Zirconium nitrate of chemical suppliers. It is used as a source of zirconium for other salts, as an analytical standard, or as a preservative. Zirconium nitrate and nitronium pentanitratozirconate can be used as chemical vapour deposition precursors as they are volatile, and decompose above 100 °C to form zirconia. At 95°C zirconium nitrate sublimes with a pressure of 0.2 mm of Hg and can be deposited as zirconium dioxide on silicon at 285°C. It has the advantage in that it is a single source, meaning it does not have to be mixed with other materials like oxygen, and decomposes at a relatively
Ceria-zirconia Ceria-zirconia Ceria-zirconia is the name given to a solid solution of cerium (IV) oxide CeO (ceria) and zirconium oxide ZrO (zirconia). The crystal structure adopted by ceria-zirconia depends on the Zr/Ce ratio and temperature. At very low Zr concentrations, ceria-zirconia exhibits the cubic fluorite structure, which is common to both pure ceria and cubic zirconia. However, at higher Zr contents, other crystal structures are formed, including two different tetragonal phases at intermediate Zr concentrations, and a monoclinic phase at very high Zr concentrations. There is both experimental and theoretical evidence showing that the decomposition of ceria-zirconia into Ce-rich and Zr-rich