Anna Erickson
Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering | Georgia Tech College of Engineering
Atlanta, GA, UNITED STATES
Dr. Erickson's research focuses on advanced nuclear reactor design and nuclear security and nonproliferation.
Biography
Anna Erickson is a leader of Advanced Laboratory for Nuclear Nonproliferation and Safety and an Assistant Professor of Nuclear & Radiological Engineering in the Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering at Georgia Tech. She received her MS and PhD from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she was a NNSA’s Stewardship Science Graduate Fellow. Prior to her position at Georgia Tech, she was a postdoctoral researcher at the Advanced Detectors Group at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Dr. Erickson's research focuses on advanced nuclear reactor design and nuclear security and nonproliferation, connected by the current need for proliferation-resistant nuclear power. Her group is involved in large-array imaging applications for homeland security, antineutrino detection and nuclearized robotics for safety and security applications.
Areas of Expertise (3)
Non-Prolilferation
Radiation Detection
Nuclear Security
Selected Accomplishments (2)
Lockheed Dean's Excellence in Teaching Award
2016
American Nuclear Society Graduate Scholarship Award
2006 and 2009
Education (3)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Ph.D., Nuclear Science and Engineering 2011
Activities and Societies: President, Alpha Nu Sigma Honor Society, MIT chapter, March 2008 - current
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: M.S., Nuclear Science and Engineering 2008
Activities and Societies: President, American Nuclear Society, MIT chapter, May 2008 - May 2009
Oregon State University: B.S., Nuclear Engineering 2006
Activities and Societies: American Nuclear Society, OSU student chapter, VP 2005-2006 Alpha Nu Sigma Honor Society
Links (3)
Selected Media Appearances (5)
Antineutrino Detection Could Help Remotely Monitor Nuclear Reactors
Research Horizons online
2019-08-06
Technology to measure the flow of subatomic particles known as antineutrinos from nuclear reactors could allow continuous remote monitoring designed to detect fueling changes that might indicate the diversion of nuclear materials. The monitoring could be done from outside the reactor vessel, and the technology may be sensitive enough to detect substitution of a single fuel assembly.
Grand Canyon guests exposed to radiation, safety manager says
Fox17 online
2019-03-13
Uranium ore stored at the Grand Canyon National Park museum may have exposed visitors and workers to elevated levels of radiation, according to the park’s safety, health and wellness manager.
For nearly 2 decades, Grand Canyon tourists were exposed to radiation, safety manager says
WPIX 11 New York online
2019-02-21
Uranium ore stored at the Grand Canyon National Park museum may have exposed visitors and workers to elevated levels of radiation, according to the park’s safety, health and wellness manager.
Grand Canyon National Park museum visitors exposed to uranium, safety manager says
KOKI FOX 23 online
2019-02-20
Visitors to and workers at the Grand Canyon National Park museum may have been exposed to elevated levels of radiation, the park’s safety, health and wellness manager announced.
$25 Million Award Will Support Nuclear Nonproliferation R&D, Education
Georgia Tech News Center online
2019-02-06
A consortium of 12 universities and 10 national laboratories led by the Georgia Institute of Technology has been awarded $25 million from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) to develop new technologies and educational programs to support the agency’s nuclear science, security and nonproliferation goals.
Selected Articles (5)
Performance and safety evaluation of a mixed-spectrum reactor design
Annals of Nuclear EnergyA. Abou-Jaoude, N.E. Stauff, A. Erickson
2019 Mixed-spectrum reactors (MXR) have been investigated for a wide variety of applications. Typical MXR core designs are based on fast configurations with moderating material inserted within localized regions of the core. Limited analysis has been conducted on assessing important performance and safety aspects. Three main safety-related metrics are devised in this article to validate the feasibility of MXR designs. A long-lived MXR variant was taken as a case study for this analysis. Reactivity feedback mechanisms were evaluated, along with power peaking effects and fast flux damage. Neutron transport simulations found that distortions are manageable in all three areas, with notable improvements in fluence limits and Doppler broadening coefficients. Power peaking effects can be significantly dampened by slight addition of gadolinium in the fuel and by carefully selecting the reflector material.
The PROSPECT reactor antineutrino experiment
Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated EquipmentJ Ashenfelter, AB Balantekin, C Baldenegro, HR Band, CD Bass, DE Bergeron, D Berish, LJ Bignell, NS Bowden, J Boyle, J Bricco, JP Brodsky, CD Bryan, A Bykadorova Telles, JJ Cherwinka, T Classen, K Commeford, AJ Conant, AA Cox, D Davee, D Dean, G Deichert, MV Diwan, MJ Dolinski, A Erickson, M Febbraro, BT Foust, JK Gaison, A Galindo-Uribarri, CE Gilbert, KE Gilje, A Glenn, BW Goddard, BT Hackett, K Han, S Hans, AB Hansell, KM Heeger, B Heffron, J Insler, DE Jaffe, X Ji, DC Jones, K Koehler, O Kyzylova, CE Lane, TJ Langford, J LaRosa, BR Littlejohn, F Lopez, X Lu, DA Martinez Caicedo, JT Matta, RD McKeown, MP Mendenhall, HJ Miller, JM Minock, PE Mueller, HP Mumm, J Napolitano, R Neilson, JA Nikkel, D Norcini, S Nour, DA Pushin, X Qian, E Romero-Romero, R Rosero, D Sarenac, BS Seilhan, R Sharma, PT Surukuchi, C Trinh, MA Tyra, RL Varner, B Viren, JM Wagner, W Wang, B White, C White, J Wilhelmi, T Wise, H Yao, M Yeh, Y-R Yen, A Zhang, C Zhang, X Zhang, M Zhao
2019 The Precision Reactor Oscillation and Spectrum Experiment, PROSPECT, is designed to make both a precise measurement of the antineutrino spectrum from a highly-enriched uranium reactor and to probe eV-scale sterile neutrinos by searching for neutrino oscillations over meter-long baselines. PROSPECT utilizes a segmentedLi-doped liquid scintillator detector for both efficient detection of reactor antineutrinos through the inverse beta decay reaction and excellent background discrimination. PROSPECT is a movable 4-ton antineutrino detector covering distances of 7 m to 13 m from the High Flux Isotope Reactor core. It will probe the best-fit point of the disappearance experiments at 4 in 1 year and the favored regions of the sterile neutrino parameter space at more than in 3 years. PROSPECT will test the origin of spectral deviations observed in recent experiments, search for sterile neutrinos, and address the hypothesis of sterile neutrinos as an explanation of the reactor anomaly. This paper describes the design, construction, and commissioning of PROSPECT and reports first data characterizing the performance of the PROSPECT antineutrino detector.
A low mass optical grid for the PROSPECT reactor antineutrino detector
Journal of InstrumentationJ Ashenfelter, AB Balantekin, HR Band, CD Bass, DE Bergeron, D Berish, NS Bowden, JP Brodsky, CD Bryan, JJ Cherwinka, T Classen, AJ Conant, D Davee, D Dean, G Deichert, AE Diwan, MJ Dolinski, A Erickson, M Febbraro, BT Foust, JK Gaison, A Galindo-Uribarri, Y Gebre, CE Gilbert, KE Gilje, IF Gustafson, BT Hackett, S Hans, AB Hansell, KM Heeger, KH Hermanek, J Insler, DE Jaffe, DC Jones, O Kyzylova, CE Lane, TJ Langford, J LaRosa, BR Littlejohn, X Lu, DA Caicedo, JT Matta, RD McKeown, MP Mendenhall, JM Minock, PE Mueller, HP Mumm, J Napolitano, R Neilson, JA Nikkel, D Norcini, S Nour, DA Pushin, X Qian, E Romero-Romero, R Rosero, D Sarenac, PT Surukuchi, MA Tyra, RL Varner, B Viren, C White, J Wilhelmi, T Wise, M Yeh, Y-R Yen, A Zhang, C Zhang, X Zhang, PROSPECT Collaboration
2019 PROSPECT, the Precision Reactor Oscillation and SPECTrum experiment, is a short-baseline reactor antineutrino experiment designed to provide precision measurements of the 235U product bar nue spectrum, utilizing an optically segmented 4-ton liquid scintillator detector. PROSPECT's segmentation system, the optical grid, plays a central role in reconstructing the position and energy of bar nue interactions in the detector. This paper is the technical reference for this PROSPECT subsystem, describing its design, fabrication, quality assurance, transportation and assembly in detail. In addition, the dimensional, optical and mechanical characterizations of optical grid components and the assembled PROSPECT target are also presented. The technical information and characterizations detailed here will inform geometry-related inputs for PROSPECT physics analysis, and can guide a variety of future particle detection development efforts, such as those using optically reflecting materials or filament-based 3D printing.
The PROSPECT physics program
Journal of Physics G: Nuclear and Particle PhysicsJ Ashenfelter, AB Balantekin, HR Band, G Barclay, CD Bass, D Berish, L Bignell, NS Bowden, A Bowes, JP Brodsky, CD Bryan, JJ Cherwinka, R Chu, T Classen, K Commeford, AJ Conant, D Davee, D Dean, G Deichert, MV Diwan, MJ Dolinski, J Dolph, M DuVernois, AS Erickson, MT Febbraro, JK Gaison, A Galindo-Uribarri, K Gilje, A Glenn, BW Goddard, M Green, BT Hackett, K Han, S Hans, KM Heeger, B Heffron, J Insler, DE Jaffe, D Jones, TJ Langford, BR Littlejohn, DA Martinez Caicedo, JT Matta, RD McKeown, MP Mendenhall, PE Mueller, HP Mumm, J Napolitano, R Neilson, JA Nikkel, D Norcini, D Pushin, X Qian, E Romero, R Rosero, BS Seilhan, R Sharma, S Sheets, PT Surukuchi, C Trinh, RL Varner, B Viren, W Wang, B White, C White, J Wilhelmi, C Williams, T Wise, H Yao, M Yeh, YR Yen, GZ Zangakis, C Zhang, X Zhang, PROSPECT Collaboration
2016 The precision reactor oscillation and spectrum experiment, PROSPECT, is designed to make a precise measurement of the antineutrino spectrum from a highly-enriched uranium reactor and probe eV-scale sterile neutrinos by searching for neutrino oscillations over a distance of several meters. PROSPECT is conceived as a 2-phase experiment utilizing segmented 6Li-doped liquid scintillator detectors for both efficient detection of reactor antineutrinos through the inverse beta decay reaction and excellent background discrimination. PROSPECT Phase I consists of a movable 3 ton antineutrino detector at distances of 7–12 m from the reactor core. It will probe the best-fit point of the ${\nu }_{e}$ disappearance experiments at 4σ in 1 year and the favored region of the sterile neutrino parameter space at $\gt 3\sigma $ in 3 years. With a second antineutrino detector at 15–19 m from the reactor, Phase II of PROSPECT can probe the entire allowed parameter space below 10 eV2 at 5σ in 3 additional years. The measurement of the reactor antineutrino spectrum and the search for short-baseline oscillations with PROSPECT will test the origin of the spectral deviations observed in recent ${\theta }_{13}$ experiments, search for sterile neutrinos, and conclusively address the hypothesis of sterile neutrinos as an explanation of the reactor anomaly.
First measurement of θ13 from delayed neutron capture on hydrogen in the Double Chooz experiment
Physics Letters BY Abe, Christoph Aberle, JC Dos Anjos, JC Barriere, M Bergevin, A Bernstein, TJC Bezerra, L Bezrukhov, E Blucher, NS Bowden, C Buck, J Busenitz, A Cabrera, E Caden, L Camilleri, R Carr, M Cerrada, P-J Chang, P Chimenti, T Classen, AP Collin, E Conover, JM Conrad, JI Crespo-Anadón, K Crum, A Cucoanes, E Damon, JV Dawson, S Dazeley, D Dietrich, Z Djurcic, M Dracos, V Durand, J Ebert, Y Efremenko, M Elnimr, A Erickson, A Etenko, M Fallot, M Fechner, F Von Feilitzsch, J Felde, SM Fernandes, V Fischer, D Franco, AJ Franke, M Franke, H Furuta, R Gama, I Gil-Botella, L Giot, M Göger-Neff, LFG Gonzalez, L Goodenough, MC Goodman, J Tm Goon, D Greiner, N Haag, S Habib, C Hagner, T Hara, FX Hartmann, Julia Haser, A Hatzikoutelis, T Hayakawa, M Hofmann, GA Horton-Smith, A Hourlier, M Ishitsuka, J Jochum, C Jollet, CL Jones, F Kaether, LN Kalousis, Y Kamyshkov, DM Kaplan, T Kawasaki, G Keefer, E Kemp, H De Kerret, T Konno, D Kryn, M Kuze, T Lachenmaier, CE Lane, C Langbrandtner, T Lasserre, A Letourneau, D Lhuillier, HP Lima, Manfred Lindner, JM López-Castaño, JM LoSecco, BK Lubsandorzhiev, S Lucht, D McKee, J Maeda, CN Maesano, C Mariani, J Maricic, J Martino, T Matsubara, G Mention, A Meregaglia, M Meyer, T Miletic, R Milincic, H Miyata, Th A Mueller, Y Nagasaka, K Nakajima, P Novella, M Obolensky, L Oberauer, A Onillon, A Osborn, I Ostrovskiy, C Palomares, IM Pepe, S Perasso, P Perrin, P Pfahler, A Porta, W Potzel, G Pronost, J Reichenbacher, B Reinhold, A Remoto, M Röhling, R Roncin, S Roth, B Rybolt, Y Sakamoto, R Santorelli, F Sato, S Schönert, S Schoppmann, T Schwetz, MH Shaevitz, S Shimojima, D Shrestha, J-L Sida, V Sinev, M Skorokhvatov, E Smith, J Spitz, A Stahl, I Stancu, LFF Stokes, M Strait
2013 The Double Chooz experiment has determined the value of the neutrino oscillation parameter θ 13 from an analysis of inverse beta decay interactions with neutron capture on hydrogen. This analysis uses a three times larger fiducial volume than the standard Double Chooz assessment, which is restricted to a region doped with gadolinium (Gd), yielding an exposure of 113.1 GW-ton-years. The data sample used in this analysis is distinct from that of the Gd analysis, and the systematic uncertainties are also largely independent, with some exceptions, such as the reactor neutrino flux prediction. A combined rate-and energy-dependent fit finds sin 2 2 θ 13= 0.097±0.034 (stat.)±0.034 (syst.), excluding the no-oscillation hypothesis at 2.0σ. This result is consistent with previous measurements of sin 2 2 θ 13.
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