Present research status on divertor and plasma facing components for fusion power plants

This paper is a review of the present status of research activities on the divertor and the first wall for fusion power plants in Japan. There are several key issues as follows; 1) plasma facing materials, 2) fabrication techniques, 3) thermal hydraulics, and 4) component design. It can be said that solid surface plasma facing components are the present reference design of fusion power plants in Japan. Based on plasma conditions, it turns out that sputtering erosion of plasma facing materials could not be negligible, and some armor would be necessary. From this view point, tungsten is one of the most promising materials. This paper reviews the present engineering status on tungsten as a plasma facing material for fusion power plants.