High-intensity laser generation of proton beams for the production of β⁺ sources used in positron emission tomography

Protons of energies up to 37 MeV have been generated using ultra-intense laser-solid interactions. These protons can be used to induce nuclear reactions in materials to produce beta /sup +/ emitting nuclei of relevance to the nuclear medicine community for Positron Emission Tomography, namely /sup 11/C and /sup 13/N via (p,n) and (p, alpha ) reactions. Activities of the order of 100 kBq have been measured from a single laser pulse. The possibility of using ultraintense lasers as a substitute to cyclotrons for isotope production is discussed