Pillar-structured neutron detector based multiplicity system

John W. Murphy; Qinghui Shao; Lars F. Voss; Phil L. Kerr; Lorenzo Fabris; Adam M. Conway; Rebecca J. Nikolic

doi:10.1016/j.nima.2017.09.060

Pillar-structured neutron detector based multiplicity system

John W. Murphy, Qinghui Shao, Lars F. Voss, Phil L. Kerr, Lorenzo Fabris, Adam M. Conway, Rebecca J. Nikolic

Radiation Imaging and Advanced Diagnosti

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

This work demonstrates the potential of silicon pillars filled with boron-10 as a sensor technology for a compact and portable neutron multiplicity system. Solid-state, semiconductor based neutron detectors may enable completely new detector form factors, offer an alternate approach to helium-3 based systems, and reduce detector weight and volume requirements. Thirty-two pillar-structured neutron detectors were assembled into a system with an active area of over 20 cm² and were used in this work to demonstrate the feasibility of this sensor technology as a potential replacement for helium-3 based gas detectors. Multiplicity measurements were successfully carried out using a californium-252 neutron source, in which the source mass, system efficiency, and die-away time were determined. This demonstration shows that these solid-state detectors could allow for a more compact and portable system that could be used for special nuclear material identification in the field.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	355-358
Number of pages	4
Journal	Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
Volume	877
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2017.09.060
State	Published - Jan 1 2018

Funding

This work was first submitted on July 7, 2017. This work was performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under Contract DE-AC52-07NA27344 , LLNL-JRNL-734176 . This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (Domestic Nuclear Detection Office) and the US DOE NNSA (Office of Nonproliferation Research and Development and Office of Nuclear Threat Science). This support does not constitute an expressed or implied endorsement on the part of the government. We would also like to thank Gary Guethlein for helpful conversations about detector physics.

Funders	Funder number
Office of Nonproliferation Research and Development
Office of Nuclear Threat Science
US DOE NNSA
U.S. Department of Energy
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory	LLNL-JRNL-734176, DE-AC52-07NA27344

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10.1016/j.nima.2017.09.060

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abstract = "This work demonstrates the potential of silicon pillars filled with boron-10 as a sensor technology for a compact and portable neutron multiplicity system. Solid-state, semiconductor based neutron detectors may enable completely new detector form factors, offer an alternate approach to helium-3 based systems, and reduce detector weight and volume requirements. Thirty-two pillar-structured neutron detectors were assembled into a system with an active area of over 20 cm2 and were used in this work to demonstrate the feasibility of this sensor technology as a potential replacement for helium-3 based gas detectors. Multiplicity measurements were successfully carried out using a californium-252 neutron source, in which the source mass, system efficiency, and die-away time were determined. This demonstration shows that these solid-state detectors could allow for a more compact and portable system that could be used for special nuclear material identification in the field.",

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AU - Conway, Adam M.

AU - Nikolic, Rebecca J.

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AB - This work demonstrates the potential of silicon pillars filled with boron-10 as a sensor technology for a compact and portable neutron multiplicity system. Solid-state, semiconductor based neutron detectors may enable completely new detector form factors, offer an alternate approach to helium-3 based systems, and reduce detector weight and volume requirements. Thirty-two pillar-structured neutron detectors were assembled into a system with an active area of over 20 cm2 and were used in this work to demonstrate the feasibility of this sensor technology as a potential replacement for helium-3 based gas detectors. Multiplicity measurements were successfully carried out using a californium-252 neutron source, in which the source mass, system efficiency, and die-away time were determined. This demonstration shows that these solid-state detectors could allow for a more compact and portable system that could be used for special nuclear material identification in the field.

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ER -

Pillar-structured neutron detector based multiplicity system

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