Quantitative gas-phase separation of carrier-free thallium radioisotopes from proton-irradiated .

Carrier-free was thermally separated from proton-irradiated . Pressed targets were irradiated with protons at the IP2 beamline of the high-intensity proton accelerator facility at the Paul Scherrer Institute. The well-known thermal decomposition of at C and the strong adsorption of on a surface allowed for a simple and quantitative gas-phase separation of carrier-free from bulk amounts of target material between 550 and °C. The separation efficiency was verified by -spectroscopy the main -emissions of and co-produced . This method generally provides a fast and reliable preparation of carrier-free, neutron-deficient radioisotopes (e.g., medically relevant ) from a proton-irradiated matrix.