Design of a Hybrid Antineutrino Detector using Scintillation and Wavelength-Shifting Materials

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Engineering/Physics, 2011-12

Liaison(s): Dr. Nathaniel Bowden, Dr. Gregory Keefer
Advisor(s): Richard Haskell, Adrian Hightower
Students(s): Ethan Susca (TL-S), Brianna Blanchard, Karen Heinselman (TL-F), Wylie Rosenthal, Christopher Cotner, Carlo Vaccari (S), Rebecca Streitz (F)

Sensitive monitoring of antineutrino flux from nuclear power plants documents the consumption of fissile materials, thereby enhancing nuclear safeguards and non-proliferation. In the team’s newly designed hybrid scintillation detector, energy depositions from prompt gamma rays and delayed neutron capture events provide an unambiguous signal for antineutrino detection. Dual scintillation materials are used with wavelength-shifting plastics to direct light to photomultiplier tubes most efficiently. Material characterization tests and Monte Carlo simulations were used to optimize the design of the detector.