Trapping and Surface Recombination of Deuterium in Fusion Reactor Metals

Ion implantation and ion beam analysis were used to examine bulk trapping and surface recombination for deuterium in Fe, Ni, and austenitic stainless steel. Irradiation-defect traps were characterized in the three metals, and substantially stronger traps were shown to be associated with small He bubbles. The rate of deuterium release at stainlesssteel and Fe surfaces was measured as a function of temperature and solution concentration. Trapping and surface recombination parameters were extracted by applying established theory for solute diffusion within a field of traps.