The cross sections for nuclear reactions natEr(α,x) were measured in the energy range 60 → 10 MeV using the stacked-foil technique. The experiments were carried out in a wider energy range in comparison with previous works. The results are consistent with other studies and modeling using TENDL-2019. The 167Tm yield was 5.4 MBq/μAh in the range 60 → 30 MeV, and the main long-lived impurity is 168Tm (0.78% in terms of activity). The 165Tm yield is 4.6 MBq/μAh (60 → 40 MeV). 169Yb is formed with a yield of 1.0 MBq/μAh in the energy range 60 → 20 MeV.

Production of medical radionuclides with ISOL facilities is a unique production method that may provide access to preclinical quantities of some rare and potent radionuclides for nuclear medicine. Particularly attention over the past years was focused on several promising candidates for Targeted Radionuclides Therapy (TRT). With this review, we provide some perspectives of using the TRIUMF ISOL facility (ISAC) to produce medical radionuclides for TRT application and highlight our current effort to collect of 165Er and 155Tb for Auger Therapy and SPECT imaging, respectively.

165Er, a pure Auger-electron emitter, could be an attractive candidate for targeted radionuclide therapy. Auger electrons possess short penetration paths with high linear energy transfer. In this study, experimental cross-sections of the 165Ho(p, n)165Er nuclear reaction were measured and targets irradiated with protons using Injector II cyclotron at Paul Scherrer Institute (Switzerland) and the 18 MeV medical cyclotron laboratory at the University Hospital in Bern. A purification method was developed in order to obtain 165Er suitable for in vivo applications.