Fabrication and properties of La2-xGdxHf2O7 transparent ceramics

La2-xGdxHf2O7 (x=0-2.0) transparent ceramics were fabricated through vacuum sintering from nano-powders synthesized by a simple combustion method. The phase composition of the powders and final ceramics, the in-line transmittance, microstructures and density of the ceramics were investigated. With the increasing of Gd content, the ceramics maintained the cubic pyrochlore structure, and the lattice parameters decreased, whilst the densities increased linearly. All the ceramics were transparent. The highest in-line transmittance was 76.1% at 800 nm (x=1.2). With high density (7.91-8.88 g/cm3) and effective atomic number, some of the La2-xGdxHf2O7 (x=0-2.0) transparent ceramics are promising candidates for scintillator hosts.