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AGA: Arbeitsgruppe Physik und Abrüstung
AGA 7: An Overview of Physics and Disarmament Research in Germany – Social Event & Poster Session
AGA 7.3: Poster
Thursday, March 19, 2026, 17:30–18:30, KH 00.016
Advancements in Radioxenon Monitoring with the new German SAUNA Qb Systems — •Steffen Ludwig1, Sofia Brander1, J. Ole Ross2, Sabine Schmid1, Martina Konrad1, Andreas Zehr1, Andreas Bollhöfer1, and Moritz Kütt3 — 1Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz (BfS) — 2Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe (BGR) — 3Hamburg Nuclear Disarmament Laboratory (HaNDL), University of Hamburg
Since 1997, the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization has been monitoring nuclear weapon tests globally through the International Monitoring System. Radioxenon isotopes are produced in characteristic ratios during nuclear fission processes and can be indicators for nuclear explosions. They can even escape from deep underground nuclear tests.
As part of my PhD project in the Atmospheric Radioactivity and Trace Analysis group at BfS and at HaNDL, I will present first data from the new SAUNA Qb systems deployed in Freiburg and the Bavarian Forest. These compact systems automatically sample and analyze radioxenon from the atmosphere. Thus, they improve the ability to characterize known radioxenon sources, evaluate Atmospheric Transport and Dispersion Models and identify unknown radioxenon emitters. In particular, traces of Xe-131m, which presumably originate from hospital emissions, will be investigated. Further, I will discuss ideas to combine SAUNA Qb data, other radioxenon monitoring data and available emission data to improve source localization within the new European Qb network.
Keywords: CTBTO; SAUNA Qb; Radioxenon Monitoring; Atmospheric Transport and Dispersion Modelling; Source Localization