Spray pyrolysis routes to electroceramic powders and thin films

A brief overview on two novel spray pyrolysis techniques developed recently in our laboratory, i.e. Electrostatic Spray Deposition (ESD) and Flame-Assisted Ultrasonic Spray Pyrolysis (FAUSP), is presented in this paper. Alcoholic solutions of metal salts or alkoxides are used as precursor solutions. Both techniques have been successfully applied to synthesize electroceramic materials including semiconductor TiO₂, ionic conductor ZrO₂, and mixed electronic-ionic conductor LiMn₂O₄. ESD is usually used for the fabrication of thin films with various morphologies, while FAUSP is used for the production of fine powders.