Specialists from Armenia’s Nuclear and Radiation Safety Center (NRSC) participated in the Nuclear Forensics Technical Exchange, held on August 20–22 at Argonne National Laboratory, in Lemont, (Illinois, the US). The international event brought together experts to discuss radioactive source registries, field data collection, and the development of National Nuclear Forensics Libraries (NNFLs). Armenia was represented by Ms. Arpi Khachatryan, Mr. Karen Haroyan, and Ms. Anahit Petoyan. During the program, Ms. Petoyan, a PhD student at NRSC, delivered a presentation titled “Towards Accurate Quantification of Non-Homogeneous Swipe Samples in Gamma Spectrometry.” Her research addressed challenges in analyzing heterogeneous contamination and proposed methods to improve measurement accuracy in nuclear forensics investigations. The program combined theoretical discussions—such as the expansion of the xARIS platform developed by NRSC and the outcomes of the ISTC cooperation project—with hands-on sessions using Argonne’s NNFL toolkit, field detection instruments, and integrated registry software. Such exchange of experience is an important step in developing nuclear forensics capabilities in Armenia, contributing to the creation of a National Nuclear Forensic Library.
The Nuclear and Radiation Safety Center plays a key role in the fight against illicit trafficking of nuclear and radioactive materials in the Republic of Armenia. In cooperation with the Armenian Nuclear Regulatory Authority, National Security Service, RA Police and State Revenue Committee the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Center conducts nuclear forensic expertise to characterize nuclear and radioactive materials found in the course of combating illicit trafficking. The Nuclear and Radiation Safety Center, in combating illicit trafficking of nuclear and radioactive materials, also works to search for and recovery of nuclear and radioactive materials outside regulatory control in the Republic of Armenia to increase the level of protection of the public from the radiation exposure risks. The Nuclear and Radiation Safety Center in collaboration with the International Science and Technology Center (ISTC) implements the ISTC-AM-2546 project “Enhancement of Nuclear Forensics Capabilities in Armenia”. Main goal of the project is the improvement of the Armenian legal framework for sustainable and continuous development of nuclear forensics expertise as well as the promotion of effective cooperation between the bodies involved in combating illicit trafficking of nuclear and radioactive materials.
