Palm-sized Radiation Detectors In The Future?

Above, Geiger counters on display at the Lucky Dragon No 5 exhibit in Tokyo. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

With the Daiichi Nuclear Power Station radiation leaks in Fukushima, Japan still fresh in mind, the desire to have one's own radiation detector is increasing.

According to an article by Eric Becker in The Bulletin of The Atomic Scientists, a palm-sized radiation detector for consumers is not too far off in the future.

Becker wrote:

After the March 2011 meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station in Japan, which breached reactor containment systems and resulted in the evacuation of about 150,000 people living within 20 kilometers of the site, many people in Japan and elsewhere were concerned about contamination outside the evacuation zone. The amount of radioactivity in seafood, for example, was of particular interest. 

Although Japanese authorities instituted monitoring and restricted the distribution of products from certain areas, many people wanted to know whether their food was safe to eat. Also, some people distrusted the Japanese government’s assurances that specific areas were safe for human habitation. These worries sharply increased demand for a device that could provide accurate radiation dosimetry measurements but was also mass-marketable and low-cost. Many radiation detectors appeared on the market in the months after Fukushima—some standalone, some ready to plug-and-play with smartphones, and some even incorporated into smartphones. 

With the help of associate nuclear engineering professor Abi Farsoni, I developed one such detector at Oregon State University. Still in the prototype stage, it is a proof of the concept that a small, low-cost radiation spectrometer is possible with off-the-shelf technology.

Besides the Japanese, people in the United States, Europe and elsewhere may want to have such a device handy as well. Since the southern border of the United States with Mexico is not being secured by the current administration, any terrorist can sneak into the U.S. with a radioactive "dirty bomb" and set it off in a city. Therefore, the need and desire to have a personal radiation detector on hand comes into play. As the article states, a palm-sized radiation detector is "not your grandfather’s Geiger counter."

To read the full article, go here.