Abstract

The detection of nuclear signatures from key processes or events has increasing world scale importance for nuclear security applications such as nuclear forensics, nuclear safeguards, arms control and non-proliferation activities. Particle characterisation is a unique area of material analysis providing trace signature information from a single micron-sized particles to form a picture of a nuclear event or facility and the processes undertaken therein. This lecture provides an overview of the various particle characterisation techniques used at AWE , of which mass spectrometry is key, to determine these signatures and includes fictional case studies, based on real data, to illustrate our role in supporting national nuclear security for the UK by nuclear signature assessment.