Set forth herein are garnet material compositions, e.g., lithium-stuffed garnets and lithium-stuffed garnets doped with alumina, which are suitable for use as electrolytes and catholytes in solid state battery applications. Also set forth herein are lithium-stuffed garnet thin films having fine grains therein. Disclosed herein are novel and inventive methods of making and using lithium-stuffed garnets as catholytes, electrolytes and/or anolytes for all solid state lithium rechargeable batteries. Also disclosed herein are novel electrochemical devices which incorporate these garnet catholytes, electrolytes and/or anolytes. Also set forth herein are methods for preparing novel structures, including dense thin (<50 um) free standing membranes of an ionically conducting material for use as a catholyte, electrolyte, and, or, anolyte, in an electrochemical device, a battery component (positive or negative electrode materials), or a complete solid state electrochemical energy storage device. Also, the methods set forth herein disclose novel sintering techniques, e.g., for heating and/or field assisted (FAST) sintering, for solid state energy storage devices and the components thereof.

An electromechanical transducer includes an electromechanical transducer film of laminated layers including a perovskite-type complex oxide represented by a general formula of ABO.sub.3; and a pair of electrodes opposed to each other with the electromechanical transducer film interposed between the pair of electrodes. In the general formula of ABO.sub.3, A includes Pb and B includes Zr and Ti. A variable ratio ΔPb of Pb, determined by Pb(max)−Pb(min), is 6% or less and a variable ratio ΔZr of Zr, determined by Zr(max)−Zr(min), is 9% or less, where an atomic weight ratio of Pb in the electromechanical transducer film is denoted by Pb/B, an atomic weight ratio of Zr in the electromechanical transducer film is denoted by Zr/B, a maximum value and a minimum value of the atomic weight ratio of Pb in a film thickness direction of the electromechanical transducer film are denoted by Pb(max) and Pb(min), respectively, and a maximum value and a minimum value of the atomic weight ratio of Zr in the film thickness direction of the electromechanical transducer film are denoted by Zr(max) and Zr(min), respectively.

Disclosed is a method for preparing an alumina-based solid solution ceramic powder by using an aluminum oxygen combustion synthesis water mist process, which comprises: drying raw materials and then mixing same until uniform to obtain a mixed material; loading the mixed material into a high-pressure reactor, igniting same in an oxygen-containing atmosphere, carrying out a high-temperature combustion synthesis reaction to form a high-temperature melt and then carrying out heat preservation for 1-60 s; and then opening a nozzle, ejecting the high-temperature melt through the nozzle and rapidly cooling same through a liquid phase, thus obtaining the alumina-based solid solution ceramic powder.

Material properties are manipulated using rapid pulse application of energy in combination with applied electric or magnetic fields. When sintering, annealing or crystallizing a target film, the pulse repetition cycle can be constrained to ensure material temperature rises above and falls below the Curie temperature before the next energy pulse. This process results in enhanced material properties as compared to traditional techniques having a single, slow temperature excursion and subsequent application of the applied external field.

A Ce—Zr composite oxide contains cerium and zirconium, wherein an uneven distribution ratio of cerium atoms is 1.80 or less. A method for producing a Ce—Zr composite oxide includes an acid treatment step of bringing at least one selected from the group consisting of sulfuric acid, nitric acid, and hydrochloric acid, in an amount of 4 to 28 parts by mass with respect to 100 parts by mass of the raw material composite oxide, into contact with the surface of a raw material composite oxide containing cerium and zirconium, and a calcination step of calcining the treated composite oxide obtained in the acid treatment step at 400 to 1200° C. for 5 to 300 minutes.

A Ce—Zr composite oxide contains cerium and zirconium, wherein an uneven distribution ratio of cerium atoms is 1.80 or less. A method for producing a Ce—Zr composite oxide includes an acid treatment step of bringing at least one selected from the group consisting of sulfuric acid, nitric acid, and hydrochloric acid, in an amount of 4 to 28 parts by mass with respect to 100 parts by mass of the raw material composite oxide, into contact with the surface of a raw material composite oxide containing cerium and zirconium, and a calcination step of calcining the treated composite oxide obtained in the acid treatment step at 400 to 1200° C. for 5 to 300 minutes.

An electronic device comprises a first blocking electrode; a second blocking electrode; and a dielectric material disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode, the dielectric material comprising a compound of Formula 1

Li.sub.24-b*y-c*z-a*xM.sup.1.sub.yM.sup.2.sub.zM.sup.3.sub.xO.sub.12-δ  (1)

wherein M.sup.1 is a cationic element having an oxidation state of b, wherein b is +1, +2, +3, +4, +5, +6, or a combination thereof; M.sup.2 is a cationic element having an oxidation state of c, wherein c is +1, +2, +3, +4, +5, +6, or a combination thereof; M.sup.3 is a cationic element having an oxidation state of a, wherein a is +1, +3, +4, or a combination thereof; 0≤y≤3; 0≤z≤3; 0≤x≤5; and 0≤δ≤2. Methods for the manufacture of the electronic device are also disclosed.

A ceramic powder material which contains an LLZ-based garnet-type compound represented by Li.sub.7−3xAl.sub.xLa.sub.3Zr.sub.2O.sub.12 (where x satisfies 0≤x≤0.3) and in which a main phase of a crystal phase undergoes phase transition from a tetragonal phase to a cubic phase in the process of raising a temperature from 25° C. to 1050° C. and the main phase is the cubic phase even after the temperature is lowered to 25° C.

A precursor solution of a garnet-type solid electrolyte is provided that is represented by the following compositional formula, and contains one type of solvent, and a lithium compound, a lanthanum compound, a zirconium compound, a gallium compound, and a neodymium compound, each of which has solubility in the solvent, wherein with respect to the stoichiometric composition of the following compositional formula, the amount of the lithium compound is 1.05 times or more and 1.30 times or less, and the amounts of the lanthanum compound, the zirconium compound, the gallium compound, and the neodymium compound are equal, (Li.sub.7−3xGa.sub.x) (La.sub.3−yNd.sub.y) Zr.sub.2O.sub.12 provided that the following relationships are satisfied: 0.1≤x≤1.0 and 0.0<y≤0.2.

A solid electrolyte material of the present disclosure includes: Li; Zr; Fe; O; and X. The X is at least one selected from the group consisting of F, Cl, Br, and I. In an X-ray diffraction pattern obtained by X-ray diffraction measurement using a Cu-Kα ray, a first peak is present within a range of a diffraction angle 2θ from 14.7° to 15.1°, a second peak is present within a range of the diffraction angle 2θ from 29.9° to 30.7°, and a third peak is present within a range of the diffraction angle 2θ from 34.1° to 34.8°.