A physically cryptographic warhead verification system using neutron induced nuclear resonances
Name
s41467-019-12386-0.pdf
Description
Published version
Size
2 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
cf6ed290cb5ff485e6e920d8e3d82a68
Author(s)
Engel, Ezra M.
Danagoulian, Areg
Date Issued
September 2019
Journal
Nature Communications
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Citation
Engel, Ezra M. and Areg Danagoulian. “A physically cryptographic warhead verification system using neutron induced nuclear resonances.” Nature Communications 10 (2019): 4433 © 2019 The Author(s)
Version
Final published version
Abstract
Arms control treaties are necessary to reduce the large stockpiles of the nuclear weapons that constitute one of the biggest dangers to the world. However, an impactful treaty hinges on effective inspection exercises to verify the participants’ compliance to the treaty terms. Such procedures would require verification of the authenticity of a warhead undergoing dismantlement. Previously proposed solutions lacked the combination of isotopic sensitivity and information security. Here we present the experimental feasibility proof of a technique that uses neutron induced nuclear resonances and is sensitive to the combination of isotopics and geometry. The information is physically encrypted to prevent the leakage of sensitive information. Our approach can significantly increase the trustworthiness of future arms control treaties while expanding their scope to include the verified dismantlement of nuclear warheads themselves.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-12386-0
