Thursday, June 11 Noon Boston time (16:00 UTC)
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SASHA ASGHARI – Nuclear Engineering, Univ. of California-Berkeley
“Looking Forward: A Framework for Robust IAEA Neutron Detection Capabilities”
Abstract
Due to its favorable neutron detection characteristics and historically low price, the international safeguards regime has come to heavily rely on helium-3-based neutron detectors to aid in the verification of compliance with the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). However, the recent helium-3 shortage has the potential to create instability in international safeguards. This work focuses on possible short-, medium-, and long-term options to decouple the efficacy of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards from uncertainty in the helium-3 market. By exploring the establishment of a framework for incorporating alternate neutron detectors in the long run, the IAEA can help maintain the efficacy of international safeguards and the nonproliferation regime.
Bio
Alexandra (Sasha) Asghari is currently a graduate student at UC Berkeley pursuing a PhD in Nuclear Engineering with an emphasis on radiation detection and nuclear nonproliferation policy. She graduated with a BS in Physics from California State University-Sacramento in 2012. Currently, she is working with Adam Bernstein and Steven Dazeley at LLNL on a novel Gadolinium-doped water Cherenkov neutron detector as a possible alternative to some helium-3 detectors. Sasha is particularly interested in the nexus of science (radiation detection) and policy (nonproliferation of nuclear weapons).
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