People

I started working in nuclear forensics in 2009.

The best part of doing science, for me, is the thrill of new discoveries. I’ve always been interested in natural sciences and the question of how the earth and the cosmos came to be; geological sciences and cosmochemistry therefore seemed like a natural fit for me. When I was in grad school at UCDavis I would visit LLNL to perform analyses for my dissertation research in cosmochemistry, where I got introduced to the world of secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) analysis and nuclear forensics.

Most of my current research uses SIMS to answer fundamental science questions in nuclear forensics. I probe nuclear materials at a high spatial resolution for their chemical and isotopic composition, which can provide insight into their providence that might otherwise get lost during bulk analysis.

I really enjoy the diversity of research project I get to work on, the dynamic work environment, and collaborating with colleagues from various backgrounds.

Time management for all the various projects I work on is always a challenge, especially finding time to write. When dealing with complex instruments, like the SIMS instruments, problem solving technical issues can sometimes be challenging. At the same, it’s what makes the experience more stimulating when you find a solution that fixes the problem.

Nuclear forensics uses many different tools and requires people with many different skill sets. A good piece of career advice I received was that to be successful, do what you’re good at, not what you’re passionate about. That might seem counterintuitive, but if you’re passionate about nuclear forensics find the areas you’re good at within the field and success will follow. There are multiple examples of people within the forensics group who became very accomplished because they applied this concept.

In my spare time I enjoy spending time with my daughter and doing various activists with her. I’m also a photographer and love taking my camera out with me on walks and on my travels. Traveling and visiting new places is one of my favorite things to do. There are few things more enriching than being exposed to different cultures, visiting historical sites and learning their history. I love learning about ancient history and have been following the developments in paleogenetics in the last decade and how they have revealed things about ancient history that couldn’t have deciphered by traditional methods. Finally, I’m a bit of a foodie so I’m always up for a good meal with friends and family.

I started my first nuclear forensics project in 2014 and have been working on various nuclear forensics projects since that time.

I thoroughly enjoyed my high school chemistry class and that inspired me to major in chemistry as an undergraduate. From there, I got involved in cosmochemistry research which uses the same methods and instrumentation as nuclear forensics. It was a smooth transition from cosmochemistry to nuclear forensics and I still get to do some cosmochemistry research today, mostly working with meteorites to understand the formation and evolution of the Solar System.

I use isotope signatures which are essentially like fingerprints to determine the history of an unknown sample, including where it originated. It’s a bit of detective work that uses isotopes in place of clues to crack the case.

When working on a new research project, sometimes I make a new measurement in the lab, and I don’t know what it means. It can take time to fully understand the data obtained and how it is useful to nuclear forensics. I guess it’s also the fun part though!

Reach out to someone already in the field of nuclear forensics. It’s a friendly community that would be happy to answer your questions or point you in the right direction.

I enjoy being outside whether it’s camping, hiking, or enjoying time on the beach.

I was inspired by the people working at LLNL that showed me how to use isotopic signatures as a tool to answer cool questions. I first realized the power of isotopic signatures when I was doing my first internship at LLNL and have since learned how to measure a variety of isotope systems and exploit the information gained from them in a number of scientific disciplines, from oceanography and meteorite research to nuclear forensics.

As noted before, I am part of the crew that measures isotopic signatures, so a lot of my contributions come from chemical purification and mass spectrometry on a variety of elements. Because different elemental systems provide different types of information, we choose the systems we target based on the questions we want to answer.

Probably being able to work with great people that all use science to solve problems they care about. In some cases, these are basic science questions about the history of the Solar System, formation of the Moon, or the fate of toxins in groundwater, but in many cases these questions have direct implications to national security.

I would consider most challenging part when I am pulled away from the lab to work on office-focused stuff. It is not a major issue, but there are certainly periods that I want to spend in the lab figuring stuff out but find it difficult to dedicate that time when there are pressing things that only require a computer. It is a small gripe, but a gripe nonetheless.

Do it. It is a rewarding thing to do, it is stimulating, and it will teach you valuable skills that can be applied to a wide variety of scientific disciplines.

I love playing a variety of sports with my friends, traveling around the world to experience other cultures and sights, and hiking around nature. And eating cheese. Sometimes even during the aforementioned activities.

I find radioactivity endlessly fascinating. I was involved in radiochronometry, field work supporting earth and planetary science, and cosmochemistry. This career puts those skill sets to work in support of National Security.

As staff at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, I specialize in applications supporting national security with a focus on developing research and providing mission support to understand sampling and signature interpretation in nuclear fuel cycle and post-detonation materials. I participate in a multitude of international technical collaborations and provide technical support to LLNL's Forensic Science Center. I have led the design and delivery of training courses and lectures in technical nuclear forensics and supported the development and revision of international guidelines for nuclear forensics through participation in IAEA consultancies and workshops.

We never see the same material or problem twice. I have never, ever complained of boredom in this job! It also means I constantly need to reach out to other fields and subject matter experts, and I love meeting and continuing to learn new things from some of the best.

The most challenging part of my job is often the work to understand what questions are being asked, and then having that conversation and developing commonality with the sponsor or interested party to ensure everyone is on the same page. Once the questions being posed are well developed, figuring out how we will deliver answers becomes far easier.

Develop a deep technical background in a supporting scientific field. Develop your ability to articulate and distill what questions are being asked. Then bring that depth and insight into our field to create new capability and new connections between observables and interpretations.

Riding my horse!

I started working with mass spectrometers for trace element and isotopic analyses a little over twenty years ago. One of the first projects I worked on when I was in academia was analyzing crude oils for trace element “fingerprints”. Not only was the analysis challenging, but I felt like I was making a worthwhile contribution to environmental protection, which has always been a passion of mine. I feel the same satisfaction from nuclear forensics. Identifying signatures that can link materials to locations and processes that ultimately can assist non-proliferation efforts is extremely rewarding.

My work is mainly on the pre-detonation side, analyzing trace elements by ICP-MS in nuclear materials. When reviewing the analytical results, I try to decipher whether an element or pattern of elements might be a useful signature. For instance, some elements may be an inherent part of the starting material or intentionally (or un-intentionally) added during processing.

The variety of materials I have had the opportunity to analyze and the challenges that come with new matrices. The camaraderie that comes with a team of people investigating the same material and the excitement that comes from sharing our findings with each other as we progress through our analytical plan and derive our final conclusions.

Teasing out elemental signatures can be very challenging, not only do they require high fidelity measurements, but also a fundamental understanding of how trace elements behave that draws from disciplines such as geochemistry and material science. I think one major challenge is finding the resources to further develop our fundamental understanding in order to use trace element signatures in a predictive capacity.

Nuclear forensics is not necessarily a full-time position. I think having a solid analytical background with expertise in one or more analytical techniques is key. I’ve been able to build from my core mass spectrometry experience from analyzing a wide range of sample types, and then fine tune my skills to become proficient with nuclear materials.

Spending time with my family and exploring California. My husband and I like to pack up our two kids and the dog and go camping at the beach or in the mountains in the summertime. Now that the kids are old enough, we’ve added downhill skiing to our family activities. We’re very fortunate to live in an area that has an amazing climate and a never-ending supply of outdoor adventures.