Feasibility of Organo-Beryllium Target Mandrels Using Organo-Germanium PECVD as a Surrogate

Inertial Confinement Fusion capsule designs incorporating beryllium are becoming attractive for use in implosion experiments designed for modest energy gain. This paper explores the feasibility of chemical vapor deposition of organo-beryllium precursors to form coating materials of interest as ablators and fuel containers. Experiments were performed in a surrogate chemical system utilizing tetramethylgermane as the organometallic precursor. Coatings with up to 3.4 g cm⁻³ germanium have been produced with germanium-to-carbon ratios of at least 1:1. These coatings compare favorably with polymer-like organo-germanium films previously reported in the literature and provide confidence that a similar deposition process with an organo-beryllium precursor would be successful.