Achieving room temperature plasticity in brittle ceramics through elevated temperature preloading.

Abstract in brief

• Ceramic materials are strong and chemically resistant, but their brittleness limits their use because they fracture easily before deforming.
• Researchers have developed a method to improve the plastic deformability of ceramics by introducing defects through preloading at high temperatures.
• This technique significantly increased the strain capacity of single crystal TiO and α-AlO ceramics, indicating that defect engineering could allow for more flexible ceramics at room temperature.