ZrO2-doped Y2O3 transparent ceramics via slip casting and vacuum sintering

Commercial Y2O3 powder was used to fabricate highly transparent Y2O3 ceramics with the addition of ZrO2 via slip casting and vacuum sintering. The effects of ZrO2 addition on the transparency, grain size and lattice parameter of Y2O3 ceramics were studied. With addition of ZrO2 the transparency of Y2O3 ceramics increased markedly and the grain size of Y2O3 ceramics decreased markedly by cation diffusivity mechanism and the lattice parameter of Y2O3 ceramics slightly decreased. The highest transmittance (at wavelength 1100 nm) of the 5.0 mol% ZrO2–Y2O3 ceramic (1.0 mm thick) sintered at 1860 °C for 8 h reached 81.7%, very close to the theoretical value of Y2O3.