Abstract

CERN-MEDICIS is an off-line isotope separator facility for the extraction of radioisotopes from irradiated targets of interest to medical applications. The beamline, between the ion source and the collection chamber, consists of ion extraction and focusing elements, and a dipole magnet mass spectrometer recovered from the LISOL facility in Louvain-la-Neuve. The latter has been modified for compatibility with MEDICIS, including the installation of a window for injecting laser light into the ion source for resonance photo-ionization. Ion beam optics and magnetic field modeling using SIMION and OPERA respectively were performed for the design and characterization of the beamline. The individual components and their optimal configuration in terms of ion beam extraction, mass separation, and ion transport efficiency is described, along with details of the commissioning and initial performance assessment with stable ion beams.

Highlights

  • The availability of isotopes for use in the medical field traditionally relies on the extraction of radionuclides from nuclear reactors or targets irradiated by medical cyclotrons or proton/electron accelerators

  • For an ion beam with A/q = 100, the mass resolving power (MRP) is approximately halved with only a ∼3% deviation of the optimal einzel lens voltage

  • The production of the first stable beams at MEDICIS was performed with a standard ISOLDE surface ion source [17] as well as the ISOLDE variant of the FEBIAD [18], known as the VADIS (Versatile Arc Discharge Ion Source) [19]

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Summary

INTRODUCTION

The availability of isotopes for use in the medical field traditionally relies on the extraction of radionuclides from nuclear reactors or targets irradiated by medical cyclotrons or proton/electron accelerators. The radioisotopes that are currently commercially available for nuclear medicine do not necessarily possess the optimal nuclear properties for the treatment or diagnostics of cancer. In this respect, several more promising candidates across the entire nuclear landscape have been identified. The CERNMEDICIS (MEDical Isotopes Collected from ISOLDE) laboratory was constructed to operate parasitically alongside ISOLDE, making use of targets irradiated either at ISOLDE or elsewhere. Both ISOLDE and CERN-MEDICIS are the main producers of 155Tb [7, 8]. The first results on the production of stable ion beams are discussed

TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE BEAMLINE ELEMENTS
Mass Resolving Power
Incorporation of the Laser Window
FIRST MASS SEPARATED ION BEAMS AT MEDICIS
Findings
CONCLUSIONS

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