Gas-turbine engines are widely used in the electric power and aircraft industries. To reduce the extreme high-temperature load on combustion chamber elements, thermal barrier coatings are used: refractory ceramics sputtered on heat-resistant nickel alloys, which enables a significant reduction in the substrate temperature. An urgent task is to further increase the operating temperature of gas-turbine engines to enhance their efficiency. Due to the combination of physicochemical properties such as low thermal conductivity, the moderate thermal-expansion coefficient, and high thermal resistance and hardness, zirconium dioxide stabilized with yttrium oxide is conventionally used in industry. However, due to a phase transition in yttrium-stabilized zirconium dioxide (YSZ) occurring at operating temperatures, the working temperatures of gas-turbine engines cannot be further increased. To solve this problem, two major approaches are applied: further modification of zirconium dioxide (its doping) and the search for new alternative materials. By now, a vast set of candidates has been explored, including various complex oxides such as perovskites (SrCeO₃), pyrochlores (La₂Zr₂O₇), and fluorites (La₂Ce₂O₇). None of the examined materials in their original form can substitute for YSZ in gas-turbine engines. To optimize properties of new refractory materials, doping is used, the boundary case of which is the creation of high-entropy materials. By mixing five or more cations in the equiatomic proportion, extremely low thermal conductivity and enhanced thermal stability can be attained, so such materials are considered the most promising candidates for obtaining thermal-barrier coatings for next-generation gas-turbine engines. Basic materials and high-entropy oxides based on them, considered alternatives to YSZ, are reviewed.

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Correspondence should be addressed to † shishkin@ihim.uran.ru Keywords: thermal barrier coatings, zirconium dioxide, thermal conductivity, high-entropy oxides PACS: 65.40.−b DOI: 10.3367/UFNe.2024.07.039716 URL: https://ufn.ru/en/articles/2025/3/b/ Citation: Shishkin R A "State-of-the-art and prospective materials for thermal barrier coatings" Phys. Usp. 68 (3) (2025) Received: 27th, December 2023, revised: 5th, July 2024, accepted: 8th, July 2024 Оригинал: Шишкин Р А «Современные и перспективные материалы для термобарьерных покрытий» УФН 195 245–259 (2025); DOI: 10.3367/UFNr.2024.07.039716