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Nuclear, Chem, and Isotopic S&T
PLS postdocs shine at Research Slam! competition
On October 29, 2019, twelve Lawrence Livermore postdocs took to the stage, each with three slides and three minutes to answer the question: “Why is your research important?” The presentations, part of a yearly competition known as the Research Slam!, were a culmination of months of development, training, and practice. The 2019 program kicked off with seminars about…
Nuclear melt glass-derived colloid experiments explain why plutonium is migrating in groundwater
The migration of low levels of plutonium has been observed at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) and attributed to colloid-facilitated transport. (A colloid is a mixture in which one substance of microscopically dispersed particles is suspended throughout another substance.) To understand why plutonium is migrating, LLNL scientists performed experiments using mineral…
Livermore researchers contribute to major plutonium publication
This fall, the American Nuclear Society is publishing the second edition of the Plutonium Handbook, a 4000-page, 7-volume compendium that delivers a comprehensive review of plutonium chemistry. (The first edition was published 50 years ago.) Five years in the making, this publication includes contributions from 17 Lawrence Livermore researchers, two of whom are also on the…
PLS wraps up summer student programs
Approximately 1000 students came to the Laboratory this summer to engage in work-study employment in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and administrative fields. PLS hosted a number of these students through its summer student programs (described below). Nuclear science and security The Glenn T. Seaborg Institute hosted 12 students this summer, including 8…
Furthering the application of human identification techniques using hair
Human hair is invaluable to forensic investigations because it is one of the few biological specimen types that persist for long periods of time. However, hair contains minimal intact nuclear DNA, leading researchers to search for alternate identification methods using hair. Previous research led to a new protein-based identification technique, providing a way to identify…
Zirconium isotope a master at neutron capture
The probability that a nucleus will absorb a neutron is important to many areas of nuclear science, including the production of elements in the cosmos, reactor performance, nuclear medicine and defense applications. New research from a team led by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists reveals that the radioactive isotope zirconium-88 (⁸⁸Zr) is 100,000…
Victory Through Annihilation: Jason Brodsky’s Neutrinos that Saved the Universe
Jason Brodsky says his work is like “looking for a candle in a raging inferno.” But the Lawrence Livermore physicist believes finding that “candle” could be the key to understanding existence itself. Brodsky’s specialty is rare-event detection, both during his Princeton graduate work on dark matter and his current postdoctoral research at LLNL, in which he searches for…
Theory aids analysis of nuclear materials
Nuclear emergency teams, safeguards specialists and others may one day benefit from an expanded nuclear fission chain theory and detectors developed by a team of Lawrence Livermore Nationla Laboratory (LLNL) physicists. The Livermore scientists have bolstered their theory for understanding nuclear fission chains -- a cascade of atomic nuclei splitting, each initiated by a…
Quest for source of black hole dark matter
Like a game of "hide and seek," Lawrence Livermore astrophysicists know that there are black holes hiding in the Milky Way, just not where. If they find them toward the galactic bulge (a tightly packed group of stars) and the Magellanic Clouds, then black holes as massive as 10,000 times the mass of the sun might make up dark matter. If they are only toward the galactic…
Warhead life extension passes key milestone
The program to extend the life of the W80 nuclear warhead recently achieved a significant milestone when the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) gave passing grades to the plans to refurbish certain components and the proposed approach to developing component cost estimates. Passing the milestone confirms that the life extension program (LEP), dubbed the W80-4…
Using nanoSIMS to study virus structure
Because of their size, lack of symmetry, structural heterogeneity, and high molecular weight, most large animal and human viruses are not amenable to typical analytical techniques, such as x-ray crystallography, nuclear magnetic resonance analyses, or fine-scale reconstruction by cryo-electron microscopy. In a recently published paper in Analytical Chemistry, NACS and BBTD…
Studying population dynamics in diverse microbial communities
Ecological research focuses on understanding how population-level dynamics—such as the growth rate of a particular population of microbes—contribute to ecosystem-level processes. Ecosystem scientists researching climate change often study the role of microbes in the carbon cycle, for example, so knowing how quickly they grow is a fundamental metric to reaching that…
Forensic Science Center earns 8th straight ‘A’ in OPCW tests
During their 15 years as a certified laboratory for the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), a score of LLNL chemists have developed some first-rate habits. One of them is earning “A” grades on the organization’s environmental proficiency tests. In recently-announced results, LLNL earned its eighth straight “A” grade during last fall’s OPCW…
Exotic Nucleus Exhibits Curious Shape
Our researchers and collaborators created a technique used to determine the shape of a neutron-rich ruthenium isotope.
2017 Research Slam is a hit
On Sept. 7, 2017, 12 postdoc finalists of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's 2017 Research Slam! talked for three minutes each about their work before a distinguished panel of judges. The postdocs were competing for monetary prizes of two, three and four thousand dollars for third, second and first place winners, but perhaps the biggest prize was the chance to…
Lab team uses pulsed ion beams to probe radiation defect dynamics in nuclear materials
Materials scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have developed a novel experimental method to access the dynamic regime of radiation damage formation in nuclear and electronic materials. Their approach is based on using pulsed ion beams for measurements of defect lifetimes, interaction rates and diffusion lengths. The creation of stable radiation…
Zavarin named Director of Glenn T. Seaborg Institute
Mavrik Zavarin has been named the new Director of The Glenn T. Seaborg Institute (GTSI) in the Physical & Life Sciences Directorate. In this capacity, Mavrik will continue to develop the GTSI's mission to carry out cutting-edge research in areas key to LLNL's Nuclear Security and Energy & Environment mission areas, with an emphasis on providing opportunities for…
Providing data for nuclear detectives
Fans of the popular TV series "CSI" know that the forensics experts who investigate crime scenes are looking for answers to three key questions: "Who did it; how did they do it; and can we stop them from doing it again?"The field of nuclear forensics, an important element of LLNL’s national security mission, has similar goals and uses similar techniques — but with even…
White captures second award for nuclear forensics work
For the second time, Lab physicist Roger White, a designer in B-Division from the Weapons and Complex Integration (WCI) Directorate, has received an award from the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) for his work in post-detonation nuclear forensics.White was named the "top contributor of the quarter" for the third quarter of the fiscal year 2013 (April-June, 2013) for…
NNSA completes removal of high security special nuclear material from the Laboratory
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) on Friday announced that the last of the Security Category I/II special nuclear material items that required the highest level of security at the Laboratory have been removed. LLNL's primary mission will continue to be to ensure the safety, security and reliability of the nuclear weapons stockpile, but this mission will…
