Comparison of aqueous- and non-aqueous-based tape casting for preparing YAG transparent ceramics

Transparent YAG ceramics were prepared by the aqueous and non-aqueous based tape casting methods. The rheological property of the slurries was analyzed by the viscosity shear rate curves. The thermal character was detected by the TG-DTA analysis. The microstructures of the tapes and ceramics were compared. The influence of density of the tape on the ceramics were discussed. The in-line transmittance curves were compared to analyze the optical quality of obtained samples. Results indicate that the methods mentioned above can achieve transparent YAG ceramics with multilayer structure. The transmittance of the sample prepared by the aqueous tape casting is above 81% at 400 nm and the sample fabricated by the non-aqueous tape casting possesses higher optical properties. The transmittance is higher than 82% at 400 nm and reaches 84% at 1064 nm. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.