Speaker
Description
The Bern medical cyclotron laboratory is based on a 18 MeV proton cyclotron equipped with a specifically conceived 6 m long research beam line, terminated in a separate bunker. This particular configuration is designed for industrial Positron Emission Tomography (PET) radioisotope production as well as for multi-disciplinary scientific activities. A research program is ongoing encompassing novel radionuclides for theragnostics, targets, particle detectors, radiation biophysics, proton induced neutron fields, radiation protection, and materials science. In particular, novel methodologies for the optimized production of radionuclides for theragnostics in nuclear medicine (Sc-43, Sc-44, Sc-47, Cu-61, Cu-64, Cu-67, Ga-68, Er-165, Tm-165, Tm-167 and Tb-155) with solid targets are developed. The beam line has been recently adapted for performing irradiations of cells in both conventional and FLASH regime. Along this line, scintillators are studied to face the challenge of dosimetry in the FLASH radiation therapy. The scientific results of the first ten years of operation of the Bern cyclotron laboratory will be presented.
