Deuterium retention in silicon carbide, SiC ceramic matrix composites, and SiC coated graphite

Abstract

Silicon Carbide (SiC) is a low Z material discussed as an alternative to graphite for fusion devices. The retention of hydrogenous species is an important plasma-surface interaction property. Deuterium was implanted into SiC, SiCf/SiC, Cf/C-SiC and SiC coated graphite under various particle energy and substrate temperature conditions. A TDS process was used to characterise the deuterium retention of the implanted specimens. While all SiC materials show elevated retention levels compared to graphite, the differences are limited to about a factor of two over the range of parameters investigated. Keywords: Deuterium Retention, Silicon Carbide, Ceramic Composite Materials, Low Z Materials