Experimental devices in the OSIRIS reactor for the study of thermonuclear reactor materials under irradiation

In the framework of the researches undertaken by the C.E.A. and the European Community for the development of a thermonuclear reactor, the Department of the Piles of Saclay (S.P.S.) has developed devices for the study of the behavior under neutron irradiation of potential materials for this type of reactor. The S.P.S. actions deal with three fields: tritium-breeding ceramics for ''in situ'' tritium production, protection ceramics for the first external wall on the plasma side, and structural materials. This paper reviews and describes the main characteristics (flux, irradiation temperature, nature and number of samples, instrumentation) of irradiations carried out at OSIRIS with the devices designed for the studies of the thermonuclear program. Most of these experiments are carried out by means of irradiation devices based on the principle of the versatile COLIBRI device