42. RESEARCH TO
SUPPORT PROLIFERATION DETECTION
The
Proliferation Detection Program (PDP) applies the unique skills and capabilities
of the NNSA and the DOE national laboratories and facilities to close
nonproliferation technology gaps, identified through close interaction with
other
PDP
facilitates long-term scientific innovation through sustained commitment to
mission focused technical areas that build “best-in-the-world” competence.
PDP also plays a key role in filling the critical middle ground between
fundamental research and near-term acquisition, by using the unique skills of
the national laboratories and plants as applied research integrators.
Through the extensive relationships that the laboratories maintain with
universities, basic science from academia and federal research programs are
brought together to develop real-world system solutions based on classified
insights into national security problems. PDP
hands off technical know-how, which has been developed and validated, to U.S.
Government acquisition programs and the
a. Spectroscopic
Quality Radiation Detection Materials Growth—The Advanced Materials program in the Office of
Nonproliferation R&D supports the radiation detection program in NNSA and
searches for advanced concepts to develop new radiation detection materials.
The program is currently focused on the development of improved
capabilities for both scintillator and semiconductor based radiation detectors;
i.e. the development of a systematic search for new radiation detection
materials, the development of better methods to characterize radiation detection
materials, and the development of improved techniques that enhance the growth or
fabrication of radiation detection materials.
The objective of the program is to gain insight into a mechanistic
understanding of material performance as the base component of radiation
detectors. The program is interested
in moving beyond the largely empirical approach of finding and understanding
detector materials.
In this subtopic, we are interested in promoting the
industrial capacity to develop large volume, high quality radiation detector
materials. Recent research has shown
paths to development of CZT (Cd-Zn-Te) crystals that are of excellent
spectroscopic quality, showing bulk energy resolution of <1% (FWHM).
This level of performance has the capability of enabling detection
scenarios requiring reliable radioisotope identification with room temperature
materials.
Grant applications are sought to improve growth issues
involving this material so that reliable, high yield, rapid, and large volume
growth of CZT is readily achievable. Successful
Phase I awardees should describe a clear path to improving upon existing growth
techniques to produce large CZT crystals (up to and exceeding 10 cm3)
of spectroscopic quality (at or less than 1% FWHM at 0.662 MeV), at high yield,
such that a factor of 10 cost reduction over current fabrication costs are
realized. Phase II will require the
demonstration of material fabrication with the above mentioned characteristics
and that are free from dislocations, cracking, chemical heterogeneities, and
minor crystalline phase impurities including precipitates.
Questions –
contact Frances Keel (frances.keel@hq.doe.gov)
b. Radiation Detector Development from Emerging Advanced
Materials—The Office of Nuclear
Nonproliferation Research and Development is focused on enabling the development
of next generation technical capabilities for radiation detection in the nuclear
nonproliferation arena. As such,
grant applications are sought for the development of radiation detection
techniques and sensors that address the pressing national need to enhance the
capability for the detection and isotope identification of unshielded and
shielded special nuclear materials, and other radioactive materials in all
environments. In responding to these
challenging requirements, resent research and development has resulted in the
emergence of radiation detection materials that have high-energy resolution.
Grant applications are also sought to develop radiation detectors from
these materials that are rugged, reliable, low power, and are capable of high
confidence radioisotope identification.
The office of nonproliferation research and development sponsors the development
of detectors, sensors, and other enabling technology to enhance radiation
sensing and detection for nonproliferation applications as outlined above.
Basic and applied research for the transition of advanced detector
materials to functional, robust radiation detectors is critical to the
development of such enabling technology. This
subtopic focuses on the research and development needed for industrial scale
production of large volume and high quality radiation detectors from the
semiconductor material Cadmium Zinc Telluride (CZT) with the ultimate goal of
producing radiation detectors with volumes in the 10’s to 100’s of cm3
with energy resolution of less than 1% FWHM at the 0.662 MeV.
Areas of interest include: 1) the development of reliable electrical
contacts to this semiconductor detector material which requires the
understanding of the relevant surface physics/chemistry; 2) the development of
low-power, low-noise electronics for detector read out (i.e. ASICS with less
than 2 eV noise and less than 1mW per detector channel power consumption); 3)
engineering solutions for the rugged mounting of the detector crystal to
withstand high mechanical and thermal shock; 4) the development of unique
detector readout schemes; and 5) any other research leading to the production of
high quality radiation detectors from these materials with particular emphasis
on the development of industrial scale production techniques.
Questions –
contact Frances Keel (frances.keel@hq.doe.gov)
c. Technique for Fabricating Optical Quality Gradient
Index Spheres—Grant
applications are sought for the development of a method for fabricating
millimeter scale spheres having an optical index that varies smoothly and
continuously from the center to its radius. The fabrication procedure must be
flexible enough to allow the creation of a range of index profiles. The spheres
are to be optically transparent and have a refractive index differential greater
than 0.2. The materials from which the lens is fabricated can be either organic
or inorganic and the fabrication technique must be capable of scaling to low
cost multiple copy production. The optical quality of the final product must be
capable of providing near diffraction limited performance.
Questions –
contact Frances Keel (frances.keel@hq.doe.gov)
d.
Compression of Registered Wide-Area High-Resolution Aerial Video—Grant
applications are sought to develop image-sequence compression methods that
support a transmit-to-ground capability for aerial imagery consisting of fifty
to over a billion pixels per frame, acquired at several frames per second.
Imagery is assumed to be registered per pixel to a fixed ground position
with sub-pixel accuracy with respect to the image plane, and to the accuracy of
90-meter global SRTM (Shuttle Radar Topography Mission) data in the depth
direction. Typically, such imagery
consists of mostly static background, plus moving objects (such as cars) and
high-frequency background motion (such as water or leaf shimmer). It is
important for downstream applications to get very accurate background imagery at
low time frequency, and very accurate space and time resolution of all potential
moving objects. High-frequency background regions do not require high accuracy,
but can be summarized statistically at low bit rates.
Overall the compression rates required are 1000:1 to 10,000:1 relative to
the raw 8-12 bit grayscale imagery in order to match available wireless
communications bandwidth. Grant
applications may assume that fast, approximate mover detection algorithms are
available.
Questions –
contact Frances Keel (frances.keel@hq.doe.gov)
References:
1.
Marchand, E. W., “Gradient Index Optics,”
2.
Morgan, S. P., “General
Solution of the Luneberg Lens Problem,” Journal of Applied Physics,
29: 1358, 1958. (ISSN:
0021-8979)
3.
Koike, Y., et al., “Spherical Gradient-Index Sphere Lens,” Applied
Optics, 25: 3356, 1986. (ISSN:
0003-6935)
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