Phillip Brown

Notebook 15
Steps for x-ray production
Main breaker- this is what generates power to the x-ray tube
Exposure switch- this is the connection that allows current to flow through the
circuit, and also what activates the anode to rotate
Line Compensator- Once electrical power is coming in this monitors that power and
adjusts for voltage fluctuation.
Autotransformer- this is where after you have your chosen voltage. The
autotransformer then modifies the incoming line voltage for the kilo-voltage that is
produced by the step-up transformer.
Timer Circuit- This is what is set to end the exposure once preset time has ended
Step-up Transformer- the incoming voltage is in volts, and this transforms that into
kilovolts
4 Diode Rectifier- This is what controls the flow of the current and changes it from
AC to DC.
Filament Circuit Variable Resistance- This alters the incoming line power and
creates thermionic emission
Step-Down Transformer- This is when amperages comes in and gets transformed to
milli-amperes
X-ray tube- This is what contains the Cathode and the Anode. Electrons jump from
cathode to anode to create photons to produce x-ray
Rotor Stator- Electric coils that produce a magnetic field outside of the envelope
and causes the rotor to turn.
mA Meter- once desired mA is set and reach, this will shut off any more incoming
current
kVp Meter- once desired kVp is reached, this will shut off any more incoming
energy
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)

Current comes through the main breaker

Goes through the line compensator
Splits in to two paths
First path is the primary circuit, low voltage side
Goes to autotransformer to modify incoming line voltage in anticipation of the
kilovoltage that will be produced by the step-up transformer. Voltage is chosen
6) Leads to step up transformer to convert voltage into kilovolts
7) Passes through timer circuit
8) Reaches 4 diode rectifier
9) Current then travels through the diode and goes to the cathode in the electric tube
10) Exposure button is then pressed and electrons go through filament and hit the
target on the anode to create x-ray photons
11) The second path flows through the filament circuit, reaching the filament circuit
variable resistor , where you control you mA
12) Reaches step down transformer, which converts amperes to milli-amperes

13) Then traels to the filaments in the cathode and get used to produce x-ray photons
or travels back through the circuit to repeat the process
14) Once x-ray photons are produced the electrons hit the target (incident electrons)
15) Once incident electrons hit tungsten (for x-ray) target, they transfer their kinetic
energy to the atoms of the target material and produces x-ray photons
16) Three target interactions occur based on the level of energy
17) Heat Production- where electrons transfer heat by exciting the outer shell
electrons causing them to vibrate. 99.8% of this is heat, and the remaining
percentage is x-ray photon
18) Bremsstrahlung Interaction- incident electrons interact with force of nucleus, the
electron reaches the inner most shell getting very close to the nucleus. The force
of the nucleus causes the electron to slow down (thus the term, german for
braking) and then diverts course outside the atom. That electron lost energy in
that process and in turn, created more x-ray photons
19) Characteristic interaction- this occurs in the inner shell as well, however the
incident electron has enough energy to knock out an electron in the k-shell,
causing the outer shell electrons to fill that gap, this is known as the cascade
effect. As the electrons move in, they emit x-ray photons