ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
Latest Magazine Issues
Jun 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
July 2026
Nuclear Technology
June 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
May 2026
Latest News
INL reports findings on unusual quantum behavior of plutonium
Scientists at Idaho National Laboratory have discovered that plutonium hexaboride (PuB6) displays a type of unusual quantum property called a topological Kondo insulating state. Materials with this property are neither typical electricity conductors nor regular insulators. Rather, they have exterior surfaces that strongly conduct electricity and interiors that block electricity.
Alireza Behbahani, James N. Anno
Nuclear Technology | Volume 111 | Number 1 | July 1995 | Pages 70-79
Technical Paper | Material | doi.org/10.13182/NT95-A35145
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Concern about possible radiation damage from the increasing exposure of memory disks to mild radiation environments prompted an experimental investigation into this matter. A series of programmed memory disks were exposed at near room temperatures and in an air environment to several types and intensities of radiation, with stored data retrieved before and after exposure. Initial separate exposures to alpha, beta, gamma, and neutron radiation were in the range of 5 to 15 mrad, the “upper limit” of radiation exposure that might be expected in common usage situations. Finding no permanent damage, the disks were then subjected to high-level 60Co gamma radiation to total doses up to 20 Mrad, again with no detectable postirradiation effects. Finally, the disks were subjected to high-level neutrons (up to 2.86 x 1011 n/cm2 total thermal neutron fluence) as well as to gammas in a research reactor. Postulated radiation damage mechanisms apparently were not consequential. It is concluded that in the range investigated, radiation damage to memory disks is not significant to their ability to function.