Laser generation of proton beams for the production of short-lived positron emitting radioisotopes

I. Spencer, K.W.D. Ledingham, R.P. Singhal, T. McCanny, P. McKenna, E.L. Clark, K. Krushelnick, Matthew Zepf, F.N. Beg, M. Tatarakis, A.E. Dangor, P.A. Norreys, Rosemary Clarke, R.M. Allott, I.N. Ross

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

188 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Protons of energies up to 37 MeV have been generated when ultra-intense lasers (up to 10(20) W cm(-2)) interact with hydrogen containing solid targets. These protons can be used to induce nuclear reactions in secondary targets to produce P-emitting nuclei of relevance to the nuclear medicine community, namely C-11 and N-13 via (p, n) and (p, alpha) reactions. Activities of the order of 200 kBq have been measured from a single laser pulse interacting with a thin solid target. The possibility of using ultra-intense lasers to produce commercial amounts of short-lived positron emitting sources for positron emission tomography (PET) is discussed. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)449-458
Number of pages10
JournalNuclear Instruments & Methods In Physics Research Section B-beam Interactions With Materials And Atoms
Volume183
Issue number3-4
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2001

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Surfaces, Coatings and Films
  • Instrumentation
  • Surfaces and Interfaces

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Laser generation of proton beams for the production of short-lived positron emitting radioisotopes'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this