Isotopes of gallium

Isotopes of gallium (31Ga)
Main isotopes[1] Decay
Isotope abun­dance half-life (t1/2) mode pro­duct
66Ga synth 9.304 h β+ 66Zn
67Ga synth 3.2617 d ε 67Zn
68Ga synth 67.84 min β+ 68Zn
69Ga 60.1% stable
70Ga synth 21.14 min β 70Ge
ε 70Zn
71Ga 39.9% stable
72Ga synth 14.025 h β 72Ge
73Ga synth 4.86 h β 73Ge
Standard atomic weight Ar°(Ga)

Natural gallium (31Ga) consists of a mixture of two stable isotopes: gallium-69 and gallium-71. Synthetic radioisotopes are known with atomic masses ranging from 60 to 89, along with seven nuclear isomers. Most of the isotopes with atomic mass numbers below 69 decay by electron capture and positron emission to isotopes of zinc, while most of the isotopes with masses above 71 beta decay to isotopes of germanium.

The medically important radioisotopes are gallium-67 and gallium-68, used for imaging, and further described below.

List of isotopes


Nuclide
[n 1]
Z N Isotopic mass (Da)[4]
[n 2][n 3]
Discovery
year[5][6]
Half-life[1]
Decay
mode
[1]
[n 4]
Daughter
isotope
[n 5]
Spin and
parity[1]
[n 6][n 7]
Natural abundance (mole fraction)
Excitation energy Normal proportion[1] Range of variation
60Ga 31 29 59.957041(16)[7] 1995 69.4(2) ms[7] β+ (98.4%) 60Zn (2+)
β+, p (1.6%) 59Cu
β+, α? (<0.023%) 56Ni
61Ga 31 30 60.949399(41) 1987 165.9(25) ms β+ 61Zn 3/2−
β+, p? (<0.25%) 60Cu
62Ga 31 31 61.94418964(68) 1978 116.122(21) ms β+ 62Zn 0+
63Ga 31 32 62.9392942(14) 1965 32.4(5) s β+ 63Zn 3/2−
64Ga 31 33 63.9368404(15) 1953 2.627(12) min β+ 64Zn 0(+#)
64mGa 42.85(8) keV 1974 21.9(7) μs IT 64Ga (2+)
65Ga 31 34 64.93273442(85) 1938 15.133(28) min β+ 65Zn 3/2−
66Ga 31 35 65.9315898(12) 1937 9.304(8) h β+ 66Zn 0+
67Ga[n 8] 31 36 66.9282023(13) 1938 3.2617(4) d EC 67Zn 3/2−
68Ga[n 8] 31 37 67.9279802(15) 1937 67.842(16) min β+ 68Zn 1+
69Ga 31 38 68.9255735(13) 1923 Stable 3/2− 0.60108(50)
70Ga 31 39 69.9260219(13) 1937 21.14(5) min β (99.59%) 70Ge 1+
EC (0.41%) 70Zn
71Ga 31 40 70.92470255(87) 1923 Stable 3/2− 0.39892(50)
72Ga 31 41 71.92636745(88) 1939 14.025(10) h β 72Ge 3−
72mGa 119.66(5) keV 1959 39.68(13) ms IT 72Ga (0+)
73Ga 31 42 72.9251747(18) 1951 4.86(3) h β 73Ge 1/2−
73mGa 0.15(9) keV (2017)[n 9] <200 ms IT? 73Ga 3/2−
β 73Ge
74Ga 31 43 73.9269457(32) 1956 8.12(12) min β 74Ge (3−)
74mGa 59.571(14) keV 1974 9.5(10) s IT (>75%) 74Ga (0)(+#)
β? (<25%) 74Ge
75Ga 31 44 74.92650448(72) 1960 126(2) s β 75Ge 3/2−
76Ga 31 45 75.9288276(21) 1961 30.6(6) s β 76Ge 2−
77Ga 31 46 76.9291543(26) 1968 13.2(2) s β 77mGe (88%) 3/2−
77Ge (12%)
78Ga 31 47 77.9316109(11) 1972 5.09(5) s β 78Ge 2−
78mGa 498.9(5) keV 2009 110(3) ns IT 78Ga
79Ga 31 48 78.9328516(13) 1974 2.848(3) s β (99.911%) 79Ge 3/2−
β, n (0.089%) 78Ge
80Ga 31 49 79.9364208(31) 1974 1.9(1) s β (99.14%) 80Ge 6−
β, n (.86%) 79Ge
80mGa[n 10] 22.45(10) keV 2010 1.3(2) s β 80Ge 3−
β, n? 79Ge
IT 80Ga
81Ga 31 50 80.9381338(35) 1976 1.217(5) s β (87.5%) 81mGe 5/2−
β, n (12.5%) 80Ge
82Ga 31 51 81.9431765(26) 1976 600(2) ms β (78.8%) 82Ge 2−
β, n (21.2%) 81Ge
β, 2n? 80Ge
82mGa 140.7(3) keV 2009 93.5(67) ns IT 82Ga (4−)
83Ga 31 52 82.9471203(28) 1976 310.0(7) ms β, n (85%) 82Ge 5/2−#
β (15%) 83Ge
β, 2n? 81Ge
84Ga 31 53 83.952663(32) 1991 97.6(12) ms β (55%) 84Ge 0−#
β, n (43%) 83Ge
β, 2n (1.6%) 82Ge
85Ga 31 54 84.957333(40) 1997 95.3(10) ms β, n (77%) 84Ge (5/2−)
β (22%) 85Ge
β, 2n (1.3%) 83Ge
86Ga 31 55 85.96376(43)# 1997 49(2) ms β, n (69%) 85Ge
β, 2n (16.2%) 84Ge
β (15%) 86Ge
87Ga 31 56 86.96901(54)# 2010 29(4) ms β, n (81%) 86Ge 5/2−#
β, 2n (10.2%) 85Ge
β (9%) 87Ge
88Ga[8] 31 57 87.97596(54)# 2024 β? 88Ge
β, n? 87Ge
89Ga[8] 31 58 2024
90Ga[9] 31 59 2026
This table header & footer:
  1. ^ mGa – Excited nuclear isomer.
  2. ^ ( ) – Uncertainty (1σ) is given in concise form in parentheses after the corresponding last digits.
  3. ^ # – Atomic mass marked #: value and uncertainty derived not from purely experimental data, but at least partly from trends from the Mass Surface (TMS).
  4. ^ Modes of decay:
    EC: Electron capture


    IT: Isomeric transition
    n: Neutron emission
    p: Proton emission
  5. ^ Bold symbol as daughter – Daughter product is stable.
  6. ^ ( ) spin value – Indicates spin with weak assignment arguments.
  7. ^ # – Values marked # are not purely derived from experimental data, but at least partly from trends of neighboring nuclides (TNN).
  8. ^ a b Medical radioisotope used in imaging
  9. ^ Half-life not measured
  10. ^ Order of ground state and isomer is uncertain.

Gallium-67

Gallium-67 (67
Ga
), the longest-lived radioactive isotope of gallium with a half-life of 3.2617 days, decays by electron capture with gamma emission to stable zinc-67. It is a radiopharmaceutical used in gallium scans (as is gallium-68). This isotope is imaged by a gamma camera.

It is usually used as the free ion, Ga3+.

Gallium-68

Gallium-68 (68
Ga
) is a positron emitter with a half-life of 67.84 minutes, decaying to stable zinc-68. It is used as a radiopharmaceutical, generated in situ from the electron capture of germanium-68 (half-life 271.05 days) owing to its short half-life. The isotope, where a cyclotron is available, can be made in greater quantities by proton bombardment of 68Zn.[10][11] This positron-emitting isotope can be imaged efficiently by PET scan: see gallium scan. Gallium-68 is normally used as a radioactive label for a ligand which binds to certain tissues, such as DOTATOC and DOTATATE,[12] which are somatostatin analogues useful for imaging neuroendocrine tumors, which gives it a different tissue uptake specificity from the free ion gallium-67 is usually used as. Such scans are useful in locating neuroendocrine tumors and pancreatic cancer.[13] Thus, octreotide scanning for NET tumors (using indium-111) is being increasingly replaced by gallium-68 DOTATOC scan.[14]

See also

Daughter products other than gallium

References

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