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X-rays
Ouch!
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X-rays
X-rays are produced when electrons are
accelerated and collide with a target
Bremsstrahlung x-rays
Characteristic x-rays
X-rays are sometimes characterized by the
generating voltage
0.1-20 kV soft x-rays
20-120 kV diagnostic x-rays
120-300 kV orthovoltage x-rays
300 kV 1 MV intermediate energy x-rays
> 1MV megavoltage x-rays
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Bremmstrahlung
Bremsstrahlung x-rays occur when
electrons are (de)accelerated in the
Coulomb field of a nucleus
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Bremsstrahlung
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Bremsstrahlung
The power radiated from an accelerating
charge is given by Larmors equation



In the case of an electron in the Coulomb field
of a nucleus




3
2 2
3
2
c
a e
P =
Z
m r
Ze
k
m
F
a ~
2
2
= =
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Bremsstrahlung
The probability of bremsstrahlung goes as Z
2
,
hence high Z targets are more effective than
low Z
The energy of the x-rays varies from zero to
the maximum kinetic energy of the electron
(x-ray tube kVp)
The energy spectrum from a thick target goes
as 1/E but inherent (1mm Al eq) plus
additional (few mm Al) filtration removes the
lower energy x-rays
Here I am referring to diagnostic x-rays
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Bremsstrahlung
The unfiltered energy spectrum is
approximately given by Kramers law which
was an early application of quantum
mechanics
( ) ( )

E T KZ E I
e
=
8
Bremsstrahlung

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Characteristic x-rays
After excitation, ions
with a vacancy in
their inner shell can
de-excite
Radiatively through
x-ray fluorescence
Non-radiatively
through the emission
of Auger electrons
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Characteristic X-rays
Thus an x-ray spectrum will also show
characteristic x-rays arising from L to K and M
to K transitions after ionization of a K electron
Usually transitions to higher shells
absorbed by the filtration or are not x-rays
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Characteristic X-rays
The probability of K shell fluorescence
increases with Z
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Characteristic X-rays
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Characteristic X-rays
Sometimes the characteristic x-rays are
emphasized using the same material for
target and filter
Characteristic x-rays from molybdenum are
effective in maximizing contrast in mammography
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Characteristic X-rays
Mo target, filter, and result
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Directionality
For MeV electrons, bremsstrahlung x-
rays are preferentially emitted in the
electrons direction
For keV electrons, bremsstrahlung x-
rays are emitted at larger angles
Characteristic x-rays are emitted
isotropically since there is no angular
correlation between the incident
electron that causes the ionization and
the fluorescent photon
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X-ray Tube
A simplified x-ray tube (Coolidge type)
shows the idea behind most x-ray tubes
today
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X-ray Tube
In addition to bremsstrahlung and
characteristic x-ray production, electrons also
loose energy through collisions
Collision losses dominate in this energy region


For 100 keV electrons in W


Thus >99% of the electron energy goes into
heating the target rather than x-rays
Removing heat from the anode in a vacuum is an
issue
( ) MeV in
820 loss collision
loss radiation
E
EZ
~
009 . 0
820
74 1 . 0
loss collision
loss radiation
=

~
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X-ray Tube
Efficiency of x-ray production depends on the
tube voltage and the target material
W (Z=74) in this example







ZV
P
P
I ZV P
VI P
deposited
radiated
radiated
deposited
9
2 9
10 9 . 0 Efficiency
10 9 . 0

= =
=
=
c
kVp
(V)
Heat
(%)
X-
rays
(%)
50 99.7 0.3
200 99 1
6000 65 35
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X-ray Tube
X-ray tubes
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X-ray Tube
More detail
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X-ray Tube
Housing for shielding (Pb) and cooling
(oil)
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X-ray Tube
More detail
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X-ray Tube
The main parts of the x-ray tube are
Cathode/filament
Typical electron current is 0.1-1.0 A for short
exposures (< 100 ms)
Anode/target
Glass/metal envelope
Accelerating voltage
Typical voltage is 20-150 kVp
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Cathode
Cathode consists of
Low R tungsten wire for thermionic emission
Tungsten has a high melting point (3370C) and minimum
deposit on the glass tube
Tube current is controlled by varying the filament current
which is a few amps
A focusing cup
Uses electric field lines to focus the electrons
Typically there are two filaments
Long one: higher current, lower resolution
Large focal spot
Short one: lower current, higher resolution
Small focal spot
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Cathode
Dual focus filament is common
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Anode
Usually made of tungsten in copper because
of high Z and high melting point
Molybdenum and rhodium used for soft tissue
imaging
Large rotating surface for heat distribution
and radiative heat loss
Rotation of 3k-10k revolutions/minute
Resides in a vacuum (~10
-6
torr)
Thermally decoupled from motor to avoid
overheating of the shaft
Target is at an tilted angle with respect to
axis
Bremsstrahlung is emitted at ~ right angles for
low energy electrons
Determines focal spot size
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Anode
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Anode
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Anode
The heating of the anode limits the voltage,
current, and exposure time
An exposure rating chart gives these limits
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Anode
Power = V x I (watts)
Energy = Power x time = V x I x s
(joules)
HU (Heating Unit) ~ J
Damaged anodes
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Anode
The angle determines the projected focal spot
The smaller the angle the better the resolution
Typically 7-20 degrees

u
Angle
Incident electron
beam width
Apparent focal spot size
Actual focal
spot size
Film
u
Angle
Incident electron
beam width
Increased
apparent
focal spot size
Actual focal
spot size
Film

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X-rays
The energy of the photons depends on
the electron energy (kVp) and the
target atomic number Z
The number of photons depends on the
the electron energy (kVp), Z, and the
beam current (mA)
A typical number / area is ~ 10
13
/ m
2
About 1% will hit the film ~ 10
11
/ m
2
Absorption and detection efficiency will
further reduce this number


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Automatic Exposure Control









AEC detectors can ionization chambers or solid-
state detectors
X Ray tube
Collimator

Beam
Soft
tissue
Bone
Air
Patient
Table
Grid
Cassette
AEC detectors
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Automatic Exposure Control
Most modern x-rays machines are equipped
with automatic exposure control also called a
phototime
The AEC sets the technical parameters of the
machine (kV, mA, time, ) in order to avoid
repeated exposures
AEC is used to keep the radiographic quality
(film density) equal on all patients
AEC detectors can be ionization chambers or
solid state detectors


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Grid
To reduce the number of secondary
scattered photons making it to the film,
a grid between the patient and film is
used
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Grid
Details
Grid bars are usually lead whereas the grid
openings are usually made of aluminum or
carbon
Grid thickness is typically 3 mm
Grid ratio is H/W and 10/1 is typical
Grid frequency of 60 lines / cm is typical
B/W/H on the figure might be 0.045, 0.120,
1.20 in mm
The Bucky factor is the entrance exposure
w/wo the grid while achieving the same
film density 4 is average

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Accelerating Voltage
The potential difference between
cathode and anode must be generated
by 60 Hz 220V AC power
High voltages are produced using a
transformer

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Accelerating Voltage
Electrons are accelerated when the
filament is at a negative potential with
respect to the target
Diode circuits can be used to provide
rectification (AC to DC voltage)
Three phase power (6 pulse or 12 pulse)
can be used to reduce ripple
Constant potential operation can be
achieved by using constant potential
(voltage regulations) or high frequency x-
ray generators
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Half-wave Rectifier







Not very efficient
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Full-wave Bridge Rectifier
This circuit allows the entire input
waveform to be used







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Accelerating Voltage
100%
13%
4%
Line voltage
Single phase single pulse
Single phase 2-pulse
Three phase 6-pulse
Three phase 12-pulse
0.02 s
0.01 s
kV ripple (%)
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Images
Analog radiography
Film based still widely used
Fluorescent screens are used to convert x-rays into
visible light that is then recorded on film
Screens are more efficient at stopping x-rays than
the film (CaWO
4
or Gd
2
O
2
S:Tb or other rare earth)

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Analog Radiography
The film itself has excellent spatial
resolution but
Film detects 0.65% of incident x-ray
energy
Gd
2
O
2
S detects 29.5% of incident x-ray
energy
Thus using phosphor screens greatly
reduces the radiation dose to the
patient
And also reduces load on the x-ray tube
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Analog Radiography
There are two efficiency considerations
Absorption efficiency or QDE
Fraction of incident x-rays that interact
with the screen
Depends on kVp and screen thickness
Gd
2
O
2
S has a QDE of ~ 60% for 80 kVp beam,
20 cm patient, 120 mg/cm
2
screen thickness
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Analog Radiography
Conversion efficiency
Fraction of absorbed x-ray energy that is
emitted as light
5% for CaWO
4

15% for Gd
2
O
2
S
50,000 eV x 0.15 = 7500 eV
7500 eV / 2.7 eV = 2800 photons produced per
absorbed x-ray
50-90% reduction in photon diffusion to film

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Analog Radiography
Film is an emulsion containing silver-
halide grains (AgBr and AgI) coated on
mylar
Body
Film
X-Ray
source
Dark
Light
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Analog Radiography
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Film Badge
A film badge consists of a photographic film
with various filters
The film is a gelatin emulsion containing silver-
halide grains (95% AgBr and 5% AgI) on a
supporting material
Grain diameter is ~ 1m
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Film Badge
The film is exposed by light by
An electron is released from Br
-
and moves about
the 1 diameter crystal
The electron may be captured by a trap such as a
crystal imperfection or AgS speck
The trapped electron attracts mobile Ag
+
ions
where it is subsequently neutralized
Additional Ag atoms are formed by repeated
trapping and neutralization
These Ag atoms are called a latent image center
The developing process effectively amplifies this
process turning the grains with latent image
centers into a visible silver deposit

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Film Badge
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Film Badge
Silver atoms at latent image centers
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Images
Digital radiography
Detector based

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Digitial Radiography
CCD systems
CCD systems use a scintillator like
gadolinium disulphide to convert x-rays to
visible light
Light is collected by optics to demagnify
the 35x45cm
2
film to 2-4 cm
2
CCD
Well talk about CCDs much later in the
course but essentially visible light is
converted into charge that is amplified and
readout
A negative is the thickness of the detector
system because of the optical system

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Digital Radiography
Indirect or direct conversion thin-film
transistor (TFT) arrays
Also called FPD (flat panel detectors)
Well cover these later in the course as well
probably through a student talk
The idea is that charge proportional to the
x-rays received is stored on a capacitor
The charges are conducted out by
transistors one row at a time and
subsequently amplified, multiplexed, and
digitized
The readout is very fast
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Digital Radiography
Indirect or direct conversion thin-film
transistor (TFT) arrays
Indirect conversion uses a scintillator layer
(like CsI:Tl) to convert x-rays to visible
light and amorphous silicon photodiodes to
convert visible light into charge
Direct conversion uses an x-ray
photoconductor layer (usually amorphous
selenium) to convert x-rays to charge
An applied electric field directs the charges
to the charge collection electrodes

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Digital Radiography
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Digital Radiography
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Digital Radiography
Readout
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Images
Digital radiography
The battle over image quality, however,
may be incomprehensible to anyone
without a background in high-energy
physics.
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X-rays
For bone tissue, the linear attenuation
coefficient is much greater than that for
soft body tissue