The effect of MnO2 content on the permeability and electrical resistance of porous alumina-based ceramics

Abstract

Porous alumina-based ceramics are of special interest due to their outstanding mechanical properties and their thermal and chemical stability. Nevertheless, the high electrical resistance of alumina-based ceramics, due to the generation of static electricity, leads to difficulty in applying a vacuum chuck in the semi-conductor process. Therefore, development of alumina-based ceramics for applications with vacuum chucks aims to have primary properties of low electrical resistance and high air permeability. In this study, we tailored the electrical resistance of porous alumina-based ceramics by adjusting the amount of MnO2 (with TiO2 fixed at an amount of 2 wt%) and by using coarse alumina powder for high air permeability. The characteristics of the specimens were studied using scanning electron microscopy, mercury porosimeter, capillary flow porosimetry, universal testing machine, X-ray diffraction and high-resistance meter.