Boron Nitride Nanotube Cyclotron Targets for Recoil Escape Production of Carbon-11

Resumen

Boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) were investigated as a target media for cyclotron production of 11C for incident beam energy at or below 11 MeV. Both the 11B(p,n)11C and 14N(p,a)11C nuclear reactions were utilized. A sweep gas of nitrogen or helium was used to collect recoil escape atoms with a desired form of 11CO2. Three prototype targets were tested using an RDS-111 cyclotron. Target geometry and density were shown to impact the saturation yield of 11C and percent of yield recovered as carbon dioxide. Physical damage to the BNNT target media was observed at beam currents above 5 µA. Additional studies are needed to identify operating conditions suitable for commercial application of the method.