Development and commercialization of a new generation of multiplicity shift registers - devices used to better detect plutonium and other radioactive materials - are now underway.
Under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement, Los Alamos National Laboratory and Canberra Albuquerque Inc. (http://www.canberra-abq.com/) will develop the new benchtop or handheld devices, which have the potential for use in homeland security applications domestically and abroad.
These instruments, first developed by the Lab more than 15 years ago, count and analyze pulse streams generated by neutron detectors to quantify radioactive materials. They are currently used by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to ensure that radioactive materials are not lost, stolen, or used for military purposes.
According to Los Alamos researcher and principal investigator Matt Newell, the new multiplicity shift registers are needed because existing devices are nearly 10 years old and becoming incompatible with other detection technology used by the IAEA.
"We were contacted by people who use the current technology, asking us to do some new development," Newell said. "Many of the parts used to make the current shift registers are obsolete or becoming obsolete."
Under the recently-signed agreement, Canberra Albuquerque will fund the development of a new multiplicity shift register, which can continuously store neutron measurements automatically without an operator present, for use in remote or unattended operations. In addition, the company will validate the use of a handheld, battery-operated multiplicity shift register already developed by Newell and his team. Both devices will be faster, easier to use, compatible with new measurement instrumentation, and designed in accordance with IAEA guidelines.
The Laboratory and Canberra expect testing and commercialization to take approximately two years, after which Canberra Albuquerque intends to manufacture the instruments at its Albuquerque facilities.
"Our collaboration with Los Alamos National Laboratory is vital to Canberra's work extending the boundaries of neutron-counting technology," said Dr. Markku Koskelo, Vice President of Special Projects. "Together we have built a roadmap for the next generation of shift registers."
Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security, is operated by Los Alamos National Security, LLC, a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of California, The Babcock & Wilcox Company, and the Washington Division of URS for the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.
Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health, and global security concerns.