DOE Isotope Program Highlights

News highlights from all participating national laboratories, university facilities, and other research institutions which feature work from the U.S. Department of Energy Isotope Program can be found here.

Ce-134 mimicking Ac-225 and Th-227

Ce-134 and La-134 pair as companion PET diagnostic isotopes for Ac-225 and Th-227

Ce-134 and its daughter La-134 can be used as a PET imaging candidate for 225AcIII or 227ThIV.
Californium-272 production team. Standing left to right - John Courtney, Dan Bettinger, Julie Ezold, Ed Smith, and Scott White.

ORNL's Californium-252 Will Play Pivotal Role in New Reactor Startups

ORNL is the only place in the world capable of efficiently producing the radioisotope californium-252.
Sandra Davern performs cell based assays to evaluate cell death and DNA damage in response to radiation in order to gain a better understanding of how radioisotope nanoparticles affect the human body.

The Big Impact

When Sandra Davern looks to the future, she sees individualized isotopes sent into the body with a specific target: cancer cells.
Workers load uranium slugs into the X-10 Graphite Reactor at Oak Ridge in 1943

A Forgotten Legacy: How Nuclear Reactors Built for War Transformed Peacetime Science

Isotopes were discovered in the early 20th century, during a period of remarkable progress in our understanding of matter.
HFIR Pools

Isotopes - Improved Process for Medicine

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have discovered a better way to separate actinium-227, a rare isotope essential for an FDA-approved cancer treatment.
Hot cell at LANL

Ordinary People Extraordinary Times

As COVID-19 alters American life, a once-anonymous collection of workers have kept Santa Fe and Northern New Mexico in operation.
Argonne Facebook Live Still

Medical Isotope Production at Argonne National Laboratory

Everyday, doctors use medical isotopes to diagnose and treat various illnesses, including cancer.
Tennessine

NPR Story: The Convoluted Story of How The First Atoms of Tennessine Were Created

Tennessine is an extremely rare element. Only a few dozen atoms of it have ever been produced. The tale of how the first atoms of Tennessine were created is complicated.
ORNL Researcher Julie Ezold

American Nuclear Society Recognizes ORNL's Julie Ezold

The American Nuclear Society (ANS) recognized nuclear researcher, Julie Ezold of the DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, at its annual Winter Meeting and Nuclear Technology Expo.
3-D Periodic Table at New York Hall of Science

3-D Periodic Table at New York Hall of Science

The New York Hall of Science unveiled a 3-D version of the periodic table of elements in honor of the International Year of the Periodic Table.