Bereiche | Tage | Auswahl | Suche | Aktualisierungen | Downloads | Hilfe

MS: Fachverband Massenspektrometrie

MS 11: SIMS / Accelerator Mass Spectrometry and Applications 4

MS 11.1: Hauptvortrag

Freitag, 21. März 2014, 10:30–11:00, DO24 1.205

Environmental sample analysis by SIMS in the search for undeclared nuclear activities — •Magnus Hedberg — European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC), Institute for Transuranium Elements, P.O. Box 2340, D-76125 Karlsruhe, Germany

When uranium is processed in industrial quantities, it is very difficult to avoid the release of micron to submicron-sized aerosol particles containing the isotopic signature of the handled materials to the immediate environment. This allows nuclear safeguards authorities to monitor the used nuclear materials by analysing dust samples from the facilities. Until recently, particle analyses have predominantly been performed by SIMS using the small geometry CAMECA IMS 3F-7F instruments. The performance of these instruments is however limited for theses samples by the occurrence of isobaric interferences that cannot be resolved without compromising the transmission. A recent breakthrough to solve this problem has been the implementation of Large Geometry (LG)-SIMS, mainly by the CAMECA IMS 1280HR. These instruments are like the small geometry SIMS, based on a double focusing mass spectrometer, but with the implementation of a large-radius magnetic sector and improved secondary ion optics. In short, the LG-SIMS today provides isotopic data on particle analysis in safeguards applications that are at a state of the art level in a timely way. The latter is important for the safeguards application, where timely analysis can be critical. A short introduction to nuclear safeguards and forensics analysis are given together with a presentation of how LG-SIMS is used for safeguards analysis.