Xray Production, Xray Tubes And Xray Generators Flashcards
A device that produces xrays in diagnostic energy range typically contains
- An electron source
- Evacuated path for electron acceleration
- target electrode
- external power source
Contains electron source
Xray tube insert
Provides protective radiation shielding and cools the xray tube insert
Tube housing
Supplies the voltage to accelerate the electrons
Xray generator
Shapes the xray energy spectrum
Xray beam filters
Define the size and shape of the xray field incident on the patient
Collimators
Source of electrons
Cathode
Target of electrons
Anode
Vast majority of interactions are
Collisional
Amount of energy lost by the electron and thus the energy pf the resulting xray is determined by the
Distance between the incident electron and the target nucleus
With increasing distance from the nucleus, the circumference increases, therefore the probability of interaction _______ but the xray energy ________
Interaction increase
Xray energy decrease
As the interaction distance decreases, xray energy increases because of
Greater electron deceleration
Probability distribution of xray photons as a function of photon energy (keV)
Bremsstrahlung spectrum
Shows an inverse linear relationship between the number and the energy of the xrays produced, with the highest xray energy determined by the peak voltage applied across the xray tube
Unfiltered bremsstrahlung spectrum
A typical filtered bremsstrahlung spectrum has no xrays below about
10 keV
Major factors that affect xray production efficiency include
Atomic number of the target material
Kinetic energy of the incident electrons
Most common target material in xray is
Tungsten
Most common target material in mammography is
Molybdenum and rhodium
The innermost shell designated as the ____ shell has the highest electron binding energy
K shell
Xray tube voltages must be greater than ___ kV for tungsten
____ kV for moldybdenum
____ kV for rhodium
69.5 tungsten
20 molybdenum
23 rhodium
Xray tube voltage is set to values from ___ to _____ kV for diagnostic imaging
40 to 150 kV
Voltage for mammo is set typically to
25 to 40 kV
Xray tube current in projection radiography
50-1200 mA
Tube current in continuous flouroscopy
1-5 mA
In pulsed fluoroscopy, tube current is set to
10-50 mA
3 major selectable parameters on the xray generator control panel that determine the xray beam characteristics
kV, mA and exposure time
It has a focusing cup totally insulated from the filament wires so that its voltage is independent of the filament
Biased xray
Xray tube that has a capability of rapidly switching the xray beam on and off
Grid-biased xray tube
A metal target electrode that is maintained at a large positive potential difference relative to the cathode
Anode
Widely used anode material because of its high melting point and high atomic number
Tungsten
Mechanically supports the tungsten insert and efficiently conducts heat from the tungsten target
Copper
Heat insensitive parts in the rotor anode
Non-volatile lubricant
Molybdenum
Infrared radiation emission
Angle of target surface with respect to the central ray im the xray field
Anode angle
Anode angles in xray tubes typically range from
7-20 degrees
12-14 degrees most common
Foreshortening of the focal spot length at the central ray is called the
Line focus principle
A small anode angle (7-9 degrees) is desirable for_____ field of view devices
Small field
Larger anode angles (12-15 degrees) are necessary for
General radiography
Common tools for measuring focal spot size are the
Pinhole camera, slit camera, star pattern and resolution bar pattern
Uses very small circular aperture (10-30 um diameter) in a thin, attenuating metal disk to project a magnified image of the focal spot onto an image receptor
Pinhole camera
Consists of a highly attenuating metal plate with a thin slit
Slit camera
Contains a radial pattern of lead spokes of diminishing width and spacing on a thin plastic disk
Star pattern tool
A simple tool for evaluation of focal spot size. It demonstrates the effective resolution parallel and perpendicular to the A-C axis for a given magnification geometry, determined from the number of bar pattern that can be resolved
Resolution bar pattern
An increase in the size of the focal spot resulting from high tube current and is caused by electron repulsion in the electron beam between the cathode and anode
Focal spot “blooming”
Refers to reduction in the xray beam intensity toward the anode side of the xray field caused by greater attenuation of xrays directed toward the anode side of the field by the anode itself
Heel effect
Heel effect is less prominent with a ______ source to image distance
Longer
Results from electrons that scatter from the anode, and are reaccelerated back to the anode, outside of the focal spot area
Off-focal radiation
Can reduce off-focal radiation by intercepting xrays that are produced away from the focal spot
Small lead collimator
Contains the cathode, anode, rotor assembly and support structures sealed in a glass or metal enclosure under a high vacuum
Xray tube insert
Used to trap gas in the insert and to maintain the vacuum
“Getter” circuit
Adjusts the size and shape of the xray field emerging from the tube port
Collimators
Collimator that automatically limit the field size to the useful area of detector
Positive beam limitation collimators
Grid-biased tube is used in applications such as
Pulsed fluoroscopy and cine-angiography
The output port of mammogram is made of
Beryllium/glass/metal insert material
Dynamic steering of the electron beam within the tube is achieved by _______ to direct the electrons to distinct focal spots on the anode, which can produce slightly different projections and improve data sampling during the CT acquisition
External electromagnetic deflection coils
Recommendations to maximize xray tube life:
- Minimize filament boost “prep” time especially when high mA is used
- use lower tube current with longer exposure time to arrive at the desired mAs if possible
- avoid extended or repeated operation of the xray tube with high technique factors (kV and mAs)
- always follow the manufacturer’s recommended warm-up procedure
- limit rotor start and stop operations; 30-40 sec delay should be used
Removal of xrays as the beam passes thru a layer of material
Filtration
Filtration includes
Inherent filtration of the xray
And added filtration
Includes the thickness (1-2 mm) of the glass or metal insert at the xray tube port
Inherent filtration
Glass used for filtration
Silicon dioxide
Inherent filtration include attenuation by
Housing oil and field light mirror in the collimator assembly
It refers to sheets of metal intentionally placed in the beam to change its effective energy
Added filtration
What element is the most commonly used added filter material
Aluminum
Others include copper and plastic
In mammography, thin filters of ____, _____ and ____ are used to transmit bremsstrahlung xrays in the intermediate energy range (15-25 keV)
Molybdenum
Rhodium
Silver
Filters that are used to change the spatial pattern of the xray intensity incident on the patient, so as to deliver a more uniform xray exposure to the detector
Compensation (equalization) filters
Filters that are useful for lateral projections in cervical-thoracic spine imaging, where the incident fluence is increased to match the increased tissue thickness encountered
Wedge filters