Titanium Gettering: A Physics Diagnostic on Norm

Maintaining ultra-high vacuum is critical for sustaining high-performance field reversed configuration (FRC) plasmas in TAE’s latest fusion device—Norm [1]. Titanium gettering plays a pivotal role in maintaining vessel base pressures of 1⋅10^-9 Torr or lower, suppressing impurities in the vessel through chemical and physical sorption. Expanding the existing suite of dedicated physics diagnostics, we now aim to incorporate the dynamic behavior of Norm’s titanium walls to better understand complex FRC physics. We present a simulation-based diagnostic tool developed utilizing MolFlow to monitor and map titanium spatial coverage and thickness across vessel surfaces in Norm [2]. These estimations allow for the predictive assessments of the Norm gettering system and offer insight into plasma-material interactions. In addition, we show how this new tool can be applied to better understand neutral gas distributions, hydrogen retention in titanium, and bias electrode arcing when it occurs. Preliminary results indicate good agreement with experimental data, confirming the operational and experimental physics value this new tool brings to Norm and beyond.

[1] T. Roche et al. Generation of field-reversed configurations via neutral beam injection. Nat. Commun. 16, 3487 (2025).

[2] M. Ady, R. Kersevan. 10th Int. Particle Accelerator Conf., Melbourne, Australia - doi:10.18429/JACoW-IPAC2019-TUPMP037