Physics of Nuclear Medicine

Dr. Sajid Mushtaq

Associate Professor
Department of Chemistry , PIEAS
Contact: 0330-645-7858
E-mail: [email protected]

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Radioactive Decay
 Decay of Radionuclides

 Some 3700 nuclides have been discovered thus far, and the majority of
them are unstable. Unstable nuclei decay by spontaneous fission, α-particle,
β-particle, γ-ray emission, or electron capture (EC) in order to achieve
stability.
 The stability of a nuclide is governed by the structural arrangement and
binding energy of the nucleons in the nucleus. One condition of stability is
the neutron-to-proton ratio (N/Z) of the stable nuclides; the radionuclides
decay to achieve the N/Z of the nearest possible stable nuclide.
 Radioactive decay by particle emission or electron capture changes the
atomic number of the radionuclide, whereas decay by γ-ray emission does
not.
 Radionuclides may decay by any one or a combination of six processes:
spontaneous fission, α-decay, β– decay, β+-decay, electron capture, and
isomeric transition (IT). In all decay processes, the energy, mass, and charge
of radionuclides must be conserved.
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Radioactive Decay
 Spontaneous Fission
 Fission is a process in which a heavy nucleus breaks down into two
fragments typically in the ratio of 60:40. This process is accompanied by the
emission of two or three neutrons with a mean energy of 1.5 MeV and a
release of nearly 200-MeV energy, which appears mostly as heat.
 Fission in heavy nuclei can occur spontaneously or by bombardment with
energetic particles.
 Spontaneous fission occurs due to dumbbell-shape structure of the heavy
nucleus, the middle neck part of which is prone to breakage by molecular
vibration causing fission. The probability of spontaneous fission is low and
increases with mass number of the heavy nuclei. The half-life for
spontaneous fission is 2 × 1017 years for 235U and only 55 days for 254Cf.

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 Radioactive Decay
 Non Spontaneous Fission

Figure L-3-1: In a U-235 fission chain

reaction, the fission of the m nucleus
produces high-energy neutrons that go on to
split more nuclei. The energy released in this
process can be used to produce electricity. 4
Radioactive Decay
 Alpha Decay (α-Decay)

 Usually heavy nuclei such as radon, uranium, neptunium, and so forth decay
by α-particle emission. The α-particle is a helium ion with two electrons
stripped off the atom and contains two protons and two neutrons bound
together in the nucleus. In α-decay, the atomic number of the parent
nuclide is therefore reduced by 2 and the mass number by 4. An example of
α-decay is.

 An α-transition may be followed by β–-emission or γ-ray emission or both.

The α-particles are monoenergetic, and their range in matter is very short
(on the order of 10−6cm) and is approximately 0.03 mm in body tissue.

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 Radioactive Decay
 Alpha Decay (α-Decay)

Figure L-3-2: The α-emission process in terms of frequency factor and penetrability factor: (1)
the formation of an α-particle inside the nucleus, (2) the delivery of this nucleon cluster towards the surface
of 6
the nucleus, (3) the release of the α-particle and tunnelling the Coulomb barrier of the nucleus
Radioactive Decay
 Beta Decay (β–-Decay)
 When a nucleus is “neutron rich” (i.e., has a higher N/Z ratio compared to
the stable nucleus), it decays by β−-particle emission along with an
antineutrino. An antineutrino ( v ) is an entity almost without mass and
charge and is primarily needed to conserve energy in the decay. In β−-decay,
a neutron (n) essentially decays into a proton (p) and a β −-particle; for
example,

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Radioactive Decay
 Beta Decay (β–-Decay)

 The β–-particle is emitted with variable energy from zero up to the decay
energy.
 The decay or transition energy is the difference in energy between the
parent and daughter nuclides.
 An antineutrino carries away the difference between the β–-particle energy
and the decay energy.
 The β–-decay may be followed by γ-ray emission, if the daughter nuclide is
in an excited state, and the number of γ-rays emitted depends on the
excitation energy.
 After β–-decay, the atomic number of the daughter nuclide is one more than
that of the parent nuclide; however, the mass number remains the same for
both nuclides.

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 Radioactive Decay
 Beta Decay (β–-Decay)

 The β–-particles emitted by radionuclides can produce what is called

bremsstrahlung by interaction with surrounding medium. Electrons passing
through matter are decelerated in the Coulomb field of atomic nuclei, and
as a result, the loss in electron energy appears as continuous X-rays

Figure L-3-3: Schematic of bremsstrahlung production 9

Radioactive Decay
 Beta Decay (β–-Decay)

 These X-rays are called bremsstrahlung (German for “braking” or “slowing

down” radiation) and are used in radiographic procedures. The probability

of producing bremsstrahlung increases with increasing electron energy and
increasing atomic number of the medium.
 In tungsten, for example, a 10-MeV electron loses about 50% of its energy

by bremsstrahlung, whereas a 100-MeV electron loses more than 90% of its

energy by this process..

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Radioactive Decay
 Positron or β+-Decay
 Nuclei that are “neutron deficient” or “proton rich” (i.e., have an N/Z ratio
less than that of the stable nuclei) can decay by β +-particle emission
accompanied by the emission of a neutrino (v), which is an opposite entity
of the antineutrino.
 After β+-particle emission, the daughter nuclide has an atomic number that
is 1 less than that of the parent. The range of positrons is short in matter.
 At the end of the path of β+-particles, positrons combine with electrons and
are thus annihilated, each event giving rise to two photons of 511 keV that
are emitted in opposite directions.
 These photons are referred to as annihilation radiations.
 In β+-decay, a proton transforms into a neutron by emitting a β+-particle and
a neutrino; for example,

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Radioactive Decay
 Positron or β+-Decay

 Since a β+-particle can be emitted with energy between zero and decay
energy, the neutrino carries away the difference between decay energy and
β+-energy.
 A proton inside a nucleus can convert into a neutron if the nucleus has
sufficient binding energy to supply the required energy for the conversion.
 The extra energy needed to account for the neutron’s larger mass and the
positron's creation comes from the decay energy available in the system,
such as nuclear binding energy.
 Energy conservation ensures that even though the neutron has a higher
mass, the system remains balanced by releasing the positron and neutrino.

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Radioactive Decay
 Positron or β+-Decay

 β+-particles, positrons combine with electrons and are thus annihilated,

each event giving rise to two photons of 511 keV that are emitted in
opposite directions.

Figure L-3-4: The process of positron emission and subsequent positron-

electron annihilation results in two 511 keV annihilation photons emitted 13
180° apart.
Radioactive Decay

Figure L-3-5: Summary of beta positive and beta negative decay

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Radioactive Decay
 Electron Capture
 When a nucleus has a smaller N/Z ratio compared to the stable nucleus, as
an alternative to β+-decay, it may also decay by the so-called electron
capture process, in which an electron is captured from the extranuclear
electron shells, thus transforming a proton into a neutron and emitting a
neutrino.
 For this process to occur, the energy difference between the parent and
daughter nuclides is usually, but not necessarily, less than 1.02 MeV.
 Nuclides having an energy difference greater than 1.02 MeV may also decay
by electron capture. The larger the energy difference, the higher the
positron decay. The atomic number of the parent is reduced by 1 in this
process. Some examples of electron capture decay are

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Radioactive Decay
 Electron Capture
 Usually the K-shell electrons are captured because of their proximity to the

nucleus; the process is then called K capture. Thus, in L capture, an L-shell electron
is captured and so on.
 The vacancy created in the K shell after electron capture is filled by the transition

of electrons from an upper level (probably the L shell and possibly the M or N
shell).
 The difference in energies of the electron shells will appear as an X-ray that is

characteristic of the daughter nucleus.

 These X-rays are termed characteristic K X-rays, L X-rays, and so on belonging to

the daughter nuclide.

 The probability of electron capture increases with increasing atomic number,

because electron shells in these nuclei are closer to the nucleus.

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 Radioactive Decay
 Electron Capture

Figure L-3-5: Decay scheme of 111In illustrating the electron capture process.
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Radioactive Decay
 Isomeric Transition
 A nucleus can remain in several excited energy states above the ground
state that are defined by quantum mechanics. All these excited states are
referred to as isomeric states and decay to the ground state, with a lifetime
of fractions of picoseconds to many years. The decay of an upper excited
state to a lower excited state is called the isomeric transition.
 In β-, β+, or electron capture decay, the parent nucleus may reach any of
these isomeric states of the daughter nucleus instead of the ground state,
and therefore these decay processes are often accompanied by isomeric
transition.
 In isomeric transition, the energy difference between the energy states
may appear as γ-rays. When isomeric states are long lived, they are referred
to as metastable states and can be detected by appropriate instruments.
 The metastable state is denoted by “m” as in 99mTc.

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 Radioactive Decay
 Isomeric Transition

 There is a probability that instead of emitting a γ-ray photon, the excited

nucleus may transfer its excitation energy to an electron in the extranuclear
electron shell of its own atom, particularly the K shell, which is then ejected,
provided the excitation energy is greater than the binding energy of the K-
shell electron.

Figure L-3-6: Decay scheme of 99mTc illustrating isomeric transition.. Nuclear excitation energy is transferred
to a K-shell electron, which is then emitted, and the vacancy is filled by the transition of an electron from the
L shell. The energy difference between the L shell and the K shell appears as the characteristic K X-ray
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Radioactive Decay
 Radioactive Decay Equations
 Radionuclides are unstable and decay by particle emission, electron
capture, or γ-ray emission. The decay of radionuclides is a random process,
that is, one cannot tell which atom from a group of atoms will decay at a
specific time.
 Therefore, one can only talk about the average number of radionuclides
disintegrating during a period of time. This gives the disintegration rate of
that particular radionuclide.
 The number of disintegrations per unit time (disintegration rate), −dN/dt, of
a radionuclide at any time is proportional to the total number of radioactive
atoms present at that time.
Mathematically,

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Radioactive Decay
 Radioactive Decay Equations

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Radioactive Decay
 Units of Radioactivity
 Radioactivity is expressed in units called curies. Historically, it was initially
defined as the disintegration rate of 1-g radium, which was considered to be
3.7 × 1010 disintegrations per second. Later the disintegration rate of 1-g
radium was found to be slightly different from this value, but the original
definition of curie was still retained:
 The System Internationale (SI) unit for radioactivity is becquerel (Bq), which
is defined as one disintegration per second.

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References

1. Chiotellis Ε. Radiopharmaceutical Chemistry. Greek Ed. Pigasos, 2000

2. Saha G. Fundamentals of Nuclear Pharmacy. Springer, 7th Ed. 2018
3. Gregory R. Choppin Radiochemistry and Nuclear Chemistry 3 rd Edition 2001
4. Noboru Takigawa Fundamentals of Nuclear Physics Springer, 2016
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