A grain-grade zirconia toughened alumina ceramic substrate and a method for preparing the same. The ceramic substrate is prepared from alumina power (main phase) and zirconia powder (secondary phase) in a binary azeotrope of anhydrous ethanol and butanone in the presence of magnesia-alumina spinel powder (as sintering aid), phosphate ester (as dispersant), polyvinyl butyral (as binder) and dibutyl phthalate (as plasticizer). In a mixture of the alumina power and the zirconia powder, a volume percentage of the alumina power is 82.44-96.7%, and a volume percentage of the zirconia powder is 3.30-17.56%. The magnesia-alumina spinel powder is 0.1-4.0% by weight of the mixture of the alumina power and the zirconia powder. A particle size ratio of the alumina powder to the zirconia powder is 2.415-4.444.

The present invention is directed to a method for producing a silicon nitride sintered material, the method including heating a molded article, which contains a silicon nitride powder having a β phase ratio of 80% or more, a dissolved oxygen content of 0.2% by mass or less, and a specific surface area of 5 to 20 m.sup.2/g, and a sintering auxiliary containing a compound having no oxygen bond, and which has an overall oxygen content controlled to be 1 to 15% by mass and an aluminum element overall content controlled to be 800 ppm or less, to a temperature of 1,200 to 1,800° C. in an inert gas atmosphere under a pressure of 0 MPa.Math.G or more and less than 0.1 MPa.Math.G to sinter the silicon nitride.

In the present invention, there can be provided a method for producing a silicon nitride sintered material, which method is advantageous in that a silicon nitride sintered material having high thermal conductivity can be obtained even when using a silicon nitride powder having a high β phase ratio and conducting calcination under normal pressure or substantially normal pressure.

A multilayer coil component that includes a multilayer body in which a plurality of insulating layers are stacked in a stacking direction and a coil inside the multilayer body, and outer electrodes that are on surfaces of the multilayer body and are electrically connected to the coil. The insulating layers include a spinel-structure ferrite phase and a ZnFe(BO.sub.3)O-type crystalline phase.

A dielectric composition includes dielectric particles and first segregations. The dielectric particles each include a perovskite compound represented by ABO.sub.3 as a main component. The first segregations each include at least Ba, P, and O. A molar ratio (Ba/Ti) of Ba to Ti in the first segregations is 1.20 or more.

In a silicon nitride substrate including a silicon nitride sintered body including silicon nitride crystal grains and a grain boundary phase, a plate thickness of the silicon nitride substrate is 0.4 mm or les, and a percentage of a number of the silicon nitride crystal grains including dislocation defect portions inside the silicon nitride crystal grains in a 50 μm×50 μm observation region of any cross section or surface of the silicon nitride sintered body is not less than 0% and not more than 20%. Etching resistance can be increased when forming the circuit board.

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a silicon nitride substrate and, more specifically, comprises the steps of: forming a slurry by mixing silicon nitride powder, a ceramic additive, and a solvent; molding the slurry to form sheets; sandwiching at least one of the sheets between a lower plate and an upper plate to form a stacked structure; degreasing the stacked structure; and sintering the stacked structure. At least one of the lower plate and the upper plate comprises a plurality of protrusions provided on one surface thereof, and the protrusions extend in parallel to each other in one direction.

A multilayer electronic component includes a body including a dielectric layer and an internal electrode; and an external electrode disposed on the body and connected to the internal electrode, wherein the dielectric layer includes first and second grains, wherein the first grain has a core-shell structure including a shell having an atomic ratio of 2*Sn/(Ba+Ti+Sn) or 2*Hf/(Ba+Ti+Hf) to be 1.0% or more and 5.0% or less, and a core having an atomic ratio of 2*Sn/(Ba+Ti+Sn) and 2*Hf/(Ba+Ti+Hf) to be less than 1.0%, and the second grain has an atomic ratio of 2*Sn/(Ba+Ti+Sn) and 2*Hf/(Ba+Ti+Hf) to be less than 1.0%, and wherein an area occupied by the first grain in an entire area of the first and second grains is 28.3-82.3%.

A method for forming a sintered composition including providing a slurry precursor including a lithium-, sodium-, or magnesium-based compound; tape casting the slurry precursor to form a green tape; and sintering the green tape at a temperature in a range of 500° C. to 1350° C. for a time in a range of less than 60 min to form a sintered composition, such that the slurry precursor further includes a solvent and dispersant. The dispersant may include an amine compound, a carboxylic acid compound, or combinations, mixtures, or salts thereof.

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.

A ceramic electronic device includes a multilayer chip in which each of a plurality of dielectric layers and each of a plurality of internal electrode layers including Ni as a main phase are alternately stacked. At least one of the plurality of dielectric layers includes a secondary phase including Si, at an interface between the at least one of the plurality of dielectric layers and one of the plurality of internal electrode layers next to the at least one of the plurality of dielectric layers. The one of the plurality of internal electrode layers includes a layer including an additive element including one or more of Au, Pt, Cu, Fe, Cr, Zn, and In, at a region contacting the secondary phase at the interface.