Identification of Landmines and IEDs Using Compact Fusion Neutron Sources on Drones

Abstract

This paper describes a system to detect landmines or IEDs by the use of small DD or DT neutron sources carried by a drone. The neutron source is powered by beaming RF or laser energy, at a distance of up to a km from the target, to a relay drone high (≈ 100 meters) above the neutron drone that converts the RF energy to electricity. The relay drone uses the electricity to generate another set of RF waves, and sends the energy down to the neutron drone to power the Inertial Electrostatic Confinement (IEC) fusion neutron generator. The neutrons emitted by the IEC generator interrogate the ground below the mobile neutron drone through neutron activation and the orbiting detector drones collect the gamma ray signals to determine the composition and location of the objects below. When the N/C/O signal is close to known chemical explosives signatures, the object is tagged for further investigation.

Keywords:

• Explosives
• drones
• neutron activation
• landmines
• IEDs

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to acknowledge the financial support for this work from the David Grainger Foundation, the Wilson Greatbatch Foundation and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF).