Application
These isotopes are used in positron emission tomography, a technique used for medical imaging. Note that the energy emitted depends on the isotope that is decaying; the figure of 0.96 MeV applies only to the decay of carbon-11. Isotopes which increase in mass under the conversion of a proton to a neutron, or which decrease by less than 2me, do not spontaneously decay by positron emission.
The short-lived positron emitting isotopes 11C, 13N, 15O and 18F used for positron emission tomography are typically produced by proton irradiation of natural or enriched targets.
Read more about this topic: Positron Emission
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