ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
May 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
June 2026
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Reimagining nuclear materials for the future of medicine
Nuclear medicine has come a long way since Henri Becquerel first observed the penetrating energy of radioactive materials in 1896. Today, technetium-99m alone is used in more than 40 million diagnostic procedures every year—from cardiovascular imaging and bone scans to cancer detection—making it the undisputed workhorse of nuclear medicine. That single statistic tells you something important: An enormous portion of modern diagnostic medicine rests on a surprisingly narrow foundation, one built around a small number of aging research reactors that were never originally designed for continuous isotope production.
J. C. Wang, Gary L. Jensen, J. B. Czirr
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 113 | Number 1 | January 1993 | Pages 77-85
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE93-A23995
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Rigorous tests of the Monte Carlo transport code MCNP have been performed by measuring the efficiency of a 6Li-glass moderating neutron detector using Lucite as the moderator relative to the efficiency of the detector using mineral oil as the moderator, and comparing this with the MCNP predicted value. The tests were done using both 252Cf fission-source neutrons and 1.2-MeV neutrons produced by a Van de Graaff accelerator.
