Authorised Indian Distributor
Saxsons Group
New Delhi, India · Since 1997
Co-57 Flood SourceGamma Camera Uniformity QA
A precision Co-57 flood source producing a uniform radiation field across the gamma camera's full field of view for uniformity quality assurance per NEMA NU-1-2007. Coefficient of variation ≤0.9% — ensures your SPECT camera performs to specification between service visits.
Key Features
- Uniform radiation field for NEMA NU-1-2007 gamma camera uniformity evaluation
- Coefficient of Variation (CV) ≤ 0.9% — precision-manufactured uniformity
- Integral Non-Uniformity (INU) ≤ 3.6% across full useful field of view
- Manufactured per ANSI 42.27 sealed source standard
- Co-57 emits 122 keV gamma — ideal for Tc-99m energy window uniformity testing
All Features
- Uniform radiation field for NEMA NU-1-2007 gamma camera uniformity evaluation
- Coefficient of Variation (CV) ≤ 0.9% — precision-manufactured uniformity
- Integral Non-Uniformity (INU) ≤ 3.6% across full useful field of view
- Manufactured per ANSI 42.27 sealed source standard
- Co-57 emits 122 keV gamma — ideal for Tc-99m energy window uniformity testing
- 272-day half-life — minimal activity correction for 6–12 months of use
- Lead-shielded transport carrying case included as standard
- NIST-traceable activity at calibration date
- Available in sizes matching major SPECT camera head dimensions
- Intrinsic and extrinsic uniformity measurements supported
- Compatible with all major clinical SPECT and gamma camera platforms
- Certificate of conformance with each source
Technical Specifications
| Source radionuclide | Cobalt-57 (Co-57) |
| Photon energy | 122 keV (86%) — matched to Tc-99m energy window |
| Half-life | 271.79 days |
| Uniformity (CV) | ≤ 0.9% across active area |
| Integral non-uniformity | ≤ 3.6% (NEMA NU-1-2007) |
| Manufacturing standard | ANSI 42.27 sealed source |
| Calibration traceability | NIST-traceable activity certificate |
| Sizes available | Multiple — to match SPECT camera field of view |
| Transport shielding | Lead-shielded carry case (included) |
| Camera compatibility | All major clinical SPECT / gamma camera platforms |
| Usage type | Intrinsic (collimator off) and extrinsic (collimator on) |
Applications
Gamma camera QA — protecting image quality every day
Daily Uniformity QC
AAPM and AERB-recommended daily flood uniformity acquisition for gamma cameras. Identifies non-functioning PMT modules, crystal damage and electronic instability before patient imaging.
Weekly NEMA Uniformity
Full NEMA NU-1-2007 integral and differential uniformity measurement. Provides quantitative uniformity metrics for NABH and JCI accreditation records.
Centre of Rotation QA
Used in combination with point sources for COR measurement in SPECT systems. Correct COR calibration is essential for artefact-free SPECT reconstruction.
Energy Peaking Verification
The 122 keV energy peak closely matches the 140 keV Tc-99m window for energy resolution verification. Confirms energy discrimination performance of the crystal-PMT array.
Acceptance Testing
New SPECT camera acceptance testing per NEMA NU-1-2007. Quantitative flood uniformity data establishes the baseline for the camera's operational life.
Post-Service Baseline
Re-establish uniformity baseline after PMT replacement, crystal repair or major software updates. Confirms the camera meets specification before resuming patient imaging.
Why Co-57 Flood Source?
Flood source non-uniformity adds directly to the camera's measured uniformity. At ≤0.9% CV, the source contribution is negligible even for the best modern SPECT detectors — you measure camera performance, not source imperfection.
Co-57's 272-day half-life means one source covers 12+ months of daily QA with manageable activity correction. Far more cost-effective than shorter-lived alternatives that require replacement every 2–3 months.
122 keV is close enough to 140 keV to use in the Tc-99m energy window for uniformity testing — yet Co-57's long half-life makes it practical for routine QA. No need to use patient-dose Tc-99m generator eluate for daily camera checks.
Catalogs & Resources
Manufacturer product page. Contact Saxsons for AERB documentation, camera-specific sizing and pricing.
Co-57 Flood Source
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FAQ
Co-57 flood source — questions we hear from Indian nuclear-medicine teams
Why every gamma camera needs uniformity QC, how the Co-57 flood delivers a uniform field, why Co-57 is picked over Tc-99m for the source, and how camera-specific sizing is coordinated.
Q.Why does every SPECT / gamma camera need periodic uniformity QC?
A gamma camera images through a large-area NaI(Tl) detector — 10 000+ photomultiplier-tube channels combined into a single planar image. Over time individual channel gain drifts, PMTs age unevenly and detector uniformity degrades. If uniformity drops, the clinical images gain artefacts that mimic hot / cold lesions and lead to false-positive / false-negative reads. NEMA NU-1-2007 mandates a periodic uniformity test — the definitive check for detector uniformity is a flood image acquired against a spatially uniform radiation field.
Q.How does a Co-57 flood source provide that uniform field?
Co-57 emits at 122 / 136 keV — close to the Tc-99m 140 keV clinical energy, so the uniformity measurement reflects the actual clinical detector response. The flood source is a large-area Co-57-doped disc with the activity distributed to give ≤ 0.9 % coefficient of variation across the surface. Placed against the camera detector, the source produces the reference flood image the camera should reproduce; deviations from that image reveal the non-uniformity.
Q.Why Co-57 and not Tc-99m for the flood source?
Tc-99m has a 6-hour half-life — a Tc-99m flood source would decay to unusable activity within one day and need to be re-made every morning. Co-57 has a 271-day half-life so the same flood source is usable across the routine 9-12 month QC cycle. The photon energy is close enough to Tc-99m that the uniformity measurement reads as an accurate proxy for the clinical detector response.
Q.How is camera-specific sizing chosen?
Different gamma-camera makes use different large-field-of-view geometries — the flood source needs to cover the full clinical FOV to give a valid uniformity measurement. Saxsons sizes the source to the camera model at order — Siemens Symbia / Intevo, GE Healthcare Discovery, Philips BrightView, Mediso Nucline etc. — so the source fits the intended camera FOV.
Q.How is the Co-57 flood source supplied and licensed in India?
Distributed across India by Saxsons Group as a sealed radioactive source under AERB sealed-source import licensing. Supply covers the source, activity certificate, NEMA NU-1-2007 workflow support, transport chain and end-of-life return-and-disposal.
Co-57 Flood Source supplier in India — Saxsons Group
Saxsons Group has supplied nuclear medicine equipment to over 1,000 Indian hospitals since 1988. Every consignment of Co-57 Flood Source ships with cold-chain logistics, AERB import documentation, CDSCO registration references and a Certificate of Analysis delivered before dispatch — the paperwork your radiation-safety and procurement teams need, pre-assembled.
- Nationwide delivery footprint — every metro and tier-2 city in India, scheduled to your treatment / procedure calendar.
- AERB & CDSCO documentation — import licence, radiation-safety paperwork and RSO briefing pre-assembled for the audit file.
- 40+ years in Indian oncology — long-standing supply relationships with AIIMS, Tata Memorial, and hundreds of tertiary-care centres.
- Single point of accountability — one purchase order, one delivery contact, one after-sales team across the whole product family.
Also supplied by Saxsons Group across India
Maintain your SPECT camera at peak performance
Contact Saxsons Group for Co-57 flood sources, sizing for your camera model and AERB documentation across India.