Inorganic, nonmetallic materials processed or consolidated at high temperature. This definition includes a wide range of materials known as advanced ceramics and is much broader than the common dictionary definition, which includes only pottery, tile, porcelain, and so forth. The classes of materials generally considered to be ceramics are oxides, nitrides, borides, carbides, silicides, and sulfides. Intermetallic compounds such as aluminides and beryllides are also considered ceramics, as are phosphides, antimonides, and arsenides.