Neutron transmission imaging with a portable D-T neutron generator

Purpose A portable fast-neutron imaging system is being developed to provide complementary information to field X-ray imaging. Applications include inspection of vehicles and infrastructure for corrosion, measurement of material levels in containers, and inspection of munitions and suspicious packages. While fast-neuron imaging generally provides lower imaging resolution compared to X-rays, fast-neutron interaction cross-sections have a weak dependence on material Z. This enables imaging of low-Z materials inside high-Z materials. Here, we discuss the limitations and current improvements in fast-neuron imaging. Methods Limitations in portable fast-neutron imaging systems include low D-T neutron generator output, low light production in ZnS(Cu) imaging scintillators, low resolution due to scintillator thickness and D-T spot size, and digital-panel darknoise that varies in time and position and that can be 100x larger than the neutron signal. We have made improvements in these areas through development of a segmented high light yield scintillator, panel noise mitigation techniques, and testing of new high-output, small spot size D-T neutron generators. Results The segmented high light yield fast-neutron scintillator demonstrated 5x increase in light compared to ZnS(Cu). An additional 2x improvement in signal-to-noise was demonstrated with panel-noise mitigation techniques. Our MCNP calculations also show good agreement with neutron imaging results Conclusions We have demonstrated improvements in fast-neutron imaging through development of a segmented high light yield neutron scintillator, mitigation of digital panel noise, and preliminary testing with new high-output, small spot size D-T neutron generators. We have also demonstrated good results modeling fast-neutron images and scatter effects using MCNP.