Tuning crystallographic compatibility to enhance shape memory in ceramics

The extraordinary ability of shape-memory alloys to recover after large imposed deformation motivates efforts to transpose these properties onto ceramics, which would enable practical shape-memory properties at high temperatures and in harsh environments. The theory of mechanical compatibility was utilized to predict promising ceramic candidates in the system (Y0.5Ta0.5O2)1-x-(Zr0.5Hf0.5O2)x, 0.6<x<0.85. When these compatibility conditions are met, a reduction in thermal hysteresis by a factor of 2.5, a tripling of deformability, and a 75% enhancement in strain recovery within the shape-memory effect was found. These findings reveal that predicting and optimizing the chemical composition of ceramics to attain improved crystallographic compatibility is a powerful tool for enabling and enhancing their deformability that could ultimately lead to a highly reversible oxide ceramic shape-memory material.