Exotic isotope production for medical applications

放射性同位素具有质子和中子的比例，导致其不稳定性。这既带来了大量的机会，也由于其有限的性质而带来了获得这些机会的挑战。这项工作旨在通过开发放射性同位素生产和分离的新技术和方法，满足对这些外来同位素日益增长的医疗需求。虽然现有医用同位素的使用正在增加，但随着世界各地核研究反应堆退役，供应面临挑战。此外，诸如225Ac的非标准同位素的应用已经显示出用于治疗癌症的显著前景，而其他同位素在医学成像中具有应用。需要可靠的生产和分离这些同位素的工艺，以实现这些应用的全部潜力，并为初步研究生产临床前量。这项工作旨在解决这个问题，通过离子源和电磁质量分离器的异国情调的医用同位素生产的发展。

Radioactive isotopes have ratio of protons and neutrons that results in their instability. This presents both a plethora of opportunities, and a challenge to obtain them due to their finite nature. This work seeks to meet the rising medical demand for these exotic isotopes, through the development of new technologies and approaches for radioactive isotope production and separation. While the use of established medical isotopes is growing, there are challenges to the supply as nuclear research reactors are decommissioned across the world. Additionally, the application of non-standard isotopes such as 225Ac have shown significant promise for the treatment of cancers, while others have applications in medical imaging. Reliable processes for the production and separation of these isotopes are required to realise the full potential of these applications and to produce pre-clinical amounts for initial studies. This work seeks to address this through ion source and electromagnetic mass separator development for exotic medical isotope production.