Naveed Butt

Robust Algorithms for Detection of Explosives and Narcotics Using Nuclear Quadrupole Resonance

Abstract

Nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) is a noninvasive, radio-frequency (RF) spectroscopic technique, 
able to detect unique signals from solid-state compounds containing quadrupolar nuclei, including 
many high explosives and narcotics. The technique has recently attracted attention from the 
pharmaceutical industry as, being a solid-state technique, it is able to capture important 
information on the chemical structure that is often lost in the more commonly used solution-based 
methods. In this talk, we present a brief introduction to the NQR detection method, its applications 
and limitations, followed by an overview of some of the advanced robust algorithms developed for NQR 
based detectors. In particular, a new robust multi-channel algorithm, ESPIRE, that uses spatial 
diversity to cancel the strong RF interferences present in NQR signals, will be presented.