The mixed system of BaTiO 3 and AlN has been investigated in terms of dielectric properties and microstructure. Two different types of additives, bismuth oxide and bismuth borosilicate glass, were used to lower sintering temperature. First, the addition of a fixed content (3 wt.%) of Bi 2 O 3 provided densification at 1200 • C where monotonous decreases of dielectric constant were found with increasing the content of AlN. On the other hand, the bismuth borosilicate glass was effectively used to decrease firing temperature to 850 • C, which is suitable for thick film capacitor applications. A practical demonstration of thick film capacitors using a Ag electrode on a 96% alumina substrate indicated that the optimum composition of 76BaTiO 3 -20AlN-4glass may be adequate for generating k of 79.4 and tan δ of 0.014 at 1 MHz as a result of the low temperature firing of 850 • C in air atmosphere.

Catalyst-free ZnO nanowall network was synthesized at 250 C by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The nanowall network of wurtzite structure was grown on Si substrates in an epitaxial-like manner, determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) images revealed that the width of the nanowalls vary in the range of 20 -45 nm depending on deposition conditions. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area of the nanowall network was increased ten-fold compared to that of the thin film of an identical thickness. Furthermore, the photoluminescence (PL) spectra proved that the synthesized nanowalls were of high optical quality.