ABSTRACT High‐pressureless sintering temperatures in the industrial fabrication of transparent AlON ceramics result in elevated production costs, highlighting the need to develop novel strategies to lower the sintering temperature. In this study, the AlON ceramics with high transmittance of ∼81% were successfully sintered at a lower temperature of 1800°C by co‐doping with BaO–SiO 2 as novel sintering additives. The effects of BaO–SiO 2 on the phase composition, microstructure, and optical properties of AlON ceramics were systematically investigated, and the underlying mechanism by which the BaO–SiO 2 co‐doping promotes pressureless sintering was elucidated. This work provides a cost‐effective and energy‐efficient approach for producing highly transparent AlON ceramics.
Zhou et al. (Sun,) studied this question.