Fabrication of (Nd(0.01)La(x)Y(0.99-x))2O3 nanoparticles and transparent ceramics by combustion synthesis

Y2O3 acts as the matrix material when doped with different content of La2O3 for reducing sintering temperature and refining grains. The (Nd(0.01)La(x)Y(0.99-x))2O3 nanoparticles and transparent ceramics are fabricated by a combustion synthesis. The powder feature is characterized by TEM. The microstructure, mechanical properties and transmittance of the samples are examined by SEM, HV-1000 hardness tester and fluorescence analyzer respectively. The results show that the (Nd(0.01)La(x)Y(0.99-x))2O3 nanoparticles are homogeneous in size and nearly spherical with average diameter in the range of 40-60 nm. There are no other phases except the Y2O3 cubic phase in the (Nd(0.01)La(x)Y(0.99-x))2O3 nanoparticles. The grains of the samples significantly reduce with increasing La2O3 content. The hardness and fracture toughness increase rapidly first and then gradually tend to plateau with increasing La2O3 content. The transmittance of sample also increases gradually with increasing La2O3, the largest transmittance exceeds 77% when the La2O3 content is x = 0.12.     

Effect of annealing on the optical properties of Nd:YAG transparent ceramics

The Nd:YAG transparent ceramics were fabricated by vacuum sintering at 1750 °C for 20 h, where the raw nanopowders were synthesized by a modified co-precipitation method. Subsequently the Nd:YAG ceramic specimens were annealed or even re-annealed in air or vacuum at 1250-1500 °C for 20 h. The Nd:YAG ceramic specimens were investigated by X-ray diffraction, ultraviolet spectroscopy, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy, electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The results showed that post-annealing could improve the optical properties and microstructure of Nd:YAG transparent ceramics. By air annealing, the in-line transmittances of the specimens increased, mainly due to the decrease of oxygen vacancies concentration in specimens. The air annealing at 1450 °C for 20 h was optimum for preparation of Nd:YAG transparent ceramics. Furthermore, the red shift of UV absorption edge after air annealing could be attributed to the absorption by Fe³⁺ charge transfer bands.     

Fabrication and properties of highly transparent Er:YAG ceramics

Highly transparent Er:YAG ceramics with different Er doping concentrations were fabricated by a reactive sintering method under vacuum. The optical properties and the microstructures of the Er:YAG ceramics were investigated. For 3 mm thickness samples, the in-line transmittances of the as-fabricated Er:YAG ceramics at the wavelength of 1100 nm and 400 nm were about 84% and 82%, respectively. The micrograph of the Er:YAG transparent ceramics exhibited a pore-free structure and the average grain size was about 10 μm. The grain boundary of the ceramics was clean and no secondary phase was detected. The absorption and emission spectra, the fluorescence decay traces of the Er:YAG ceramics were measured and discussed. The ceramics obtained may have potential use for eye-safe solid-state lasers partly replacing Er:YAG single crystals.     

Effects of La3+ addition on the phase transition,microstructure, dielectric and piezoelectric properties of Ba0.9Ca0.1Ti0.9Zr0.1O3 ceramics prepared by hydrothermal method

Lead-free Ba_0.9Ca_0.1Ti_0.9Zr_0.1O₃–xLa (x = 0.000, 0.005, 0.010, 0.015, 0.020, 0.025) ceramics were prepared by hydrothermal method and were assisted by fast microwave sintering. The effects of La³⁺ addition on the phase transition, microstructure, dielectric and piezoelectric properties were investigated. Single orthorhombic phase was observed in the composition of x ≤ 0.010 and the coexistence of orthorhombic and tetragonal phase were detected at x = 0.015 and 0.020, which is characterized by the broadening of (002)/(200) peaks at around 2θ ~ 45°. The ceramics show cubic phase when the x was increased to 0.025. The grain size was affected significantly by the La³⁺ content, reaching a maximum value of ~8.2 μm at x = 0.010. The dielectric constant decreases with the addition of small amount of La³⁺ and then increases sharply at x ≥ 0.015, exhibiting a PTC behavior at x = 0.020, while no T _C was observed at x = 0.025. The Curie temperature (T _C ) always decrease with the introduction of La³⁺ and the dielectric loss shows a minimum value at x = 0.015. The piezoelectric constant (d ₃₃ ) measured at 50 °C of the ceramics were increased after the partial substitution of La³⁺ because of the enhancement of coexistence of orthorhombic and tetragonal phases at this temperature. Ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties can not be detected when x was increased to 0.02 while they were observed again with further addition.     

Dielectric properties of the ferroelectric composite (NaNO2)0.9/(BaTiO3)0.1

The temperature and frequency dependences of dielectric properties of the ferroelectric composite (NaNO₂)_0.9/(BaTiO₃)_0.1 have been studied. It was shown that in the composites the mutual influence of the components may lead to the expansion of incommensurate phase existence in NaNO₂. The greatest contribution to the low-frequency dielectric constant of the composite is due to the Maxwell–Wagner polarization.     

ZnAl_2O_4和La_2O_3对Ca_(0.61)Nd_(0.26)TiO_3-MgTiO_3复合陶瓷介电性能的影响

通过传统的固相反应合成掺杂ZnAl_2O_4和La~(3+)(来自La_2O_3)的Ca_(0.61)Nd_(0.26)TiO_3-MgTiO_3复合陶瓷粉体,干压成型后在空气气氛下常压烧结制备ZnAl_2O_4和La~(3+)掺杂Ca_(0.61)Nd_(0.26)TiO_3-MgTiO_3复合陶瓷样品。分别研究了La~(3+)和ZnAl_2O_4的掺杂量对复合陶瓷样品的微观形貌、相组成和介电性能的影响。结果表明:ZnAl_2O_4具有细化晶粒的作用;Ca_(0.61)Nd_(0.26)TiO_3-MgTiO_3复合陶瓷样品的致密度随La~(3+)和ZnAl_2O_4含量的增加而增加;介电常数和谐振频率温度系数随ZnAl_2O_4含量的增加而减小,随La_2O_3添加量变化不大;品质因数值随ZnAl_2O_4含量的增加先增加后减小。制备出的ZnAl_2O_4和La~(3+)掺杂Ca_(0.61)Nd_(0.26)TiO_3-MgTiO_3复合陶瓷致密度达到94%以上,介电常数在40~50之间,谐振频率温度系数小于40×10~(-6)℃~(-1),品质因数大于38 000GHz,可以用于通信技术领域。     

Improvement of optical properties of Nd:YAG transparent ceramics by post-annealing and post hot isostatic pressing

The Nd:YAG transparent ceramics were fabricated by vacuum sintering. The Nd:YAG samples were annealed at 1450 °C for 20 h in air and followed by hot isostatic pressing (HIP) at 1700 °C for 2 h in 200 MPa Ar and then re-annealed at 1250–1450 °C for 10 h in air. The experimental results showed that the optical properties of Nd:YAG samples varied markedly with different post treatments. After air annealing at 1450 °C for 20 h and HIP at 1700 °C for 2 h under 200 MPa of Ar and then air re-annealing at 1250 °C for 10 h, the transmittances of the samples increased from 51.2% to 77.2% (at 400 nm) and 78.4% to 83.6% (at 1064 nm), respectively. The annealing and HIP are effective post treatments to reduce oxygen vacancies and intergranular pores respectively in Nd:YAG transparent ceramics.     

Nd3+-doped Lu2O3 transparent sesquioxide ceramics elaborated by the Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS) method. Part 2: First laser output results and comparison with Nd3+-doped Lu2O3 and Nd3+-Y2O3 ceramics elaborated by a conventional method

We report the first demonstration of laser oscillation of two close IR emission lines at 1076.3 nm and 1080.5 nm using a 1% Nd³⁺-doped Lu₂O₃ transparent ceramics fabricated by the non-conventional Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS) method. A comparison is made with Nd³⁺-doped Lu₂O₃ and Nd³⁺-doped Y₂O₃ ceramics elaborated by HIP conventional method.     

(La0.9Bi0.1)2/3Ca1/3MnO3磁性和电输运性质研究

利用固相反应法制备了(La0.9Bi0.1)2/3Ca1/3MnO3样品,研究了它的导电特性和磁性.在电阻和磁化测量中观察到热滞现象. 在电阻-温度(R-T)曲线中出现了两个峰,当施加5T外场时,电阻中的热滞现象被抑制,只观察到一个峰.磁化(M-T)曲线表明,在居里温度(Tc)以下发生了顺磁-铁磁(PM-FM)相变. 样品不同寻常的M-T行为能够很好地解释测量到的R-T曲线.     

Crystal structure and dielectric properties of Ca(0.85)Nd(0.1)TiO(3) - LnAlO(3) ceramics

The microwave dielectric properties of Ca(0.85)Nd(0.1)TiO(3) - LnAlO(3) (Ln = Sm, Gd, Dy, Er) ceramics are investigated in this paper. The structural characteristics of the specimens were evaluated by Rietveld refinement of Xray diffraction (XRD) patterns and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). Solid solution limits were dependent on the ionic radius of Ln(3+) ions. With the decrease of the ionic radius of the Ln(3+) ions, the thermal stability of the resonant frequency decreases. This can be attributed to the increased level of oxygen octahedral distortion caused by the increase in the B-site bond valence in the ABO(3) perovskite structure. The dielectric constant (K) and the quality factor (Qf) of the specimens were dependent on the polarizability and grain size, respectively.     

Effects of grain size on pyroelectric and dielectric properties of Pb0.9La0.1TiO3 ceramics

Pyroelectric and dielectric properties of Pb0.9La0.1TiO3 ceramics with grain sizes in the range of 1.3–6.0 m were investigated. The temperature stability of the pyroelectric coefficient at room temperature was improved as the grain size became smaller. The pyroelectric coefficient of Pb0.9La0.1TiO3 at room temperature reached the lowest value near the grain size of 2.7 m. Above 2.7 m, the relationship between the pyroelectric coefficient and the grain size could be explained by the increase of 90° domain switching. However, below 2.7 m, the relationship was not clear. The variation of the relative dielectric constant of Pb0.9La0.1TiO3 with the grain size showed a similar relationship with that of the pyroelectric coefficient. The variation of the pyroelectric figure of merit on voltage responsivity as a function of the grain size was similar to that of the pyroelectric coefficient because the pyroelectric coefficient varied more strongly than the relative dielectric constant. © 1998 Chapman & Hall     

Efficient energy transfer between Ce/Cr and Nd ions in transparent Nd/Ce/Cr:YAG ceramics

This paper reports the spectroscopic and laser characteristics of transparent ceramics of YAG:Nd co-doped with Ce and Cr. The ceramics were prepared by advanced ceramic techniques and showed more than 85% of transparency. Diode pumped laser oscillation performed at different output coupler transmissions (T) showed that a maximum slope efficiency of 16% was achieved for T = 3%. The cross energy transfer mechanism under violet laser diode pumping has been analyzed and the possible energy transfer mechanisms have been proposed using the various energy levels of the dopant ions. The emission lifetimes of the dopant ions at two different concentrations have also been found.     

Enhancing the microwave dielectric properties of Nd (Mg0.5Sn0.5)O3 ceramics by substituting Nd3+ with Ca2+

The microwave dielectric properties of Nd_(1?2x/3)Ca_x(Mg_0.5Sn_0.5)O₃ ceramics were examined to evaluate their exploitation for mobile communication. Nd_(1?2x/3)Ca_x(Mg_0.5Sn_0.5)O₃ ceramics were prepared by the conventional solid-state method with various sintering temperatures. The X-ray diffraction patterns of the Nd_2.9/3Ca_0.05(Mg_0.5Sn_0.5)O₃ ceramics revealed no significant variation of phase with the sintering temperature. Nd_2.9/3Ca_0.05(Mg_0.5Sn_0.5)O₃ ceramics that were sintered at 1,550 °C for 4 h had the following properties: a density of 6.86 g/cm³, a dielectric constant (ε_r) of 19.3, a quality factor (Q × f) of 99,000 GHz, and a temperature coefficient of resonant frequency (τ _f ) of ?65 ppm/°C.     

Studies on semiconductive (Ba0.8Sr0.2) (Ti0.9Zr0.1)O3 ceramics

In order to produce semiconductive (Ba_0.8Sr_0.2) (Ti_0.9Zr0.1)O₃ ceramics (BSZT), providing low resistivity for boundary-layer capacitor applications, a controlled valency method and a controlled-atmosphere method were applied and studied. In the controlled-valency method, trivalent ions (La³⁺ Sb³⁺) and pentavalent ions (Nb⁵⁺, Sb⁵⁺, Ta⁵⁺) were doped into BSZT ceramics, while in the controlled-atmosphere method, samples were sintered in air and a reducing atmosphere. The doped BSZT ceramics sintered in the reducing atmosphere showed much lower resistivities and smaller temperature coefficient of resistivity (TCR) than those sintered in air, indicating that low partial pressure of oxygen will increase the solubility of the donor dopant and enhance the grain growth. In addition, a small negative TCR at low temperature, as well as a small positive TCR at higher temperature, are also observed for specimens fired in a reducing atmosphere. The former is attributed to the semiconductive grain and the latter to the small barrier layer formed at the grain boundary.