Patent Number: 
Section: claims

1. A method of isolating a radioisotope, comprising:ionizing a source compound containing a first isotope and a second isotope of an element so as to form charged particles of the first and second isotopes, the second isotope having at least one of therapeutic and diagnostic properties when used as a radiopharmaceutical;separating the charged particles so as to isolate the particles of the second isotope and obtain a material having a specific activity above 30 curies/mg; and wherein the first isotope is 185Re or 187Re. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the source compound is ionized with a hydrogen plasma. 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the source compound is ionized with a plasma of a gas or gas mixture including any of hydrogen, helium, nitrogen, argon, oxygen, xenon, and krypton. 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the source compound is ionized by impinging particles of the source compound onto a heated surface, a work function of the heated surface being different from an electron affinity of the particles, thus resulting in charged particles being ejected from the heated surface. 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the source compound is ionized in an ion source at a temperature below about 1500° C. and a pressure below about 1 Torr. 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the source compound is ionized with laser radiation. 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the source compound is ionized with electron bombardment. 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the source compound is ionized with thermally heated surfaces. 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the source compound is ionized with ion sputtering. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the charged particles of the second isotope are negatively-ionized elements or compounds. 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the charged particles of the second isotope are positively-ionized elements or compounds. 12. The method of claim 1, wherein separating the charged particles includes generating an electric field to extract and accelerate the charged particles away from an ion source. 13. The method of claim 1, wherein separating the charged particles includes generating a magnetic field to draw excess free electrons away from the charged particles. 14. The method of claim 1, wherein separating the charged particles includes injecting the charged particles into a mass separator to isolate the particles of the second isotope. 15. The method of claim 1, wherein the isolated charged particles of the second isotope are collected with a collector assembly. 16. The method of claim 15, wherein the collector assembly is water-cooled. 17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:producing the source compound with a (n,γ) or (γ,n) reaction. 18. The method of claim 1, wherein the first isotope is 186Re. 19. A method of isolating a radioisotope, comprising: ionizing a source compound containing a first isotope and a second isotope of an element so as to form charged particles of the first and second isotopes, the second isotope having at least one of therapeutic and diagnostic properties when used as a radiopharmaceutical; separating the charged particles so as to isolate the particles of the second isotope and obtain a material having a specific activity above 30 curies/mg; and wherein the first isotope is 98Mo or 100Mo. 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the source compound is ionized with a hydrogen plasma. 21. The method of claim 19, wherein the source compound is ionized with a plasma of a gas or gas mixture including any of hydrogen, helium, nitrogen, argon, oxygen, xenon, and krypton. 22. The method of claim 19, wherein the source compound is ionized by impinging particles of the source compound onto a heated surface, a work function of the heated surface being different from an electron affinity of the particles, thus resulting in charged particles being ejected from the heated surface. 23. The method of claim 19, wherein the source compound is ionized in an ion source at a temperature below about 1500° C. and a pressure below about 1 Torr. 24. The method of claim 19, wherein the source compound is ionized with laser radiation. 25. The method of claim 19, wherein the source compound is ionized with electron bombardment. 26. The method of claim 19, wherein the source compound is ionized with thermally heated surfaces. 27. The method of claim 19, wherein the source compound is ionized with ion sputtering. 28. The method of claim 19, wherein the charged particles of the second isotope are negatively-ionized elements or compounds. 29. The method of claim 19, wherein the charged particles of the second isotope are positively-ionized elements or compounds. 30. The method of claim 19, wherein separating the charged particles includes generating an electric field to extract and accelerate the charged particles away from an ion source. 31. The method of claim 19, wherein separating the charged particles includes generating a magnetic field to draw excess free electrons away from the charged particles. 32. The method of claim 19, wherein separating the charged particles includes injecting the charged particles into a mass separator to isolate the particles of the second isotope. 33. The method of claim 19, wherein the isolated charged particles of the second isotope are collected with a collector assembly. 34. The method of claim 33, wherein the collector assembly is water-cooled. 35. The method of claim 19, further comprising: producing the source compound with a (n, γ) or (γ, n) reaction. 36. The method of claim 19, wherein the second isotope is 99Mo.