Abstract: An improved ceramic heater to be incorporated in a glow plug is described. The heater is made up of a ceramic core enclosed by two layers sintered together to form a unitary ceramic heater. All three component elements of the heater are composed of silicon nitride containing different concentrations of an electrically conductive ceramic substance, such as titanium nitride, titanium carbonitride or molybdenum disilicide. Each component additionally contains low amounts of sintering additives. The core of the heater has the highest concentration (46-75 vol. %) of the electrically conductive substance. The core enclosed in a ceramic layer which is an electrical insulator and is composed of silicon nitride, less than 28 vol. % of the electrically conductive ceramic substance and sintering additives. An outer layer over the core contains the electrically conductive ceramic substance in a concentration (33-50 vol. %) which is in between that in the core and that in the insulator layer.

Abstract: A method of producing a composite comprising a self-supporting polycrystalline material obtained by oxidation reaction of a molten parent metal with a vapor-phase oxidant comprising infiltrating a filler exhibiting inter-particle pore volume with a parent metal under conditions which control the respective rates of said metal infiltration and said oxidation reaction.