Novel Zirconia-Based Superionic Conductors: The Electrical Conductivity of Y–Zr–O–N Materials

The effect of nitrogen incorporation into yttria-stabilized zirconia on the electrical conductivity is investigated by impedance spectroscopy. Under isothermal conditions, the conductivity depends on the total concentration of anion vacancies, independent of doping with aliovalent cations (Y3+) or anions (N3-). The analysis of the Arrhenius plots results in higher activation energies for the oxynitrides than for nitrogen-free Y–Zr–O samples.