Patents by Inventor Rico S. Chandrasekharan

Rico S. Chandrasekharan has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 9632188
    Abstract: A method and a system for fissile content measurement that utilizes a detector configured to detect fast neutrons. An external radiation source may be used to induce fission in a sample to allow the measurement of a fissile material of the sample with a low spontaneous fission probability. Analyzing the sample may be based on the energy spectrum of emitted neutrons. That is, the energy information regarding the energy of the fast neutrons is obtained, and the fast neutrons as having a high likelihood of originating in a nuclear fission process as opposed to originating in an (alpha,n) reaction by utilizing the obtained energy information are classified to analyze the sample. Alternatively, a position of interaction in the detector of neutron emitted by the sample is measured, and this position is retraced back through intervening material(s) between the detector and the sample to determine the spacial geometry of the sample.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2017
    Assignees: RAYTHEON COMPANY, ARKTIS RADIATION DETECTORS LTD.
    Inventors: Rico S. Chandrasekharan, Michael V. Hynes, Donald D. Flechtner
  • Publication number: 20130034198
    Abstract: A method and a system for fissile content measurement that utilizes a detector configured to detect fast neutrons. An external radiation source may be used to induce fission in a sample to allow the measurement of a fissile material of the sample with a low spontaneous fission probability. Analyzing the sample may be based on the energy spectrum of emitted neutrons. That is, the energy information regarding the energy of the fast neutrons is obtained, and the fast neutrons as having a high likelihood of originating in a nuclear fission process as opposed to originating in an (alpha,n) reaction by utilizing the obtained energy information are classified to analyze the sample. Alternatively, a position of interaction in the detector of neutron emitted by the sample is measured, and this position is retraced back through intervening material(s) between the detector and the sample to determine the spacial geometry of the sample.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 2, 2011
    Publication date: February 7, 2013
    Inventors: Rico S. Chandrasekharan, Michael V. Hynes, Donald D. Flechtner
  • Patent number: 8294114
    Abstract: A method for monitoring a container or the contents in a volume (39, 47), including allowing at least one of a beta, gamma, neutron, and proton radiation emerging from said container or volume (39, 47), and/or secondary particles or radiation brought forth by said radiation, to pass through a measuring volume (12, 12?) of at least one radiation detector (10, 10?, 10?), said measuring volume (12, 12?) containing a noble gas and/or a noble gas isotope, or a mixture of noble gases and/or noble gas isotopes and detecting the photons generated within said measuring volume (12, 12?) by an interaction (18, W1, . . . , W4) of the radiation with the noble gas or noble gases and/or their isotopes of the measuring volume (12, 12?). The output of said photon detecting means (15, 16, 53) is then used to derive information about the container or the contents in said volume (39, 47), whereby this information is used to discriminate protons, neutrons, beta and gamma rays respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2007
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2012
    Assignee: ETH Zürich, ETH Transfer
    Inventor: Rico S. Chandrasekharan
  • Publication number: 20090294686
    Abstract: A method for monitoring a container or the contents in a volume (39, 47), including allowing at least one of a beta, gamma, neutron, and proton radiation emerging from said container or volume (39, 47), and/or secondary particles or radiation brought forth by said radiation, to pass through a measuring volume (12, 12?) of at least one radiation detector (10, 10?, 10?), said measuring volume (12, 12?) containing a noble gas and/or a noble gas isotope, or a mixture of noble gases and/or noble gas isotopes and detecting the photons generated within said measuring volume (12, 12?) by an interaction (18, W1, . . . , W4) of the radiation with the noble gas or noble gases and/or their isotopes of the measuring volume (12, 12?). The output of said photon detecting means (15, 16, 53) is then used to derive information about the container or the contents in said volume (39, 47), whereby this information is used to discriminate protons, neutrons, beta and gamma rays respectively.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 13, 2007
    Publication date: December 3, 2009
    Applicant: ETH ZURICH , ETH TRANSFER
    Inventor: Rico S. Chandrasekharan