Sensitive field alpha contamination monitoring for special inspections and nonproliferation verification

摘要

Alpha-contamination monitoring in the field has traditionally been limited by the short range of alpha particles in air, the relative insensitivity of alpha monitors designed for field use, and the difficulty of operating laboratory instruments in the field. The long-range alpha detector (LRAD) described in this paper circumvents these limitations by detecting air ions produced by alpha particles rather than the particles themselves. The LRAD system comes in two configurations: one utilizes forced air to bring the ions to the detector, the other uses an electric field. We have developed successful hand-carried versions of both detectors and operated them under field conditions. The unique characteristics of LRAD systems enlarge the number of potential applications for alpha monitors in the field.