Editing Isotope separation (section)

===Electromagnetic===
[[File:Diagram of uranium isotope separation in the calutron.png|thumb|upright=1.3|Schematic diagram of uranium isotope separation in a [[calutron]]]]
Electromagnetic separation is [[mass spectrometry]] on a large scale, so it is sometimes referred to as mass spectrometry. It uses the fact that charged particles are deflected in a [[magnetic field]] and the amount of deflection depends upon the particle's mass. It is very expensive for the quantity produced, as it has an extremely low throughput, but it can allow very high purities to be achieved. This method is often used for processing small amounts of pure isotopes for research or specific use (such as [[isotopic tracer]]s) but is impractical for industrial use.

At Oak Ridge National Laboratory and at the [[University of California, Berkeley]], [[Ernest O. Lawrence]] developed electromagnetic separation for much of the uranium used in the [[Manhattan Project|first atomic bombs]]. Devices using his principle are named [[calutron]]s. After the war the method was largely abandoned as impractical. It had only been undertaken (along with diffusion and other technologies) to guarantee there would be enough material for use, whatever the cost. Its main eventual contribution to the war effort was to further concentrate material from the gaseous diffusion plants to higher levels of purity.