Isotopes of gallium

Main isotopes of gallium (₃₁Ga)
ε	70Zn
Standard atomic weight Ar, standard(Ga)	69.723(1)[1];

Natural gallium (₃₁Ga) consists of a mixture of two stable isotopes: gallium-69 and gallium-71. The most commercially important radioisotopes are gallium-67 and gallium-68.

Gallium-67 (half-life 3.3 days) is a gamma-emitting isotope (the gamma emitted immediately after electron-capture) used in standard nuclear medical imaging, in procedures usually referred to as gallium scans. It is usually used as the free ion, Ga³⁺. It is the longest-lived radioisotope of gallium.

The shorter-lived gallium-68 (half-life 68 minutes) is a positron-emitting isotope generated in very small quantities from germanium-68 in gallium-68 generators or in much greater quantities by proton bombardment of ⁶⁸Zn in low-energy medical cyclotrons,[2] for use in a small minority of diagnostic PET scans. For this use, it is usually attached as a tracer to a carrier molecule, which gives the resulting radiopharmaceutical a different tissue-uptake specificity from the ionic ⁶⁷Ga radioisotope normally used in standard gallium scans.

List of isotopes

Nuclide [n 1]	Z	N	Isotopic mass (Da) [n 2][n 3]	Half-life	Decay mode [n 4]	Daughter isotope [n 5]	Spin and parity [n 6][n 7]	Natural abundance (mole fraction)
Nuclide [n 1]	Excitation energy			Half-life	Decay mode [n 4]	Daughter isotope [n 5]	Spin and parity [n 6][n 7]	Normal proportion	Range of variation
⁵⁶Ga	31	25	55.99491(28)#		p	⁵⁵Zn	3+#
⁵⁷Ga	31	26	56.98293(28)#		p	⁵⁶Zn	1/2−#
⁵⁸Ga	31	27	57.97425(23)#		p	⁵⁷Zn	2+#
⁵⁹Ga	31	28	58.96337(18)#		p	⁵⁸Zn	3/2−#
⁶⁰Ga	31	29	59.95706(12)#	70(10) ms	β⁺	⁶⁰Zn	(2+)
⁶¹Ga	31	30	60.94945(6)	168(3) ms	β⁺	⁶¹Zn	3/2−
⁶²Ga	31	31	61.944175(30)	116.18(4) ms	β⁺	⁶²Zn	0+
⁶³Ga	31	32	62.9392942(14)	32.4(5) s	β⁺	⁶³Zn	(3/2−)
⁶⁴Ga	31	33	63.9368387(22)	2.627(12) min	β⁺	⁶⁴Zn	0(+#)
^64mGa	42.85(8) keV			21.9(7) μs			2+
⁶⁵Ga	31	34	64.9327348(9)	15.2(2) min	β⁺	⁶⁵Zn	3/2−
⁶⁶Ga	31	35	65.931589(3)	9.49(7) h	β⁺	⁶⁶Zn	0+
⁶⁷Ga[n 8]	31	36	66.9282017(14)	3.2612(6) d	EC	⁶⁷Zn	3/2−
⁶⁸Ga[n 9]	31	37	67.9279801(16)	67.71(9) min	β⁺	⁶⁸Zn	1+
⁶⁹Ga	31	38	68.9255736(13)	Stable			3/2−	0.60108(9)
⁷⁰Ga	31	39	69.9260220(13)	21.14(3) min	β⁻ (99.59)	⁷⁰Ge	1+
⁷⁰Ga	31	39	69.9260220(13)	21.14(3) min	EC (0.41%)	⁷⁰Zn	1+
⁷¹Ga	31	40	70.9247013(11)	Stable			3/2−	0.39892(9)
⁷²Ga	31	41	71.9263663(11)	14.095(3) h	β⁻	⁷²Ge	3-
^72mGa	119.66(5) keV			39.68(13) ms	IT	⁷²Ga	(0+)
⁷³Ga	31	42	72.9251747(18)	4.86(3) h	β⁻	⁷³Ge	3/2−
⁷⁴Ga	31	43	73.926946(4)	8.12(12) min	β⁻	⁷⁴Ge	(3-)
^74mGa	59.571(14) keV			9.5(10) s			(0)
⁷⁵Ga	31	44	74.9265002(26)	126(2) s	β⁻	⁷⁵Ge	(3/2)−
⁷⁶Ga	31	45	75.9288276(21)	32.6(6) s	β⁻	⁷⁶Ge	(2+,3+)
⁷⁷Ga	31	46	76.9291543(26)	13.2(2) s	β⁻	⁷⁷Ge	(3/2−)
⁷⁸Ga	31	47	77.9316082(26)	5.09(5) s	β⁻	⁷⁸Ge	(3+)
⁷⁹Ga	31	48	78.93289(11)	2.847(3) s	β⁻ (99.911%)	^79mGe	(3/2−)#
⁷⁹Ga	31	48	78.93289(11)	2.847(3) s	β⁻, n (.089%)	⁷⁸Ge	(3/2−)#
⁸⁰Ga	31	49	79.93652(13)	1.697(11) s	β⁻ (99.11%)	⁸⁰Ge	(3)
⁸⁰Ga	31	49	79.93652(13)	1.697(11) s	β⁻, n (.89%)	⁷⁹Ge	(3)
⁸¹Ga	31	50	80.93775(21)	1.217(5) s	β⁻ (88.11%)	^81mGe	(5/2−)
⁸¹Ga	31	50	80.93775(21)	1.217(5) s	β⁻, n (11.89%)	⁸⁰Ge	(5/2−)
⁸²Ga	31	51	81.94299(32)#	0.599(2) s	β⁻ (78.5%)	⁸²Ge	(1,2,3)
⁸²Ga	31	51	81.94299(32)#	0.599(2) s	β⁻, n (21.5%)	⁸¹Ge	(1,2,3)
⁸³Ga	31	52	82.94698(32)#	308(1) ms	β⁻ (60%)	⁸³Ge	3/2−#
⁸³Ga	31	52	82.94698(32)#	308(1) ms	β⁻, n (40%)	⁸²Ge	3/2−#
⁸⁴Ga	31	53	83.95265(43)#	0.085(10) s	β⁻, n (70%)	⁸³Ge
⁸⁴Ga	31	53	83.95265(43)#	0.085(10) s	β⁻ (30%)	⁸⁴Ge
⁸⁵Ga	31	54	84.95700(54)#	50# ms [>300 ns]			3/2−#
⁸⁶Ga	31	55	85.96312(86)#	30# ms [>300 ns]

^mGa – Excited nuclear isomer.
( ) – Uncertainty (1σ) is given in concise form in parentheses after the corresponding last digits.
# – Atomic mass marked #: value and uncertainty derived not from purely experimental data, but at least partly from trends from the Mass Surface (TMS).
Modes of decay:

EC: Electron capture

IT: Isomeric transition

n: Neutron emission

p: Proton emission
Bold symbol as daughter – Daughter product is stable.
( ) spin value – Indicates spin with weak assignment arguments.
# – Values marked # are not purely derived from experimental data, but at least partly from trends of neighboring nuclides (TNN).
Deexcitation gamma used in medical imaging
Medically useful radioisotope

Commercially available materials may have been subjected to an undisclosed or inadvertent isotopic fractionation. Substantial deviations from the given mass and composition can occur.

Gallium-67

Radiopharmaceutical.

Gallium-68

Radiopharmaceutical.

References

Meija, Juris; et al. (2016). "Atomic weights of the elements 2013 (IUPAC Technical Report)". Pure and Applied Chemistry. 88 (3): 265–91. doi:10.1515/pac-2015-0305.
Kumlin, J; Dam, J; Langkjaer, N; Chua, C.J.; Borjian, S.; Kassaian, A; Hook, B; Zeisler, S; Schaffer, P; Helge, Thisgaard (October 2019). "Multi-Curie Production of Ga-68 on a Biomedical Cyclotron". Conference: EANM'19. Retrieved 13 December 2019.

Isotope masses from:
- Audi, Georges; Bersillon, Olivier; Blachot, Jean; Wapstra, Aaldert Hendrik (2003), "The NUBASE evaluation of nuclear and decay properties", Nuclear Physics A, 729: 3–128, Bibcode:2003NuPhA.729....3A, doi:10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2003.11.001
Isotopic compositions and standard atomic masses from:
- de Laeter, John Robert; Böhlke, John Karl; De Bièvre, Paul; Hidaka, Hiroshi; Peiser, H. Steffen; Rosman, Kevin J. R.; Taylor, Philip D. P. (2003). "Atomic weights of the elements. Review 2000 (IUPAC Technical Report)". Pure and Applied Chemistry. 75 (6): 683–800. doi:10.1351/pac200375060683.
- Wieser, Michael E. (2006). "Atomic weights of the elements 2005 (IUPAC Technical Report)". Pure and Applied Chemistry. 78 (11): 2051–2066. doi:10.1351/pac200678112051. Lay summary.
Half-life, spin, and isomer data selected from the following sources.
- Audi, Georges; Bersillon, Olivier; Blachot, Jean; Wapstra, Aaldert Hendrik (2003), "The NUBASE evaluation of nuclear and decay properties", Nuclear Physics A, 729: 3–128, Bibcode:2003NuPhA.729....3A, doi:10.1016/j.nuclphysa.2003.11.001
- National Nuclear Data Center. "NuDat 2.x database". Brookhaven National Laboratory.
- Holden, Norman E. (2004). "11. Table of the Isotopes". In Lide, David R. (ed.). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (85th ed.). Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press. ISBN 978-0-8493-0485-9.

[3] Ga – Excited nuclear isomer.

[4] ( ) – Uncertainty (1σ) is given in concise form in parentheses after the corresponding last digits.

[TMS-5] # – Atomic mass marked #: value and uncertainty derived not from purely experimental data, but at least partly from trends from the Mass Surface (TMS).

[6] Modes of decay:

EC: Electron capture

IT: Isomeric transition

n: Neutron emission

p: Proton emission

[7] Bold symbol as daughter – Daughter product is stable.

[8] ( ) spin value – Indicates spin with weak assignment arguments.

[TNN-9] # – Values marked # are not purely derived from experimental data, but at least partly from trends of neighboring nuclides (TNN).

[10] Deexcitation gamma used in medical imaging

[11] Medically useful radioisotope

[CIAAW2013-1] Meija, Juris; et al. (2016). "Atomic weights of the elements 2013 (IUPAC Technical Report)". Pure and Applied Chemistry. 88 (3): 265–91. doi:10.1515/pac-2015-0305.

[2] Kumlin, J; Dam, J; Langkjaer, N; Chua, C.J.; Borjian, S.; Kassaian, A; Hook, B; Zeisler, S; Schaffer, P; Helge, Thisgaard (October 2019). "Multi-Curie Production of Ga-68 on a Biomedical Cyclotron". Conference: EANM'19. Retrieved 13 December 2019.

EC:	Electron capture
IT:	Isomeric transition
n:	Neutron emission
p:	Proton emission