New way of detecting concealed radioactive material
University of Maryland researchers propose method to sniff out dirty bombs via the electromagnetic breakdown of air
The facilitated breakdown of the air in a focused beam of high-power, coherent, terahertz or infrared radiation would then be an indicator of the presence of the radioactive material. The gamma rays coming through the container walls could be detected by a pulsed electromagnetic source of duration between 10 ns to microseconds.
The team evaluated several candidate sources for this detection, including a 670-GHz gyrotron oscillator with 200-kW, 10-µs output pulses and a TEA CO2 laser with 30-MW, 100-ns output pulses. A system based on the 670-GHz gyrotron would have enhanced sensitivity and a range exceeding 10 m.
"It is not yet clear whether this approach to detection of nuclear material is practical," says first author professor Victor Granatstein, "but it is worth pursuing since it might impact an important need related to National Security."
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