Testing on novel neutron detectors as alternative to 3He for security applications

Abstract Detection of illicit trafficking of nuclear material relies on the detection of the radiation emitted. In the case of plutonium, one of the characteristic signatures derives from neutron emission. For this reason, neutron detectors cover an important role in detection systems. Most current neutron detection systems used for nuclear security are based on the 3 He technology. Unfortunately, in the last few years the market of 3 He has encountered huge problems in matching the supply and the demand. The need has grown significantly due to the increasing demand of instrumentation for security. This has caused an exponential increase of the price from one side and on the other side a serious strategic problem of resources. In order to guarantee the availability of detection systems for nuclear security, it is necessary to develop alternative detection systems based on technologies different from 3 He. Many research projects have been devoted for the development of novel neutron detectors both by research organisations and by industries. Scientists from the PERLA laboratory of the Joint Research Centre (JRC) in Ispra, Italy, and their collaborators have tested several of these novel concepts in the last couple of years. This paper describes the detector systems tested at JRC and preliminary results on detectors that can be considered as promising alternatives to 3 He.