Surface modification and sputtering erosion of reduced activation ferritic martensitic steel F82H exposed to low-energy, high flux deuterium plasma

•Exposure of F82H steel targets with low-energy D plasma leads to formation of micro-structured layers on the target surfaces.•The surface morphology of the targets depends strongly on the exposure temperature.•The erosion yield of the F82H steel is increased by a factor of about two as the exposure temperature rises from 403 to 773 K.

Targets prepared from Reduced Activation Ferritic Martensitic (RAFM) steel F82H were exposed to low-energy (200 eV) deuterium (D) plasma at various temperatures with highfluxes of about 1022 D/m2s to various fluences in the range from 1025 to 2.5 × 1026 D/m2. Under the plasma exposure, micro-structured layers are formed on the target surfaces, and the surface morphology is dependent on the exposure temperature. The erosion yield of the F82H samples increases by a factor of about two as the exposure temperature rises in the range from 403 to 773 K.