Reactor neutrino monitoring

Abstract

Nuclear reactors are the most intense man-controlled sources of antineutrinos and as such have hosted number of key physics experiments, from the antineutrino discovery to modern oscillation measurements. At the present time, both detection technology and understanding of fundamental physics are mature enough to think about antineutrinos as a new tool for reactor monitoring. We describe below how antineutrinos can provide online information on reactor operation and amount of plutonium accumulated in the core. Reactors are the only sources of plutonium on earth and this element can be chemically separated from the rest of the nuclear fuel and diverted into nuclear weapons. We present in the next sections the unique features antineutrino detectors could provide to safeguards agencies such as IAEA. We review the worldwide efforts to develop small ( 1 m 3 scale) antineutrino detectors dedicated to automated and non-intrusive reactor monitoring.