Ceramic-on-metal coatings can be made by pyrolyzing pre-ceramic polyme
rs. However, the large shrinkage associated with the transformation of
the initial polymer into the final ceramic material usually leads to
cracks, which develop when the thickness of the coating exceeds a crit
ical value. The present work shows that the use of a filler, constitut
ed of alumina particulates, allows the critical thickness of SiC-based
coatings to be increased by about an order of magnitude.