A porous material includes an aggregate in which oxide films are formed on surfaces of particle bodies, and a binding material that contains cordierite and binds the aggregate together in a state where pores are formed. The binding material or the oxide films contain a rare-earth component that excludes Ce.

Disclosed is a method of manufacturing a ferrite magnetic substance, including: a first mixing operation of providing a first mixture composed of 47 to 49 wt % of Fe, 16 to 18 wt % of Mn, 5.2 to 7.2 wt % of Zn, and a remainder of oxygen and other inevitable impurities, a second mixing operation of providing a second mixture composed of the first mixture and an additive including, based on 100 parts by weight of the first mixture, 28 to 51 ppm of Si, 140 to 210 ppm of Nb and 155 to 185 ppm of Zr, and a finish operation of producing a ferrite magnetic substance by sintering the second mixture.

A ceramic material has a composition represented by Ca.sub.xNa.sub.xMn.sub.yM.sub.yO.sub.12, wherein M denotes at least one of Ni and Cu, and x, x, y, and y satisfy any of (a), (b), and (c) in which x+x=X and y+y=Y:

[00001]$\begin{array}{cc}\frac{0.9}{7.0}\frac{X}{Y}<\frac{1.0}{7.0};& \left(a\right)\end{array}$

at a condition of

[00002]$\begin{array}{cc}\frac{X}{Y}=\frac{1.0}{7.0},\frac{0.03}{8}\frac{x}{X+Y}<\frac{0.30}{8}.Math..Math.\mathrm{and}.Math..Math.0\frac{y}{X+Y}\frac{0.35}{8};\mathrm{and}& \left(b\right)\\ \frac{1.0}{7.0}<\frac{X}{Y}\frac{1.0}{6.9}.& \left(c\right)\end{array}$

Provided is a MnZnO sputtering target which can be used in DC sputtering, and a production method for the target. The MnZnO sputtering target comprises a chemical composition containing Mn, Zn, O, and at least one element X, the element X being a single one or two elements selected from the group consisting of W and Mo. The target has a relative density of 90% or more and a specific resistance of 110.sup.3 .Math.cm or less.

A piezoelectric ceramic includes a perovskite-type metal oxide containing barium titanate, and Mn. When a surface thereof along the remanent polarization direction is subjected to X-ray diffraction analysis at room temperature, the ratio of the diffraction intensity of the (002) plane to the diffraction intensity of the (200) plane is 1.0 or more, the diffraction peak of the (002) plane has a half width of 1.2? or less, and the lattice constant of the c-axis thereof and the lattice constant of the a-axis thereof satisfy the relationship 1.004?c/a?1.010.

Provided are a piezoelectric ceramics which does not contain lead, has small temperature dependence of a piezoelectric constant within an operating temperature range, and has high density, a high mechanical quality factor, a satisfactory piezoelectric constant, and a small surface roughness, and a method of manufacturing the piezoelectric ceramics. The method of manufacturing a piezoelectric ceramics is characterized by including: sintering a compact containing a raw material at 1,000 C. or more to obtain a sintered compact; abrading the sintered compact; and annealing the abraded sintered compact at a temperature of 800 C. or more and less than 1,000 C.

A dielectric composition and a multilayer ceramic capacitor containing the same are provided. The dielectric composition contains an oxide of Ba and Ti as a main ingredient, and the main ingredient is represented by (Ba.sub.1-x(Na, Ca).sub.x)TiO.sub.3, where 0.005x0.035 and 0.994<(Ba.sub.1-x(Na, Ca).sub.x)/Ti<1.003.

A dielectric composition and a multilayer ceramic capacitor containing the same are provided. The dielectric composition contains an oxide of Ba and Ti as a main ingredient, and the main ingredient is represented by (Ba.sub.1-x), (Na, Ca).sub.x)TiO.sub.3, where 0.005x0.035 and 0.994<(Ba.sub.1-x(Na, Ca).sub.x)/Ti<1.003.

A material for a thermoelectric element and a method for producing a material for a thermoelectric element are disclosed. In an embodiment the thermoelectric element includes a material comprising calcium manganese oxide that is partially doped with Fe atoms in positions of Mn atoms.

The present invention relates to a thermistor paste and a manufacturing method thereof. The thermistor paste includes specific contents of thermistor powder, a glass powder, and an organic carrier, in which the organic carrier includes an organic solvent, a binder, and an additive. A thermistor semi-finished product slurry of the present invention has been sintered. The thermistor paste of the present invention excludes a precious metal, such as ruthenium, gold, or platinum, etc., so the production cost can be reduced.