Mechanically Activated Solid-State Synthesis of Nanocrystalline Yb.sub.4Zr.sub.3O.sub.12

Nanocrystalline ytterbium zirconate Yb.sub.4Zr.sub.3O.sub.12 ([delta]-phase) was synthesized by the solid-state method with preliminary mechanical activation of a stoichiometric mixture of the corresponding oxides. The processes occurring in the course of the synthesis were studied by X-ray powder diffraction, IR spectroscopy, and thermal analysis. The average size of Yb.sub.4Zr.sub.3O.sub.12 crystallites obtained by annealing a mechanically activated oxide mixture at 900, 1000, 1100, and 1200°C was calculated by the Scherrer formula and was 12, 17, 27, and 41 nm, respectively.