Sandia Corporation

National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC

Erik Brubaker

Peter Marleau

Scott Kiff

A single volume fission energy neutron detector is described herein. The detector includes a single volume of scintillator. A photodetector is positioned adjacent to a surface of the scintillator, wherein the photodetector has relatively small spatial resolution corresponding thereto and relatively small temporal resolution corresponding thereto. Based upon values read out from detection bins of the photodetector, kinematics of a neutron that interacted with scintillating material of the scintillator are reconstructed. Based upon the kinematics (of the neutron and other detected neutrons), a location of material from which the neutron was emitted is ascertained, and an image of the material is generated.

Single volume fission energy neutron detector

The various technologies presented herein relate to detecting nuclear material at a large stand-off distance. An imaging system is presented which can detect nuclear material by utilizing time encoded imaging relating to maximum and minimum radiation particle counts rates. The imaging system is integrated with a data acquisition system that can utilize variations in photon pulse shape to discriminate between neutron and gamma-ray interactions. Modulation in the detected neutron count rates as a function of the angular orientation of the detector due to attenuation of neighboring detectors is utilized to reconstruct the neutron source distribution over 360 degrees around the imaging system. Neutrons (e.g., fast neutrons) and/or gamma-rays are incident upon scintillation material in the imager, the photons generated by the scintillation material are converted to electrical energy from which the respective neutrons/gamma rays can be determined and, accordingly, a direction to, and the location of, a radiation source identified.

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Oakland, CA, United States of America

Erik Brubaker