Dual-particle imager for standoff detection of special nuclear material

An advanced dual-particle imaging system is being developed for standoff, passive detection of special nuclear material. This system consists of three detector planes and will be capable of imaging both photons and fast neutrons. The ability of the system to detect fast neutrons makes it more difficult to effectively shield a threat source. This feature has an advantage over the commonly used Compton-camera systems, which are only sensitive to photons. Additionally, the detection of fast neutrons will allow for increased performance in regions with high levels of photon background radiation. The first two planes of the system consist of EJ-309 liquid scintillators and the third plane consists of NaI scintillators. This detector/plane combination allows image reconstruction using both neutrons and photons. In the liquid scintillators, neutron interactions are distinguished from photon interactions using an optimized pulse shape discrimination technique. The Monte Carlo transport code MCNPX-PoliMi has been used for the initial studies of this system due to its ability to track detailed information on interactions of interest and time-correlated particle production. This information has been used to optimize system parameters and has also allowed for investigation of image reconstruction techniques including simple backprojection and maximum likelihood expectation maximization (MLEM). A small-scale prototype is being developed for testing and validation of the simulations. This paper will analyze preliminary measurements and will also discuss simulations of several shielded source scenarios.