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RSVP: Pure Science Benefits the National
Interest
The primary goal of the RSVP experiments
MECO and KOPIO is to advance the frontiers of our knowledge at
the cutting edge of pure science. However, the innovative tools
developed specially to carry out such sensitive experiments have
often produced practical applications with dramatic impact on
society - the World Wide Web is one spectacular example.
Thus, it is thrilling to consider that an
important application might develop out of RSVP. One of the
critical features required for the success of
KOPIO, is highly
efficient imaging of gamma rays. The centerpiece of the
experiment is a huge device called a “Pre-Radiator” which
converts gamma rays to detectable charged particles and provides
an accurate measure of their direction, position, and energy.
Douglas Bryman, co-scientific spokesman for
KOPIO and developer of the Pre-Radiator concept, recognized that
this technique might have broader applicability than an esoteric
particle physics experiment. He applied for and received a
patent (US Patent #6,100,532 August 1998) for a “Detector of
Gamma Rays”, which outlines an implementation of such a device
for smaller, practical applications such as the detection of
contraband explosives.
Bryman, Professor of Physics at the
University of British Columbia works at the TRIUMF laboratory in
Vancouver (Canada). In the mid 1990s, three of Bryman’s TRIUMF
colleagues invented and patented a scheme for the detection of
contraband plastic explosives. This scheme has been developed by
Advanced Energy Systems of Long Island (formerly a division of
Northrop-Grumman and now also an industrial partner of RSVP),
funded in part by the FAA and DARPA.
The system is based on resonant excitation
of the nitrogen in plastic explosives using gamma rays produced
by a proton beam striking a nitrogen target. The gamma ray
imaging detector patented by Bryman could dramatically reduce
the cost while improving the performance of the overall
explosive detector. If these developments are brought to
fruition, the work of KOPIO and AES could lead to a much safer
travel environment. The techniques and theoretical concepts that
are being employed, from production of the protons to the
detection of the gamma rays, all trace their origins to
forefront nuclear and particle physics research projects like
KOPIO and MECO.
Last updated
January 24, 2006
by Gary Schroeder. |
