Development of a 10 MeV Ultra-Compact Cyclotron for Short-Lived Isotope Production

To address the heavy reliance on imported medical cyclotrons in China, the China Institute of Atomic Energy has independently developed a 10 MeV ultra-compact cyclotron, aiming at achieving localized and low-cost production of medical radioisotopes. The device incorporates key technologies including shallow-valley magnets, an integrated high-frequency and vacuum system, single-pass axial shimming, and an internal Penning ion source. It has a compact footprint of less than 1.4 m³ and a total weight under 7.5 tons, and is designed for high integration and intelligent operation and maintenance. Under working conditions of 10 MeV proton energy with 80 μA beam current, the cyclotron maintained stable operation for 2 h, yielding ¹⁸F with an activity of over 3 Ci. This output is sufficient for approximately 15 patient doses, fulfilling the clinical demand. The results demonstrate that this accelerator is reliable, user-friendly, and suitable for in-hospital production of short-lived medical radioisotopes such as ¹⁸F and ⁶⁸Ga.