FABRICATION OF TRANSPARENT YAG CERAMICS BY SOLID-STATE METHOD

Transparent yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG ) ceramics were synthesized by a solid-state reaction method using commercial high-purity ultra-fine powders of α-Al2O3 and Y2O3 as starting materials.Mixed powders with a molar ratio of α-Al2O3 to Y2O3,adding 0.5%(in mass) tetralethal ortho silicate as a sintering aid were milled and calcined at 1 400 ℃,then formed and sintered in vacuum at 1 750 ℃ for 4 h to obtain the transparent YAG ceramics.Large crystal grain and wide grain boundaries were obtained in YAG ceramics sintered at 1 850 ℃ for 4 h,and a eutectic region of yttrium aluminum phase and α-Al2O3 existed in the grain boundary.