Utilization of chemical deposition technique for preparation of ¹⁴¹Ce sources towards use in instrument calibration

The Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) systems used for imaging the distribution of ^99mTc radiopharmaceuticals in patients need to be routinely calibrated for optimum performance. The radioisotope ¹⁴¹Ce is favoured as a calibration source for SPECT systems due to its suitable nuclear decay properties (t½ = 32.5 days to ¹⁴¹Pr (stable), Eã=145.4 keV (48.5%)). The energy of the emitted gamma photons (145 keV) of ¹⁴¹Ce is very close to that of ^99mTc (Eã=140 keV) and its 32.5 days half-life reduces the need for frequent source replacement. Based on literature reports on the chemical deposition of rare earths such as cerium on the surface of Ni, a two-step procedure was optimized to fabricate ¹⁴¹Ce sources