A jelly-like ceramic fiber at 1193 K

A high-strength ceramic Al₃₁Gd₉O₆₀ continuous fiber with a fiber diameter of about 20 μm and an amorphous structure could be made successfully by using the melt extraction method. This fiber can be freely shaped by viscous flow deformation in the supercooled liquid state (about 1193 K). The fiber strength is about 2 GPa and this strength is maintained up to around 973 K. A high-strength ceramic continuous fiber with a uniform GdAlO₃ nanocrystalline in an amorphous matrix can also be obtained with a suitable crystallization from the amorphous state by heat treatment. The heat resistance, Young’s modulus, and other properties are therefore improved. The amorphous ceramic fiber is promising as a ceramic that can be easily shaped at a relatively low temperatures (around 1193 K) in agreement with temperature range of superplastic processing of Ti alloys. Received: 25 August 1999 / Reviewed and Accepted: 28 October 1999