Skip to main content

Call for papers: New methodologies and approaches for the control of illicit production, use and trafficking of nuclear material


(Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Safety and protection of societies, cities and infrastructures against illicit production, trafficking and use of nuclear material is a recognized priority in the international security program, with relevant ongoing R&D programs supported by significant investments by the public and private sectors. This topical issue covers the latest and advanced methodologies and approaches to tackle this problem, and aims to address the following exemplary topics:

  • wearable, portable, mobile/robotics solutions
  • portal detectors 
  • new materials for gamma/neutron discrimination (fast and thermal) and qualification of existing scintillators 
  • novel algorithms and approaches for isotope identification and gamma/neutron discrimination (including AI and neural network) 
  • solutions for systems of wearable devices and information management 
  • methodologies and technologies for directionality of the radiation field indoor and outdoor
  • radiation field imaging techniques
  • weapon verification/arms control
  • advanced/novel statistical methods (e.g. applications of "zero knowledge proof")


Guest Editors

Massimo Caccia, Università dell'Insubria - massimo.caccia@uninsubria.it  

Richard Lanza, Massachusetts Institute of Technology - lanza@mit.edu  

Paolo Peerani, Joint Research Center of the European Commission - Paolo.PEERANI@ec.europa.eu


Submission Information 

Please note during the submission process, choose the relevant special issue under the Additional Information section when asked “Are you submitting to a Thematic Series?”. The topical issue is available as “TS: Homeland Security”.

For more information, please contact the Guest Editors listed above.



Annual journal metrics

  • 2022 Citation Impact
    1.0 - 2-year Impact Factor
    1.4 - 5-year Impact Factor

    2023 Speed
    20 days submission to first editorial decision for all manuscripts (Median)
    79 days submission to accept (Median)

    2023 Usage
    135,850 downloads 
    31 Altmetric mentions

Institutional membership

Visit the membership page to check if your institution is a member and learn how you could save on article-processing charges (APCs).

Funding your APC

​​​​​​​Open access funding and policy support by SpringerOpen​​

​​​​We offer a free open access support service to make it easier for you to discover and apply for article-processing charge (APC) funding. Learn more here