Simulation for evaluation of the multi-ion-irradiation Laboratory of TechnoFusiَn facility and its relevance for fusion applications

Thermonuclear fusion requires the development of several research facilities, in addition to ITER, needed to advance the technologies for future fusion reactors. TechnoFusiَn will focus in some of the priority areas identified by international fusion programmes. Specifically, the TechnoFusiَn Area of Irradiation of Materials aims at surrogating experimentally the effects of neutron irradiation on materials using a combination of ion beams. This paper justifies this approach using computer simulations to validate the multi-ion-irradiation Laboratory. The planned irradiation facility will investigate the effects of high energetic radiations on reactor-relevant materials. In a second stage, it will also be used to analyze the performance of such materials and evaluate newly designed materials. The multi-ion-irradiation Laboratory, both triple irradiation and high-energy proton irradiation, can provide valid experimental techniques to reproduce the effect of neutron damage in fusion environment.