F-18 production with the TOP linac injector

ENEA and ISS (Italian National Institute of Health), are collaborating to develop a dedicated proton medical accelerator, TOP (Oncological Therapy with Protons) linac, consisting of a sequence of three pulsed linear accelerators. The 7 MeV injector can be used in three operating modes: Protontherapy and Radiobiology Mode—injecting low current proton beam into the TOP linac accelerating sections; Radioisotope Mode—generating an intense proton beam (8–10 mA, 50–100 μs, 30–100 Hz) to produce the positron-emitting radionuclide F18 for PET analyses. In the high current mode, at the exit of the injector the beam is guided through a magnetic quadrupoles channel to a target composed by a thin chamber (0.5 mm thick and 1 in. diameter) containing water enriched with O18. Production yield as well as total activity similar to these achieved with higher energy cyclotrons have been obtained. Environmental doses measured give indications on the shielding required for operation under current radioprotection regulations. Improvements are foreseen to optimize the production yield, the useful beam current and to better characterize gamma and neutron dose rates in the different operational modes.