Measurement of the activity concentration of radioactive xenon

A change of perspective: stationed on own territory, QUBE monitors distant nuclear events. Radioxenon is the earliest indicator of irregularities in the operation of nuclear facilities. The isotope signature reveals the type of source and its condition, the array concept the point of origin.

SAUNA QUBE is the latest generation, fully automated system to measure the activity concentration of radioactive xenon in the atmosphere. QUBE uses a series of adsorption stages to extract xenon gas from the air. The volume of the xenon sample is measured and then transferred to a detector to measure the activity of the four relevant xenon isotopes using beta-gamma coincidence spectroscopy. QUBE is highly scalable, operating as a single unit and in an array of multiple QUBE units spread over a larger geographic region. The array concept improves source localization and characterization. It also increases robustness compared to a single system as the array continues to function even if a single unit is down. Exchanging an individual unit is easy because of its transportability and plug-and-play design.