NOVELTY - The method comprises drawing a carrier film (104) proximate a casting head (114) and across a casting bed (102) of a tape caster at a rate of 2-500 cm/min, depositing a thin film of ceramic slip on the carrier film with the casting head, drying the ceramic slip deposited on the carrier film as the carrier film is drawn through a drying chamber (132) of the tape caster to form a green ceramic sheet on the carrier film, and sintering the green ceramic sheet on roughened setters where not extra weight is placed on the green ceramic sheet during sintering.    USE - The method is useful for making a thin, free-standing ceramic sheet such as yttria-stabilized zirconia ceramic sheet, which is useful in electronic and/or electro optic applications such as waveguides, or as substrates for electronic coatings, superconductors or high temperature superconductors, and is useful as an electrolytic catalyst in solid oxide fuel cells.    ADVANTAGE - The method is capable of efficiently and economically manufacturing the thin and flexible ceramic sheet with improved uniformity and production output and reduced waste and without curl by reducing the number of defects occur while forming the sheets.    DETAILED DESCRIPTION - The method comprises drawing a carrier film (104) proximate a casting head (114) and across a casting bed (102) of a tape caster at a rate of 2-500 cm/min, depositing a thin film of ceramic slip on the carrier film with the casting head, drying the ceramic slip deposited on the carrier film as the carrier film is drawn through a drying chamber (132) of the tape caster to form a green ceramic sheet on the carrier film, and sintering the green ceramic sheet on roughened setters where not extra weight is placed on the green ceramic sheet during sintering. The thin film of ceramic slip deposited on the carrier film has a thickness of less than 150 mu m and a wide of greater than 15 cm, and comprises ceramic powders with an ultimate crystallite size of less than 10 mu m dispersed in a fluid vehicle such that the ceramic slip has a ceramic solids fraction of 20 wt.% by volume. The drying chamber is maintained at a temperature of less than 150 degrees C as air is passed through the drying chamber at a rate of 40-3000 ft./min. The carrier film has a thickness of 25-250 mu m. The method further comprises passing the carrier film proximate a static dissipative device to reduce static build up on the carrier film, forming the ceramic slip, milling the ceramic powder with the slip vehicle and dispersant in the presence of milling media, sectioning the green ceramic sheets, and releasing the sectioned green ceramic sheets from the carrier film. The casting head comprises a slot die comprising a slot gap, which is adjusted from 25-250 mu m. The slot die is spaced apart from the carrier film by less than 300 mu m, and comprises an angular orientation of -25-25 degrees relative to horizontal. The ceramic slip is delivered to the slot die with a slip metering device comprising a pressurized reservoir for containing the slip and a gear pump such that the ceramic slip is deposited on the carrier film at a rate of 0.01-2.2 ml/cm/min. The formation of the ceramic slip comprises dispersing the ceramic powder in the slip vehicle with a dispersant, adding a charge-modifying agent to the dispersed ceramic powders in the slip vehicle, adding a binder and a plasticizer to the fluid vehicle, and homogenizing the ceramic powder in the slip vehicle. The ceramic slip contains binder precursors which form the binder upon heating, drying or exposure to radiation with the condensation polymer. The ceramic powder is an electrolyte. The ceramic slip is filtered with a two stage filter comprising a first filter and a second filter before the ceramic slip is deposited on the carrier film. The first filter passes ceramic particle agglomerates of less than 20 mu m. The second filter passes ceramic particle agglomerates of less than 10 mu m such that the ceramic slip comprises ceramic particle agglomerates of less than 10 mu m. The ceramic powder comprises zirconia powders comprising crystallites with a mean diameter of less than 1 mu m. The ceramic slip comprises a zirconia solids fraction of greater than 45 wt.% by volume. The green ceramic sheet is sintered by positioning the green ceramic sheet on setters in a sintering furnace, and sintering the green ceramic sheet in an air environment by heating the sintering furnace to a maximum temperature of 1100-1600 degrees C and holding the sintering furnace at the maximum temperature for less than 10 hours. The setters have a thickness of less than 2.6 cm, and are spaced less than 4 cm. The setters supporting the sintering ceramic provide an open periphery of 50 %. The green ceramic sheet is sectioned by positioning the green ceramic sheet on an anti-static film in the proximity of an anti-static device directed toward the green ceramic sheet, holding the green ceramic sheet with a vacuum-holder, and cutting the green ceramic sheet with a circular blade. The green ceramic sheet is released by holding the sectioned green ceramic sheet with a vacuum-holder, removing the carrier film from the sectioned green ceramic sheet such that the green ceramic sheet is stretched by less than 5%. An INDEPENDENT CLAIM is included for a casting apparatus for forming thin, free-standing green ceramic sheets.    DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING(S) - The diagram shows a schematic view of thin, flexible green ceramic sheets.    Casting bed (102)    Carrier film (104)    Delivery roll (106)    Casting head (114)    Drying chamber. (132)