Ceramic-containing bodies can be bonded to other
ceramic-containing bodies, or to metals or
metal-containing bodies, by way of an aluminum-
silicon brazing alloy. Such alloys feature high
thermal conductivity and a melting range intermediate to Cu—Sil and Au—Si. By depositing a layer of
silicon or aluminum, e.g., by vapor deposition, onto a surface of the
ceramic-containing body, the formation of deleterious
intermetallic phases at the
brazing interface is avoided. This technique is particularly useful for joining reaction-bonded
silicon carbide (RBSC) composite bodies, and particularly such composite bodies that contain appreciable amounts of aluminum as a metallurgical modification of the residual silicon phase. When the RBSC body contains minor amounts of the aluminum alloying constituent, or none, the metallization layer is not required. The resulting bonded structures have utility as mirrors, as packaging for
electronics, and in
semiconductor lithography equipment, e.g., as electrostatic chucks for supporting a silicon
wafer during the
lithography process.