Research in nuclear security and safeguards aims to keep our societies safe from the impacts of nuclear materials while enabling safe, beneficial use of nuclear materials and technologies. Ensuring that nuclear materials and technology are used solely for peaceful purposes is one of our society’s most pressing challenges. Therefore, efforts are urgently needed to ensure the timely detection and understanding of the signatures of nuclear proliferation, including detection and characterization of nuclear materials at all stages of the nuclear fuel cycle. Our mission is to meet this challenge by developing advanced tools to improve detection and timeliness for decision-makers and skilled talent for careers in nuclear security and nonproliferation. This includes areas such as stewardship programs, detection of illicit or clandestine nuclear programs, and radiation signature detection systems. Also, applications that can discover lost and orphaned nuclear sources. Implementation examples of such technology can be found in air- and sea-ports, nuclear facilities, and national and international monitoring stations.
Faculty
Research Interests: Applied aspects of cargo monitoring, detector testing and characterization for gamma-ray spectroscopy, as well as development and analysis of techniques for environmental sampling and surveys related to on-site inspections.
Ph. D. Chalmers, University of Technology, Sweden
Research Interests: Nuclear safeguards, detection statistics of radiation from fissile materials, and the physics behind particle-detector interactions. Neutron physics & detectors. Neutron noise signals. Radiation signal analysis
Lab Website: Enqvist Research Group
Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
Research Interests: Remote Sensing, Nuclear Nonproliferation/counterproliferation, Nuclear Security, and Nuclear Policy
Lab Website: Hartig Research Group
Ph. D., 2002, The Pennsylvania State University
Research Interests: Multifunctional ceramics; energy materials; dielectrics and ionic conductors in bulk and thin film; single crystal growth; nuclear materials and detectors; bioceramics
Lab Website: Nino Research Group (NRG)
Ph.D., 1993, University of Paris, XI
Research Interests: Radiochemistry, Nuclear Wastes, Nuclear Forensics, Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Environmental Behavior of Radionuclides
Lab Website: Wall Research
Ph. D., 2005, Princeton University
Research Interests: Nanostructured electronic materials, organic-inorganic hybrid materials, surfaces and interfaces, energy materials, photovoltaic cells, light-emitting diodes and other optoelectronic devices
Lab Website: Xue Research Group