Mechanical and optical properties of porous black Al2O3: Experimental, DFT, and wave optics investigation

Abstract

Porous black Al2O3 was fabricated by gel casting and pressureless sintering (PS). MnO2 and Fe2O3 incorporated in Al2O3 led to the formation of MnAl2O4 and FeAl2O4 at ≥1200 °C, enhancing its opacity. The influence of various MnO2 content and sintering temperature on the mechanical and optical properties of porous black Al2O3 was investigated. The results showed that as MnO2 content and sintering temperature increased, porosity decreased, bulk density increased, compressive strength increased, and opacity increased. Using density functional theory (DFT), the intrinsic properties of MnAl2O4 and FeAl2O4 were investigated, including band structure (BS), electron distribution, partial density of states (PDOS), and optical properties such as refractivity, absorption, dielectric constant, conductivity, and dissipation factor across various wavelengths. These DFT calculations were incorporated into the wave optics model to assess the response and impedance matching of porous black Al2O3 to transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) waves with various MnAl2O4 content.