A. I. Belyaeva

Diagnostic First Mirrors for Burning Plasma Experiments

The lifetime of refractive components exposed to reactor grade plasmas will be very short and so all diagnostics which use UV (λ > 5nm), Visible and IR radiation (λ up to ∼100μm) have to view the plasma via a mirror. The diagnostic first mirrors (FM) must survive in extremely hostile conditions and maintain a good optical performance for the duration of reactor operation. In ITER-FEAT the FMs will receive intense UV and X-ray radiation, neutron and gamma fluxes, and particle fluxes (due to charge exchange atoms (CXA)). In addition, they will be subjected to the deposition of material eroded from the divertor and first wall. Of the different kinds of radiation and fluxes only CXA impact will result in direct surface modification of metallic FMs that can lead to degradation of optical properties. The fluxes of all radiation components to the mirror surface depend strongly on the mirror location. For example, the FMs of a wide-angle observation system (endoscope with open architecture) in ITER will be bombarded by CXA fluxes of about the same magnitude as the first wall. On the other hand, the FMs in the LIDAR system are located in a long duct (∼2 m in length) and will receive CXA fluxes ∼ 10−2 of the first wall flux. This corresponds to about the lowest flux received by a FM in ITER.

Simulation of environment effects on retroreflectors in ITER

Two plasma diagnostics in ITER will use cube-corner reflectors (CCR): poloidal polarimetry and toroidal interferometry/polarimetry. The multichannel poloidal polarimetry system is planned to operate at a wavelength of 118.8μm. The multichannel toroidal interferometry/polarimetry system is based on a CO2 laser operating at wavelengths of 10.6 and 9.27μm. The long term sputtering by charge exchange atoms and/or deposition of carbon-based (or beryllium-based) contaminant layers can affect the optical properties of the CCR. The role of both these potentially deleterious effects on the CCR operation is analyzed in this article, taking into account the probing beam wavelength and the CCR locations. The conclusion is that for the intended use of a CCR in the poloidal polarimetry at 118μm neither erosion nor deposition should pose a problem. On the other hand, in the toroidal interferometry/polarimetry system operating at 10μm, care must be taken to reduce the charge exchange atom flux and it is likely that depos...

Effect of exposure inside the Large Helical Device vessel on the optical properties of stainless steel mirrors

During the third experimental campaign, three stainless steel mirrors were exposed inside the Large Helical Device (LHD) vacuum vessel and, in order to measure the change in their spectral reflectance R(λ), the effect of this exposure was measured at normal incidence (λ=200–700 nm). The mirrors located in the divertor region and in the diagnostic port became coated with carbon-based films; however, the mirror placed closest to the plasma confinement volume became cleaner than it had initially been. The characteristics of the films were obtained by different techniques. The deposited films were slowly removed by repeatedly exposing the mirrors to low-energy ions of deuterium plasma, and R(λ) was measured after every exposure. In the present paper we compare the reflectance behaviour during this cleaning procedure and the reflectance calculated in the framework of a model assuming that a half-transparent film is formed on stainless steel substrate. The n(λ) and k(λ) data for carbon-based films were taken from experiments and the literature.

Modification of optical characteristics of metallic amorphous mirrors under ion bombardment

In-vessel mirrors are necessary for optical diagnostics of plasmas in next-step fusion devices. These mirrors will be under the influence of the harsh fusion environment, and in these conditions the mirror material should perform its functions. This article describes experiments that have been carried out to evaluate the prospect of amorphous mirrors retaining their optical characteristics under the impact of deuterium or argon plasma ions of different energy. The experiments were undertaken with the use of mirror samples prepared from amorphous alloys Vitreloy-1 and Vitreloy-4. The data reported demonstrate the principal ability of mirrors made of amorphous materials to preserve the initial optical quality in the process of long-term sputtering, and should be considered as proof of the possibility of using amorphous metal mirrors in the erosion-dominated zone of a fusion reactor.

Behaviour of mirrors fabricated from amorphous alloys under impact of deuterium plasma ions

In-vessel mirrors are necessary for optical and laser diagnostics of plasmas in next-step fusion devices; however obtaining mirror materials that will maintain their performance in the harsh fusion environment remains problematic. At present, mirrors are fabricated from polycrystals or monocrystals, and metal films on metallic substrate mirrors are also being studied. In this paper, we report on a new family of bulk amorphous alloys that are being investigated in the search for new materials for the fusion environment. Their properties are very different from properties of well-known materials and are insufficiently investigated for scientific and technological applications. We present the results of investigation of modification of the surface and optical properties of amorphous mirror fabricated from Zr(41.2%)Ti(13.8%)Cu(12.5%)Ni(10%)Be(22.5%) alloy after bombardment by ions of deuterium plasma with different fluence and energy.

Interpretation of Tore Supra in-vessel mirror experiments

In this paper the results of post-mortem analysis of mirror samples (molybdenum, stainless steel and copper) exposed for the 1 year experimental campaign inside the Tore Supra tokamak are presented. The mirrors were not protected during the experiment and therefore were exposed both to glow discharge conditioning of the vessel walls and to working discharges. After exposure, all samples were found to be eroded and at the same time were coated with a thin contaminating deposit. We pay attention to the fact, that the observed erosion cannot be described using the published sputtering yields. In particular, the difference between the erosion of stainless steel and copper exceeded a factor of 10 and the difference between the erosion of stainless steel and molybdenum was less than a factor of 2 in comparison with the corresponding factors of approximately 2.5 and apprximately 10 known from the literature. An attempt is made to correlate these observations with the different sticking coefficients of carbon on to different substrates.

Effect of microrelief on the optical characteristics of light Cr-Zr copper alloys bombarded by ions of deuterium plasma

The effect of the structure and size of grains on changes in the microrelief and optical characteristics of specimens of mirrors made of copper alloys with substantially differing grain size upon bombardment by ions of deuterium plasma are studied. Based on a comprehensive study of the structural features of the surface layers of specimens of mirrors made of light copper-chromium alloys, a conclusion is drawn as to the determining role of grain size in their radiation properties.

Modification of optical properties of recrystallized tungsten due to the change in surface morphology induced by deuterium ion bombardment

Using ellipsometry and reflectometry, an anomalous change in the optical properties of recrystallized tungsten (W) as a result of bombardment with deuterium (D) ions was discovered at a sample temperature of ∼535 K. There is a qualitative difference between the value of reflectivity obtained from reflectometry measurements and that calculated from the ellipsometric data. A physical model of the discovered effect is proposed. It is shown that two processes take place at the surface of W exposed to plasma at 535 K: the appearance of blisters and a modification of the electronic structure of the surface layer.

Effect of sputtering on the samples of ITER-grade tungsten preliminarily irradiated by tungsten ions: Optical investigations

The simultaneous effect of sputtering and neutron irradiation on the optical properties of tungsten mirrors has been considered, which was simulated by bombardment by 20-MeV W+6 ions. The action of charge-exchange atoms was imitated using Ar+ ions with an energy of 600 eV. The dependence of the structure of the surface and optical properties of tungsten on the fluence of Ar ions has been studied using optical microscopy, interferometry, reflectometry, and ellipsometry. It has been shown that irradiation with neutrons should introduce a significant additional contribution to the processes at the tungsten surface that occur under the effect of charge-exchange atoms. An analysis of experimental data obtained by using reflectometry and ellipsometry made it possible to suggest a realistic model of the process of surface modification for samples of ITER-grade tungsten (that were preliminarily irradiated by tungsten ions) using prolonged sputtering by Ar+ ions.

Effect of various kinds of severe plastic deformation on the structure and electromechanical properties of precipitation-strengthened CuCrZr alloy

The effect of various kinds of severe plastic deformation (equal-channel angular pressing and quasi-hydrostatic extrusion at 77 and 300 K) on the structural formation of precipitation-strengthened CuCrZr alloy has been studied. A combination of experimental methods has been used. Sputtering by deuterium ions was used as the tool for the layer-by-layer study of the alloy structure. The difference between the sputtering yields of the matrix (copper) and precipitates (Cr and Zr) allowed us to visualize the alloy structure to a total depth of 0.5−1 μm. The effect of severe plastic deformation on the precipitate distribution is considered. It has been shown that the main peculiarity of the microstructure is related to the high density of precipitates enriched in chromium, which completely determine the surface roughness. Their distribution is not related to the grain size. The combination of equal-channel angular pressing and quasi-hydrostatic extrusion was shown to lead to the increase in the microhardness of the CuCrZr alloy to 2300 MPa in the case of low-temperature quasi-hydrostatic extrusion (at 77 K) and to the retained high conductivity. It has been proved that the high anisotropy of precipitate shape, microhardness, and sputtering yield of the CuCrZr alloy is determined by equal-channel angular pressing.