Special Nuclear Material Imaging Using a High Purity Germanium Double Sided Strip Detector

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to investigate the feasibility of using a High Purity Germanium Double Sided Strip Detector (HPGeDSSD) to image Special Nuclear Material (SNM) for use in the field of nuclear nonproliferation. SNM shape can be determined by using a gamma ray imaging system that is capable of imaging either Pu-239 or U-235. The detector used for this research is a liquid-nitrogen cooled germanium detector with five charge collection strips on both faces. The strips on the two faces are orthogonal to each other, creating a five by five array of data collection pixels. When the detector is coupled to a parallel hole collimator, an imaging system is achieved. The system is capable of imaging individual or multiple photon energies. The capability of the imaging system to produce images of simulated Pu-239 was demonstrated. The analyses of the images allowed distributed sources to be distinguished from point sources, which was the primary goal for developing this technology.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2004
Accession Number
ADA422965

Entities

People

  • Clifford V. Sulham

Organizations

  • Air Force Institute of Technology

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Air Force Facilities
  • Charge Carriers
  • Collimators
  • Detection
  • Detectors
  • Electron Holes
  • Elements
  • Gamma Rays
  • Host Computers
  • Ionizing Radiation
  • Materials
  • Measurement
  • Normal Distribution
  • Nuclear Materials
  • Nuclear Weapons
  • Radiation

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Image Processing and Computer Vision.
  • Nuclear and Radiation Engineering.