Question 1

If a filament electron leaves the tungsten atom with 15 keV of energy and the brems photon produced was 65 keV, how much energy did the incoming filament electron have?

Accepted Answer

The incoming filament electron must have had the sum of the energies of the filament electron after leaving the tungsten atom (15 keV) and the brems photon produced (65 keV), which totals 80 keV.

Question 2

The energy of the characteristic x-ray photon depends on

Accepted Answer

The energy of the characteristic x-ray photon is determined by the difference in binding energies between the higher energy level (from which an electron drops) and the lower energy level (the inner-shell vacancy). This involves the binding energy of the inner-shell electron (A), the energy level of the electron that transitions (which could be considered part of the overall process, but is more directly related to the energy difference between shells rather than the filament electron's initial energy) (B), and the specific shells involved in the transition (C). Thus, all these factors contribute to the energy of the characteristic x-ray photon.

Question 3

If a filament electron enters the tungsten atom with 80 keV of energy and leaves the atom with 75 keV of energy:

Accepted Answer

D

Question 4

A filament electron removes a K shell electron and an M shell electron fills the vacancy. The K shell binding energy is 69.5 keV and the M shell binding energy is 2.8 keV. What is the energy of the K-characteristic photon produced?

Accepted Answer

The energy of the K-characteristic photon is the difference between the K shell and M shell binding energies: 69.5 keV - 2.8 keV = 66.7 keV.

Question 5

The average energy of a brems photon is ______ of the kVp selected at the control panel.

Accepted Answer

The average energy of a bremsstrahlung (brems) photon is approximately 1/3 of the kilovoltage peak (kVp) selected at the control panel. This is a general rule in radiography, reflecting the efficiency of x-ray production and the spectrum of photon energies produced.

Question 6

The process of a series of outer-shell electrons filling inner-shell vacancies right after the other is called

Accepted Answer

The process is known as a characteristic cascade, where an electron from an outer shell fills an inner shell vacancy, and this process repeats as electrons from even outer shells fill the newly created vacancies.

Question 7

To double the beam quantity

Accepted Answer

Doubling the mAs directly doubles the quantity of the x-ray beam, as mAs (milliampere-seconds) is directly proportional to the number of x-ray photons produced.

Question 8

The majority of the x-ray photons produced are

Accepted Answer

The majority of the x-ray photons produced in an x-ray tube are bremsstrahlung (brems) photons. This is because when high-speed electrons are decelerated upon hitting the target material in the x-ray tube, they lose energy in the form of bremsstrahlung radiation, which constitutes a broad spectrum of photon energies.

Question 9

When filament electrons enter the anode target, they interact with

Accepted Answer

When filament electrons enter the anode target, they interact with the outer shell electrons of tungsten atoms.

Question 10

When a filament electron knocks out a K shell electron from the tungsten atom, it leads to

Accepted Answer

When a filament electron knocks out a K shell electron from the tungsten atom, it leads to the emission of a characteristic x-ray photon. This is because the vacancy created in the K shell is filled by an electron from a higher energy level, releasing a photon with energy specific to the difference in energy levels, characteristic of the tungsten atom.

Question 11

Which of the following factors affect beam quantity?

Accepted Answer

All of these factors affect beam quantity. kVp influences the energy and therefore the quantity of the x-ray beam, distance affects the intensity of the radiation reaching the target according to the inverse square law, and filtration removes low-energy photons, altering the quantity and quality of the beam.

Question 12

Which of the following is the primary factor controlling quantity?

Accepted Answer

The primary factor controlling the quantity of x-rays produced is mAs (milliampere-seconds). It directly influences the number of electrons available for x-ray production, thereby affecting the quantity of x-rays generated.

Question 13

The total number of x-ray photons in a beam is referred to as the

Accepted Answer

The total number of x-ray photons in a beam is referred to as the x-ray quantity, which indicates the overall amount of x-ray photons present, not their energy or quality.

Question 14

Characteristic x-ray photons result

Accepted Answer

Characteristic x-ray photons are produced when an inner-shell electron is knocked out, creating a vacancy, and then an electron from an outer shell drops down to fill this vacancy. This transition releases energy in the form of a characteristic x-ray photon.

Question 15

During x-ray production the electrons penetrate the target approximately

Accepted Answer

The answer of During x-ray production the electrons penetrate the...

Question 16

During the bremsstrahlung interaction, the filament electron

Accepted Answer

During a bremsstrahlung interaction, the filament electron is decelerated by the electric field of the nucleus, causing it to lose energy which is emitted as an X-ray photon. The electron is attracted to the nucleus but not absorbed, which is why option D is correct.

Question 17

The energy of the brems photon depends on

Accepted Answer

The energy of the bremsstrahlung (brems) photon in X-ray production depends on several factors: the original energy of the filament electron, the strength of the attraction between the electron and the nucleus (which affects how much the electron's path is bent and thus how much energy is released as radiation), and the energy of the filament electron as it leaves the tungsten atom after the interaction. All these factors influence the energy spectrum of the emitted X-ray photons.

Question 18

At the anode target, how much of the energy from filament electrons is lost as heat and how much will result in x-ray production.

Accepted Answer

99% of the energy from filament electrons is lost as heat, and only about 1% results in x-ray production when electrons strike the anode target in an x-ray tube.

Question 19

X-rays are produced by

Accepted Answer

X-rays are produced by both characteristic and bremsstrahlung interactions. Characteristic interactions occur when an electron from a higher energy level fills a vacancy in a lower energy level, emitting X-ray photons of a specific energy. Bremsstrahlung interactions, or braking radiation, occur when an electron is decelerated upon passing near a nucleus, emitting X-ray photons with a continuous spectrum of energies.

Question 20

Bremsstrahlung means

Accepted Answer

Bremsstrahlung is a German term that translates to "braking radiation," referring to the radiation produced when electrons are decelerated or deflected by the electric field of atomic nuclei.

Quiz 6: X-Ray Production