Performance of Mg target for neutron generator under deuterium ion irradiation

Compared with Ti, Mg has large hydrogen storage capacity, high hydrogen release temperature and weak ion stopping power. The neutron yield can be improved if Mg is used in tritium targets of the neutron generator. In this paper, numerical calculations are applied to prove that Tritium-Mg targets can effectively improve the neutron yield. Magnetron sputtering was used to prepare the MgD2 targets with smooth surfaces free from apparent microcracks. The MgD2 crystals mainly had stable tetragonal structure alpha-MgD2. The atomic concentration of deuterium in the samples was comparable to that in other types of targets. The thermal stability of the samples and neutron yield provided by them were better than respective characteristics of Ti targets. However, the neutron yield with MgD2 targets was substantially attenuated due to the irradiation damage.