Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
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IEEE N42.41-2007
Scope
This standard specifies the operational and performance requirements for active interrogation systems for
use in homeland security applications. These systems employ penetrating ionizing radiation (e.g., neutrons,
high-energy x-rays, gamma-rays) to detect and identify hidden chemical, nuclear, and explosive agents by
detection of stimulated secondary radiations or by nuclear resonance contrast, giving elemental and/or
nuclidic identification of the composition of the substances-of-interest. These inspection systems may be
designed for open inspection zones of various sizes or for various sizes of containers such as small
packages, briefcases, suitcases, air cargo containers, passenger vehicles, two-axle trucks, intermodal cargo
containers, semi-trailers/tractor rigs, or rail cars. The systems may be designed for operation in indoor,
outdoor, or mobile facilities.
At the time of this writing, there are only a few commercially available active interrogation systems, and
most of these are still in a stage of rapid development. None are yet deployed on a very broad scale, either
domestically or internationally. The requirements of this standard provide a set of minimally acceptable
performance criteria for preliminary screening of candidate systems for further consideration. Prior to
deployment on a broad scale, more detailed and realistic testing beyond the scope of this standard should be
carried out, with some test specifications outside of the public domain. Detectable amounts of substances in
this standard may correspond to quantities that are larger or smaller than those of significance in particular
circumstances. Successful completion of the tests described in this standard should not be construed as
certification of an ability to successfully detect and identify all chemical, nuclear, and explosive agents in
all possible cargos, nor as a certification that false positive rates in actual stream-of-commerce applications
will be no larger than in these tests.
This standard does not consider radiographic imaging characteristics. However, if active interrogation
features that provide chemical or nuclidic identification of substances are included in a system that is
primarily intended for radiography, then the active interrogation features of the system may be tested and
evaluated under this standard.
IEEE N42.41-2007 Referenced Document
ANSI N42.23-1996 Measurement and Associated Instrumentation Quality Assurance for Radioassay Laboratories
IEEE N42.41-2007 history
2008IEEE N42.41-2007 Minimum Performance Criteria for Active Interrogation Systems Used for Homeland Security