Pitfalls of local and quantitative phase analysis in partially stabilized zirconia

The capability of electron backscatter diffraction to recognize and to quantify tetragonal lattice distortion is illustrated on the example of zirconia partially stabilized by magnesium. The combination of electron backscatter diffraction and X-ray diffraction is shown to be a suitable method for local and quantitative phase analyses in materials with composition gradients on the sub-micrometre scale.