thermal CVD using $ZrCl_4, YCl_3$ as precursors, and $O_2$ as a reactive gas at atmospheric pressure. The evaporation temperature of $ZrCl_4$ was varied from $250^{\circ}C$ to $550^{\circ}C$ while the temperatures of $YCl_3$ and the substrate were varied from $1000^{\circ}C$ to $1030^{\circ}C$. As the evaporation temperature of $ZrCl_4$ increased, the deposition rate of $ZrO_2$ decreased, contrary to our expectation. As a result of the decreased deposition rate of $ZrO_2$, the yttria content increase. The high evaporation temperature of $ZrCl_4$ makes the well-faceted crystal while the low evaporation temperature leads to the cauliflower-shaped structure. The dependence of the evaporation temperature on the growth rate and the morphological evolution was interpreted by the charged cluster model.