Photonuclear production of medical isotopes 62,64Cu using intense laser-plasma electron source

62,64Cu are radioisotopes of medical interest that can be used for positron emission tomography (PET) imaging. Moreover, 64Cu has β− decay characteristics that allow for targeted radiotherapy of cancer. In the present work, a novel approach to experimentally demonstrate the production of 62,64Cu isotopes from photonuclear reactions is proposed in which large-current laser-based electron (e−) beams are generated from the interaction between sub-petawatt laser pulses and near-critical-density plasmas. According to simulations, at a laser intensity of 3.4 × 1021 W/cm2, a dense e− beam with a total charge of 100 nC can be produced, and this in turn produces bremsstrahlung radiation of the order of 1010 photons per laser shot, in the region of the giant dipole resonance. The bremsstrahlung radiation is guided to a natural Cu target, triggering photonuclear reactions to produce the medical isotopes 62,64Cu. An optimal target geometry is employed to maximize the photoneutron yield, and 62,64Cu with appropriate activities of 0.18 GBq and 0.06 GBq are obtained for irradiation times equal to their respective half-lives multiplied by three. The detection of the characteristic energy for the nuclear transitions of 62, 64Cu is also studied. The results of our calculations support the prospect of producing PET isotopes with gigabecquerel-level activity (equivalent to the required patient dose) using upcoming high-intensity laser facilities.