RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT INTO 3HE REPLACEMENT TECHNOLOGY FOR NUCLEAR MATERIAL DETECTION

The National Nuclear Security Administration Office of Nonproliferation and Verification Research and Development (NA-22) sponsors long-term research and development into neutron detection technology that targets nuclear security missions. With the advent of a 3He shortage, increased efforts are underway to develop and test replacement technologies, and they are organized into a three-tiered approach. This manuscript highlights ongoing projects that are assessing the performance of commercial and near-commercial systems, determining the feasibility of methods with near-term prospects for commercialization, and researching new materials and methods that require long-term research and development.