Design of a 40 MeV superconducting electron linear accelerator for medical isotope production

Abstract As the demand for radiopharmaceuticals steadily increases, the importance of ensuring a stable production and supply of medical isotopes has become more critical than ever. Previous studies have explored methods for producing medical isotopes using electron linear accelerators. The accelerators used in medical isotope production are progressively requiring higher-power electron beam. This paper presents the design of a compact superconducting radio frequency accelerator delivering beam with an average current of 10 mA and an energy of 40 MeV for medical isotope production. The accelerator employs a niobium-tin superconducting radio-frequency cavity to achieve high average beam power and utilizes a conduction-cooling technique at 4 K by a cryocooler for efficient operation. The study primarily focuses on beam dynamics simulations based on 1.3 GHz 2-cell TESLA type cavities. Beam parameter optimization is performed using a Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm in conjunction with PARMELA and ASTRA simulations. Preliminary engineering analysis indicates that the proposed design offers a promising alternative solution for medical isotope production.