The applicability of high-temperature laser triangulation profilometry for in-situ control of sintering flat ceramic components was demonstrated for the first time using a specially designed testing ...device. This method allows in-situ recording of 3D shape data for samples up to 20 cm x 20 cm x 1 cm in size during sintering or binder burn-out < 1000 C. The achieved local repeatability of the laser distance sensor was 10 micron and 15 micron at 20 C and 1000 C, respectively. A linear sensor positioning accuracy of 1 micron resulted from the maximum angular resolution of sample rotation of about 0.0025 degrees. The maximum available "exposure" time for completing a single 3D surface scan during shape-changing processes is limited by the maximum tolerable shape deformation during data acquisition. This effect limits the number of measured surface points and hereby the achievable lateral resolution. For sintering LTCC tapes of 20 cm x 20 cm in size during heating at 3 K/min, this exposure time was 2-3 min, limiting the lateral resolution to 0.5 mm. On the other hand, only a few seconds are required for single line scans, providing much better lateral resolution of 1 micron, even for fast deformation processes.
