Grain-size and indentation depth dependence of the hardness of zirconia polycrystals

Abstract

The grain-size dependence of the hardness of polycrystalline materials is usually described by the well-known Hall-Petch or inverse Hall-Petch relations. The hardness also depends on the depth of an indentation. These dependences are, however, not clear enough for an indentation with nano-scale on ceramics consisted of nanocrystals. In this study, the grain-size and indentation depth dependence of the hardness of zirconia with very fine grains was examined by using nanoindentation technique