press release #30
The Alikhanyan National Lab Makes Another Step in the Isotope Production Activities
During spring 2010 a new metallic cathode with high emission properties has been installed in an electron gun of 40 MeV linear accelerator (Linac, used previously as injector for the 6 GeV electron synchrotron). The first tests demonstrated the high quality of the electron beam parameters (Electron current Ie~10 μA, Electron maximal energy Ee=40 MeV, beam spot ~10 mm and rather low angular divergence).
Figure 1. Electron gun with a new cathode
The investigation of the 99mTc (the isotope used in most popular nuclear scanner SPECT) production rate were performed using electron beam incident on the target of 3.5 g of MoO3 during ~110 hours under average current 9.5
μA.
Then another target, namely natural Xe, has been irradiated by the same beam for the production of the important isotope 123I. The irradiated material has been packed in a stainless still container under ~250 bar pressure. Irradiation time was 13 hours, and then the 123I extraction procedures were executed.
Energy spectra for all irradiated materials have been measured during ~5 days to see the
time dependence of activity to estimate the actual doze of obtained isotopes.
For the accurate measurements of the beam profile the Vibrating Wire Scanner methodology was successfully applied allowing the beam size to measure with very high accuracy (see Fig.2).
Figure 2.Vertical scan of beam spot size Gaussian fit parameters: mean value 37.1 mm and variance 3.4 mm are presented in magenta.
last 10 press releases:
- Armenia become member of SCOSTEP!
- A.Alikhanyan national lab purchase high purity germanium gamma-detector for nuclear physics research and isotope production
- KHEBR laser technological complex, which is unique with its power is launched in AANL
- Ground Breaking ceremony of Nuclear Medecine Center, October 30, 2012
- Visit in Dubna, 3-4 May 2012
- National Scientific laboratory after A. I.Alikhanyan young scientist Artyom Hovhanisyan “Haykyan” award-winner.
- The prime minister visited the National Scientific laboratory after A. I.Alikhanyan
- Center for Cosmology and Astrophysics is established in A.Alikhanyan National Laboratory (AANL)
- The workshop “Low dimensional physics and gauge principles”
- Launching of the detector in Yerevan
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