The formation of a high-energy ion beam suitable for driving nuclear fusion reactions and producing MeV neutrons was investigated. The interaction of intense ultra short laser pulses with a double-layer thin foil for the production of MeV deuterons was studied theoretically and numerically simulated using a two-dimensional electromagnetic particle-in-cell model. The directionality and energy of the deuteron beam, specifically the conversion efficiency of laser energy into deuteron kinetic energy, and deuteron energy and angular distribution functions are studied as a function of peak laser intensity, laser pulse duration and target thickness. A range of parameters was determined for which a highly directional deuteron beam is generated.