Its low-energy isomeric transition, which yields a gamma-ray at ~140.5 keV, is ideal for imaging using Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT).
Several technetium isotopes, such as 94mTc, 95Tc, and 96Tc, which are produced via (p,n) reactions using a cyclotron on molybdenum targets, have also been identified as potential Positron Emission Tomography (PET) or gamma-emitting agents for medical imaging.
[9][10][11] Technetium-101 has been produced using a D-D fusion-based neutron generator from the 100Mo(n,γ)101Mo reaction on natural molybdenum and subsequent beta-minus decay of 101Mo to 101Tc.
Despite its shorter half-life (i.e., 14.22 min), 101Tc exhibits unique decay characteristics suitable for radioisotope diagnostic or therapeutic procedures, where it has been proposed that its implementation, as a supplement for dual-isotopic imaging or replacement for 99mTc, could be performed by on-site production and dispensing at the point of patient care.
In the presence of fast neutrons a small amount of 98Tc will be produced by (n,2n) "knockout" reactions.
[13] Technetium has no primordial isotopes and does not occur in nature in significant quantities, and thus a standard atomic weight cannot be given.
Using the liquid drop model for atomic nuclei, one can derive a semiempirical formula for the binding energy of a nucleus.
For a fixed number of nucleons A, the binding energies lie on one or more parabolas, with the most stable nuclide at the bottom.