Laser transmutation of iodine-129

We report the first successful laser-induced transmutation of 129I, one of the key radionuclides in the nuclear fuel cycle. 129I with a half-life of 15.7 million years is transmuted into 128I with a half-life of 25 min through a (γ, n) reaction using laser-generated Bremsstrahlung. The integral cross-section value for the (γ, n) reaction is determined. These experiments offer a new approach to studying transmutation reactions with neutral and charged particles without resource to nuclear reactors or particle accelerators.