» Research » Department of Materials Physics » Experimental plasma science group » Fusion research and material diagnostic facility
Plasma-boundary science is a challenging and interesting research topic as it touches on nearly every aspect of plasma and material sciences, and the complex coupling between the two. This demands a multi-disciplinary effort that is critical for fusion, and extends our knowledge of these complex systems with the possibility of impacting similar fields of research, such as nanofabrication and material engineering.
Our research will contribute to tackling important fusion issues by:
The demands on plasma-facing materials in a steady-state fusion device will be extreme. Some materials might erode or degrade quickly, requiring frequent replacement while others might eject too much material into the plasma, contaminating it. Finding answers to questions about the physics of plasma interactions at this complex magnetised boundary plasma could affect future choices in fusion engineering and is therefore of great importance to the success of ITER. This boundary region can open new fields of plasma physics and plasma chemistry.
A clear understanding of elementary mechanisms intervening in the plasma-wall region, from erosion to the creation of negative ions, is of importance to controlling transport at the plasma boundary. In preparation for ITER, this research will unfold the following challenging issues involved in the plasma-wall region of fusion reactors:
The decision to construct the next step fusion experiment, ITER, marks a commitment by the world to realise fusion power as an alternative sustainable clean energy source. A key technical requirement for successful operation is to control thermal and particle transport at the boundary where the fusion core (100,000,000 K) meets the low temperature (1000 K) wall. The phenomena associated with these plasma-surface interactions involve an challenging mix of plasma physics, ion-solid collision physics, materials science, surface physics and chemical and electrical engineering.
The construction of the satellite linear plasma device at the 'Materials Diagnostic Facility' (MDF) will deliver access to conditions comparable to those found in the boundary regions of reactor-scale devices. As well as being a test-bed for advanced diagnostics development and for basic plasma physics studies, MDF will serve those in the Australian materials science community wishing to explore the properties of advanced materials under high plasma power fluxes. The linear plasma device at the MDF employs a unique combination a high-power laboratory radio-frequency plasma, a target chamber and a set of advanced diagnostics for plasma and material analysis to correlate the plasma parameters with surface processes. Although a main focus will be fusion research, the approach is a generic tool that can be applied to propulsion and nano-fabrication applications.
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