A low-cost and minimal-processing-step method is demonstrated to synthesize Yb 2 O 3 -ZrO 2 system by laser excitation catalyzed solid-state reaction. With 980 nm CW laser irradiating, near-resonant excitation of Yb 3+ ions can obviously enhance solid state reaction. As the molar content of Yb 2 O 3 rises from 12.5% to 50%, the lattice parameter of Yb 2 O 3 -ZrO 2 ceramic increases distinctly. Among them, high crystal quality of Yb 2 Zr 2 O 7 and Yb 0.2 Zr 0.8 O 1.9 are synthesized at the laser power of 400 W for 10 s. Two obvious Raman peaks of Yb 2 Zr 2 O 7 represent increased Raman activity. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Impedance spectroscopy demonstrate the huge amount of the oxygen vacancies in Yb 0.2 Zr 0.8 O 1.9 . Yb 2 Zr 2 O 7 shows lowest thermal conductivity among all the ceramics studied, within the range of 0.497-0.730 W mK −1 from 25°C to 1200°C, which indicates a promising thermal barrier material.