INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW

X-radiation is created by taking energy from electrons and converting it into photons with
appropriate energies. This energy conversion takes place within the x-ray tube.
The quantity (exposure) and quality (spectrum) of the x-radiation produced can be
controlled by adjusting the electrical quantities (KV, MA) and exposure time, S, applied to
the tube. In this chapter we first become familiar with the design and construction of x-ray
tubes, then look at the x-ray production process, and conclude by reviewing the
quantitative aspects of x-ray production.

THE X-RAY TUBE

Function
An x-ray tube is an energy converter. It receives electrical energy and converts it into
two other forms: x-radiation and heat. The heat is an undesirable byproduct. X-ray tubes
are designed and constructed to maximize x-ray production and to dissipate heat as rapidly
as possible.

The x-ray tube is a relatively simple electrical device typically containing two principle
elements: a cathode and an anode. As the electrical current flows through the tube from
cathode to anode, the electrons undergo an energy loss, which results in the generation of
x-radiation. A cross-sectional view of a typical x-ray tube is shown in below.

Cross-Section of a Typical X-Ray Tube

Anode CONTENTS
The anode is the component in which the x-radiation is produced. It is a relatively large
piece of metal that connects to the positive side of the electrical circuit.

The anode has two primary functions: (1) to convert electronic energy into x-radiation,
and (2) to dissipate the heat created in the process. The material for the anode is selected to
enhance these functions.

The ideal situation would be if most of the electrons created x-ray photons rather than
heat. The fraction of the total electronic energy that is converted into x-radiation
(efficiency) depends on two factors: the atomic number (Z) of the anode material and the
energy of the electrons. Most x-ray tubes use tungsten, which has an atomic number of 74,
as the anode material. In addition to a high atomic number, tungsten has several other
characteristics that make it suited for this purpose. Tungsten is almost unique in its ability
to maintain its strength at high temperatures, and it has a high melting point and a relatively
low rate of evaporation. For many years, pure tungsten was used as the anode material. In
recent years an alloy of tungsten and rhenium has been used as the target material but only
for the surface of some anodes. The anode body under the tungsten-rhenium surface on
many tubes is manufactured from a material that is relatively light and has good heat
storage capability. Two such materials are molybdenum and graphite. The use of
molybdenum as an anode base material should not be confused with its use as an anode
surface material. Most x-ray tubes used for mammography have molybdenum-surface
anodes. This material has an intermediate atomic number (Z = 42), which produces
characteristic x-ray photons with energies well suited to this particular application. Some
mammography tubes also have a second anode made of rhodium, which has an atomic
number of 45. This produces a higher energy and more penetrating radiation, which can be
used to image dense breast.

The use of a rhenium-tungsten alloy improves the long-term radiation output of tubes.
With x-ray tubes with pure tungsten anodes, radiation output is reduced with usage because
of thermal damage to the surface.

Design
Most anodes are shaped as beveled disks and attached to the shaft of an electric motor
that rotates them at relatively high speeds during the x-ray production process. The purpose
of anode rotation is to dissipate heat and is considered in detail in another chapter..

Focal Spot
Not all of the anode is involved in x-ray production. The radiation is produced in a very
small area on the surface of the anode known as the focal spot. The dimensions of the focal
spot are determined by the dimensions of the electron beam arriving from the cathode. In
most x-ray tubes, the focal spot is approximately rectangular. The dimensions of focal spots
usually range from 0.1 mm to 2 mm. X-ray tubes are designed to have specific focal spot
sizes; small focal spots produce less blurring and better visibility of detail, and large focal
spots have a greater heat-dissipating capacity.

Focal spot size is one factor that must be considered when selecting an x-ray tube for a
specific application. Tubes with small focal spots are used when high image visibility of
detail is essential and the amount of radiation needed is relatively low because of small and
thin body regions as in mammography.
Most x-ray tubes have two focal spot sizes (small and large), which can be selected by the
operator according to the imaging procedure.

Cathode
The basic function of the cathode is to expel the electrons from the electrical circuit and
focus them into a well-defined beam aimed at the anode. The typical cathode consists of a
small coil of wire (a filament) recessed within a cup-shaped region, as shown below.
 Energy Exchange within an X-Ray Tube

Electrons that flow through electrical circuits cannot generally escape from the conductor
material and move into free space. They can, however, if they are given sufficient energy.
In a process known as thermionic emission, thermal energy (or heat) is used to expel the
electrons from the cathode. The filament of the cathode is heated in the same way as a light
bulb filament by passing a current through it. This heating current is not the same as the
current flowing through the x-ray tube (the MA) that produces the x-radiation. During tube
operation, the cathode is heated to a glowing temperature, and the heat energy expels some
of the electrons from the cathode.

Envelope
The anode and cathode are contained in an airtight enclosure, or envelope. The envelope
and its contents are often referred to as the tube insert, which is the part of the tube that
has a limited lifetime and can be replaced within the housing. The majority of x-ray tubes
have glass envelopes, although tubes for some applications have metal and ceramic
envelopes.

The primary functions of the envelope are to provide support and electrical insulation for
the anode and cathode assemblies and to maintain a vacuum in the tube. The presence of
gases in the x-ray tube would allow electricity to flow through the tube freely, rather than
only in the electron beam. This would interfere with x-ray production and possibly damage
the circuit.

Housing
The x-ray tube housing provides several functions in addition to enclosing and
supporting the other components. It functions as a shield and absorbs radiation, except for
the radiation that passes through the window as the useful x-ray beam. Its relatively large
exterior surface dissipates most of the heat created within the tube. The space between the
housing and insert is filled with oil, which provides electrical insulation and transfers heat
from the insert to the housing surface.
THE X-RAY CIRCUIT
The energy used by the x-ray tube to produce x-radiation is supplied by an electrical circuit
as illustrated
below. The circuit connects the tube to the source of electrical energy, that in the x-ray
room is often referred to as the generator. As described in another chapter, the generator
receives the electrical energy from the electrical power system and converts it into the
appropriate form (DC, direct current) to apply to the x-ray tube. The generator also
provides the ability to adjust certain electrical quantities that control the x-ray production
process.

The three principle electrical quantities that can be adjusted are the:

 KV (the voltage or electrical potential applied to the tube)

 MA (the electrical current that flows through the tube)
 S (duration of the exposure or exposure time, generally a fraction of a second)

The circuit is actually a circulatory system for electrons. They pickup energy as the pass
through the generator and transfer their energy to the x-ray tube anode as described above.

ELECTRON ENERGY CONTENTS

The energy that will be converted into x-radiation (and heat) is carried to the x-ray tube
by a current of flowing electrons as shown above. As the electrons pass through the x-ray
tube, they undergo two energy conversions, as illustrated previously: The electrical
potential energy is converted into kinetic (motion) energy that is, in turn, converted into x-
radiation and heat.

Potential
When the electrons arrive at the x-ray tube, they carry electrical potential energy. The
amount of energy carried by each electron is determined by the voltage or KV, between the
anode and cathode. For each kV of voltage, each electron has 1 keV of energy. By
adjusting the KV, the x-ray machine operator actually assigns a specific amount of energy
to each electron.

Kinetic
After the electrons are emitted from the cathode, they come under the influence of an
electrical force pulling them toward the anode. This force accelerates them, causing an
increase in velocity and kinetic energy. This increase in kinetic energy continues as the
electrons travel from the cathode to the anode. As the electron moves from cathode to
anode, however, its electrical potential energy decreases as it is converted into kinetic
energy all along the way. Just as the electron arrives at the surface of the anode its potential
energy is lost, and all its energy is kinetic. At this point the electron is traveling with a
relatively high velocity determined by its actual energy content. A 100-keV electron
reaches the anode surface traveling at more than one half the velocity of light. When the
electrons strike the surface of the anode, they are slowed very quickly and lose their kinetic
energy; the kinetic energy is converted into either x-radiation or heat.

The electrons interact with individual atoms of the anode material, as shown below. Two
types of interactions produce radiation. An interaction with electron shells
produces characteristic x-ray photons; interactions with the atomic nucleus
produce Bremsstrahlung x-ray photons.

Electron-Atom Interactions That Produce X-Ray Photons

Binding Energy
The electrons within an atom each have a specific amount of binding energy that depends
on the size (atomic number, Z) of the atom and the shell in which the electron is located.
As described in a previous chapter the binding energy is the energy that would be required
to remove the electron from the atom. It is actually an energy deficit rather than an amount
of available energy.
The binding energy of electrons within an atom plays a major role in the production of
characteristic x-radiation as described later.

BREMSSTRAHLUNG

Production Process
The interaction that produces the most photons is the Bremsstrahlung process.
Bremsstrahlung is a German word for "braking radiation" and is a good description of the
process. Electrons that penetrate the anode material and pass close to a nucleus are
deflected and slowed down by the attractive force from the nucleus. The energy lost by the
electron during this encounter appears in the form of an x-ray photon. All electrons do not
produce photons of the same energy.

Spectrum
Only a few photons that have energies close to that of the electrons are produced; most
have lower energies. Although the reason for this is complex, a simplified model of the
Bremsstrahlung interaction is shown below. First, assume that there is a space, or field,
surrounding the nucleus in which electrons experience the "braking" force. This field can
be divided into zones, as illustrated. This gives the nuclear field the appearance of a target
with the actual nucleus located in the center. An electron striking anywhere within the
target experiences some braking action and produces an x-ray photon. Those electrons
striking nearest the center are subjected to the greatest force and, therefore, lose the most
energy and produce the highest energy photons. The electrons hitting in the outer zones
experience weaker interactions and produce lower energy photons. Although the zones
have essentially the same width, they have different areas. The area of a given zone
depends on its distance from the nucleus. Since the number of electrons hitting a given
zone depends on the total area within the zone, it is obvious that the outer zones capture
more electrons and create more photons. From this model, an x-ray energy spectrum, such
as the one shown below, could be predicted.

A Model for Bremsstrahlung Production and the Associated Photon Energy Spectrum

The basic Bremsstrahlung spectrum has a maximum photon energy that corresponds to
the energy of the incident electrons. This is 70 keV for the example shown. Below this
point, the number of photons produced increases as photon energy decreases. The spectrum
of x-rays emerging from the tube generally looks quite different from the one shown here
because of selective absorption within the filter.

A significant number of the lower-energy photons are absorbed or filtered out as they
attempt to pass through the anode surface, x-ray tube window, or added filter material. X-
ray beam filtration is discussed more extensively in a later chapter. The amount of filtration
is generally dependent on the composition and thickness of material through which the x-
ray beam passes and is generally what determines the shape of the low-energy end of the
spectrum curve.
 Effect of KV
The high-energy end of the spectrum is determined by the KV (kilovoltage) applied to the x-ray
tube. This is because the KV establishes the energy of the electrons as they reach the anode, and no x-
ray photon can be created with an energy greater than that of the electrons. The maximum photon
energy, therefore, in keV is numerically equal to the maximum applied potential in kV (kilovolts). In
some x-ray equipment, the voltage applied to the tube might vary during the exposure because of the
cycle nature of the AC (alternating current) electrical system. . The maximum photon energy is
determined by the maximum, or peak, voltage during the voltage cycle. This value is generally
referred to as the kilovolt peak (KVP) and is one of the adjustable factors of x-ray equipment.

In addition to establishing the maximum x-ray photon energy, the KVP has a major role in
determining the quantity of radiation produced for a given number of electrons, such as 1 mAs,
striking the anode. Since the general efficiency of x-ray production by the Bremsstrahlung process is
increased by increasing the energy of the bombarding electrons, and the electronic energy is
determined by the KVP, it follows that the KVP affects x-ray production efficiency.

Changing the KVP will generally alter the Bremsstrahlung spectrum, as shown below. The total area
under the spectrum curve represents the number of photons or quantity of radiation produced. If no
filtration is present where the spectrum is essentially a triangle, the amount of radiation produced is
approximately proportional to the KV squared. With the presence of filtration, however, increasing
the KV also increases the relative penetration of the photons, and a smaller percentage is filtered out.
This results in an even greater increase in radiation output with KVP.

Comparison of Photon Energy Spectra Produced as Different KVP Values

CHARACTERISTIC RADIATION

Production
The type of interaction that produces characteristic radiation, also illustrated above (in
the "Kinetic" paragraph), involves a collision between the high-speed electrons and the
orbital electrons in the atom. The interaction can occur only if the incoming electron has a
kinetic energy greater than the binding energy of the electron within the atom. When this
condition exists, and the collision occurs, the electron is dislodged from the atom. When
the orbital electron is removed, it leaves a vacancy that is filled by an electron from a
higher energy level. As the filling electron moves down to fill the vacancy, it gives up
energy emitted in the form of an x-ray photon. This is known as characteristic radiation
because the energy of the photon is characteristic of the chemical element that serves as the
anode material. In the example shown, the electron dislodges a tungsten K-shell electron,
which has a binding energy of 69.5 keV. The vacancy is filled by an electron from the L
shell, which has a binding energy of 10.2 keV. The characteristic x-ray photon, therefore,
has an energy equal to the energy difference between these two levels, or 59.3 keV.

Actually, a given anode material gives rise to several characteristic x-ray energies. This is
because electrons at different energy levels (K, L, etc.) can be dislodged by the bombarding
electrons, and the vacancies can be filled from different energy levels. The electronic
energy levels in tungsten are shown below, along with some of the energy changes that
give rise to characteristic photons. Although filling L-shell vacancies generates photons,
their energies are too low for use in diagnostic imaging. Each characteristic energy is given
a designation, which indicates the shell in which the vacancy occurred, with a subscript,
which shows the origin of the filling electron. A subscript alpha (a) denotes filling with an
L-shell electron, and beta ((3) indicates filling from either the M or N shell.

Tungsten Spectrum
The spectrum of the significant characteristic radiation from tungsten is shown below.
Characteristic radiation produces a line spectrum with several discrete energies, whereas
Bremsstrahlung produces a continuous spectrum of photon energies over a specific range.
The number of photons created at each characteristic energy is different because the
probability for filling a K-shell vacancy is different from shell to shell.

Electron Energy Levels in Tungsten and the Associated Characteristic X-Ray

Spectrum

Molybdenum Spectrum
Molybdenum anode tubes used for mammography produce two rather intense
characteristic x-ray energies: K-alpha radiation, at 17.9 keV, and K-beta, at 19.5 keV. as
shown below.
The optimum spectrum to produce the best balance between contrast sensitivity and
radiation dose for an average size breast is one with most of the radiation with photon
energies below about 20 keV. However, there is considerable Bremsstrahlung above this
energy. In the typical mammography equipment a molybdenum filter is used to remove
that undesirable part of the spectrum. This is an application of a filter that works on the "K
edge" principle. It absorbs radiation that is above the K-edge energy that corresponds to
the binding energy of the electrons in the K shell of the molybdenum atom.
Rhodium Spectrum
Rhodium has an atomic number (Z) of 45 compared to a Z of 42 for molybdenum.
Therefore the characteristic x-radiation produced with a rhodium anode will have energies
that are slightly higher than produced with molybdenum and are more penetrating. This is
of value for imaging dense breast.
Anodes that have dual surface areas, molybdenum and rhodium, make it possible for the
operator to select a spectrum that is more optimized for different breast sizes and densities.

KV Effect on Spectrum
The KV value also strongly influences the production of characteristic radiation. No
characteristic radiation will be produced if the KV is less (numerically) than the binding
energy of the K-shell electrons. When the KV is increased above this threshold level, the
quantity of characteristic radiation is generally proportional to the difference between the
operating KV and the threshold KV.

The x-ray beam that emerges from a tube has a spectrum of photon energies determined
by several factors. A typical spectrum is shown below and is made up of photons from both
Bremsstrahlung and characteristic interactions.
 Typical Photon Energy Spectrum from a Machine Operating at KV = 80

The relative composition of an x-ray spectrum with respect to Bremsstrahlung and

characteristic radiation depends on the anode material, KV, and filtration. In a tungsten
anode tube, no characteristic radiation is produced when the KV is less than 69.5. At some
higher KV values generally used in diagnostic examinations, the characteristic radiation
might contribute as much as 25% of the total radiation. In molybdenum target tubes
operated under certain conditions of KV and filtration, the characteristic radiation can be a
major part of the total output.

EFFICIENCY

Concept
Only a small fraction of the energy delivered to the anode by the electrons is converted
into x-radiation; most is absorbed by the anode and converted into heat. The efficiency of
x-ray production is defined as the total x-ray energy expressed as a fraction of the total
electrical energy imparted to the anode. The two factors that determine production
efficiency are the voltage applied to the tube, KV, and the atomic number of the anode, Z.
An approximate relationship is

Efficiency = KV x Z x 10-6.

KV Effect
The relationship between x-ray production efficiency and KV has a specific effect on the
practical use of x-ray equipment. As we will see in a later chapter, x-ray tubes have a
definite limit on the amount of electrical energy they can dissipate because of the heat
produced. This, in principle, places a limit on the amount of x-radiation that can be
produced by an x-ray tube. By increasing KV, however, the quantity of radiation produced
per unit of heat is significantly increased.

Anode Material
The relationship of x-ray production efficiency to anode material is only of academic
interest because most tubes use tungsten. The exception is molybdenum and rhodium used
in mammography. The x-ray production efficiency of these tubes is significantly less than
that of tungsten anode tubes because of their lower atomic numbers.

EFFICACY (OUTPUT)

Definition and Concept

The x-ray efficacy of the x-ray tube is defined as the amount of exposure, in
milliroentgens, delivered to a point in the center of the useful x-ray beam at a distance of 1
m from the focal spot for 1 mAs of electrons passing through the tube.

The efficacy value expresses the ability of a tube to convert electronic energy into x-ray
exposure. Knowledge of the efficacy value for a given tube permits the determination of
both patient and image receptor exposures by methods discussed in later chapters. Like x-
ray energy output, the efficacy of a tube depends on a number of factors including KV,
voltage waveform, anode material, filtration, tube age, and anode surface damage. The
illustration below gives typical efficacy values for tungsten anode tubes with normal
filtration.

KV Control
KV is very useful in controlling the radiation output of an x-ray tube. The figure below
shows a nonlinear relationship. It is normally assumed that the radiation output is
proportional to the square of the KV. Doubling KV quadruples the exposure from the tube.

Typical X-Ray Tube Efficacy (Exposure Output) for Different KVP Values

Waveform
Waveform describes the manner in which the KV changes with time during the x-ray
production process because of the cyclic nature of the electrical supply.; several different
KV waveforms are used. A general principle is that the waveform with the least KV
variation during the exposure is the most effective x-ray producer. Most new x-ray
equipment now use generators that produce relatively constant KV throughout the
exposure. Other waveforms are described in more detail in another chapter.

SUMMARY and MIND MAP

The mindmap below provides a summary of the major concepts associated with x-ray
production.