“…In the past decade, the brittle nature of ZrO 2 has been mitigated by constructing miniature specimens (e.g., micro-/nano-pillars 8 , single/oligo-crystals 9 – 12 , nano-fibers 13 , 14 ), and structures formed thereof (e.g., honeycombs via 3D printing 15 , cellular foams via freeze casting 16 , 17 , and granular packings 3 , 18 ), where the ceramic is relatively free to expand/contract because of the high specific surface area and/or the removal of grain boundaries. Nevertheless, it remains a challenge to integrate these small-volume shape memory ceramics into a matrix material and realize their reversible phase transformation in a confined state without causing fracture.…”