To improve the dielectric and microwave absorption properties of Al 2 O 3 ceramic, Zn-doped Al 2 O 3 ceramic was prepared by conventional ceramic processing. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed that Zn atoms successfully entered the Al 2 O 3 ceramic lattice and occupied Al sites. The complex permittivity increased with increasing Zn concentration, which is mainly attributed to the increase in charged vacancy defects and densification of the Al 2 O 3 ceramic. In addition, the temperature-dependent complex permittivity of 3% Zn-doped Al 2 O 3 ceramic was determined in the temperature range from 298 K to 873 K. Both the real and imaginary parts of the complex permittivity increased monotonically with increasing temperature, which can be ascribed to the shortened relaxation time and increasing electrical conductivity. The increased complex permittivity leads to a great improvement in microwave absorption. In particular, when the temperature is up to 873 K, the 3% Zn-doped Al 2 O 3 ceramic exhibited the best absorption performance with a maximum peak (À12.1 dB) and broad effective absorption bandwidth (reflection loss less than À10 dB from 9.3 GHz to 12.3 GHz). These results reveal that Zn-doped Al 2 O 3 ceramic is a promising candidate for use as a kind of high-temperature microwave absorption material.