Isotope separation of 176Lu a precursor to 177Lu medical isotope using broadband lasers

Abstract

A new photoionization scheme accessible by Rhodamine dye lasers is proposed for the isotope separation of 176Lu.5d6s22D3/2(0.0cm-1)⟶573.8130nm5d6s6p4F3/2o(17427.28cm-1)⟶560.3114nm6s6p24P5/2(35274.5cm-1)→AutoionizationState→Lu+Optimum conditions for the laser isotope separation have been theoretically computed and compared with the previously reported work. The enrichment of ~ 63% can be obtained with > 22 mg/h production rate even when broadband lasers with bandwidth of 500 MHz are employed for the two step excitation. The simplified system requirements for the photoionization scheme combined with a high production rate of 176Lu than previously reported is expected to reduce the global shortage of 176Lu isotope for medical applications.