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.

Methods of flash sintering have been developed in which particle are initially coated with thin layers by atomic layer deposition (ALD). Examples are provided in which 8 mol % yttria-stabilized zirconia (8YSZ) particles are coated with small quantities of Al.sub.2O.sub.3 by particle atomic layer deposition (ALD). Sintered materials that result from the process have been characterized. Sintered materials having unique characteristics are also described.

A composite material consisting of a matrix made of at least one aluminosilicate notably selected from barium aluminosilicate BAS, barium and strontium aluminosilicate BSAS, strontium aluminosilicate SAS, and mixtures thereof, reinforced by reinforcements made of at least one metal or metalloid oxide, the expansion coefficient of which is close to that of said at least one aluminosilicate.

A method for preparing said composite material.

A composite material according to the invention notably finding its application in the aeronautical or aerospace field, for example for the manufacture of radomes.

Disclosed are methods of forming a chamber component for a process chamber. The methods may include filling a mold with nanoparticles or plasma spraying nanoparticles, where at least a portion of the nanoparticles include a core particle and a thin film coating over the core particle. The core particle and thin film are formed of, independently, a rare earth metal-containing oxide, a rare earth metal-containing fluoride, a rare earth metal-containing oxyfluoride, or combinations thereof. The nanoparticles may have a donut-shape having a spherical form with indentations on opposite sides. The methods also may include sintering the nanoparticles to form the chamber component and materials. Further described are chamber components and coatings formed from the described nanoparticles.

A process for preparing a sintered silicon carbide body including sintering a sample including silicon carbide particles to form a shaped sintered silicon carbide body, the particles containing a silicon carbide core and a surface layer containing carbon and oxygen, the sample having at least 90 weight % being C or Si and having a carbon to silicon molar ratio molC/molSi higher than 1 and a carbon in excess to oxygen molar ratio Cex/molO which is higher than 0.5 and lower than 5.3.

A method for making a component for use in a plasma processing chamber is provided. A non-oxide silicon containing powder composition is placed in a mold, wherein the non-oxide silicon containing powder composition consists essentially of a non-oxide silicon containing powder and at least one of a B or B4C dopant. The non-oxide silicon containing powder composition is subjected to spark plasma sintering (SPS) to form a spark plasma sintered component. The spark plasma sintered component is machined into a plasma processing chamber component.

A method for the assembly of a metal part and a ceramic part, including the following steps: supplying a solid ceramic part of the alumina type; supplying a solid metal part, the metal being selected from platinum and tantalum, or an alloy including a majority of one of these metals; depositing at least one layer, called interface layer, on at least one of the solid parts, the interface layer containing magnesium oxide; bringing into contact the solid metal part and the solid ceramic part such that the interface layer is located between the solid parts; and hot densification under pressure of the solid parts brought into contact, to create a close bond between the solid parts and form a spinel from the interface layer. An electrical device, such as a capacitive sensor having a sensitive part produced according to the present method, is also provided.

A method of performing a flash sintering of a specimen (200, 300, 400, 600), the method comprising: connecting an anode electrode (102) to a specimen (200, 300, 400, 600) at an anode contact and connecting a cathode electrode (102) to the specimen (200, 300, 400, 600) at a cathode contact; flowing current through the specimen (200, 300, 400, 600) from the anode electrode (102) to the cathode electrode (102) to heat the specimen (200, 300, 400, 600) by Joule heating and thereby sinter it; wherein at least one of the anode contact and the cathode contact is configured to reduce a temperature gradient between a core (110, 610) in a central region of the specimen (200, 300, 400, 600) and a surface (120, 620) of the specimen (200, 300, 400, 600).

FIG. 2 is to be reproduced with the Abstract.

A die or piston of a spark plasma sintering apparatus, wherein the die or piston is made from graphite and the outer surfaces of the die or piston are coated with a silicon carbide layer with a thickness of 1 to 10 micrometres, the silicon carbide layer being further optionally coated with one or more other layer(s) made from a carbide other than silicon carbide chosen from hafnium carbide, tantalum carbide and titanium carbide, the other layer(s) each having a thickness of 1 to 10 micrometres. A spark plasma sintering (SPS) apparatus comprising the die and two of the pistons, defining a sintering, densification or assembly chamber capable of receiving a powder to be sintered, a part to be densified, or parts to be assembled. A method of sintering a powder, densifying a part, or assembling two parts by means of a method of spark plasma sintering (SPS) in an oxidising atmosphere, using the spark plasma sintering (SPS) apparatus.

A method of forming a water resistant boundary on a fissile material for use in a water cooled nuclear reactor is described. The method comprises mixing a powdered fissile material selected from the group consisting of UN and U.sub.3Si.sub.2 with an additive selected from oxidation resistant materials having a melting or softening point lower than the sintering temperature of the fissile material, pressing the mixed fissile and additive materials into a pellet, sintering the pellet to a temperature greater than the melting point of the additive. Alternatively, if the melting point of the oxidation resistant particles is greater than the sintering temperature of UN or U.sub.3Si.sub.2, then the oxidation resistant particles can have a particle size distribution less than that of the UN or U.sub.3Si.sub.2.