Bio

Peyton Carr graduated from Texas A&M University in Spring 2026 with a Master of Science degree in Nuclear Engineering. Her graduate research was conducted under the direction of Dr. Farheen Naqvi and focused on improving radiation detection methods for nuclear safeguards and material accountancy.

Carr’s thesis, "Optimization of Detector Configuration for Nuclear Material Localization Using Monte Carlo Simulation," examined how detector number and placement affect the localization of nuclear material holdup. Using Monte Carlo N-Particle simulations, she evaluated configurations of helium-3 detectors surrounding a cylindrical plutonium-239 holdup geometry, comparing detection efficiency with relative positional uncertainty. She also tested selected configurations using a localization algorithm. Her results showed that increased detection efficiency alone does not necessarily improve localization performance and identified detector symmetry as an important factor in achieving more robust positional measurements. The work provides insight into the design of practical detector systems for safeguards applications where access is limited and radiation fields may be weak.

Carr earned her B.S. in Nuclear Engineering from Texas A&M University in 2024. Following completion of her master’s degree, she joined the Y-12 National Security Complex as a Nuclear Criticality Safety Engineer.