1/28/13 X-Ray Generators

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Radiography

Introduction
X-ray Generators History
Pre se nt State
Future Dire ction
The major components of an X-ray generator are the
tube, the high voltage generator, the control console, Physics of Radiography
Nature of Pe ne trating
and the cooling system. As discussed earlier in this R adiation
X-rays
material, X-rays are generated by directing a stream Gam m a R ays
of high speed electrons at a target material such as Activity
De cay R ate
tungsten, which has a high atomic number. When the -C arbon 14 Dating
electrons are slowed or stopped by the interaction Ionization
Inve rse Square Law
with the atomic particles of the target, X-radiation is Inte raction of R T/Matte r
Atte nuation C oe fficie nt
produced. This is accomplished in an X-ray tube Half-Value Laye r
Source s of Atte nuation
such as the one shown here. The X-ray tube is one of -C om pton Scatte ring
the components of an X-ray generator and tubes Ge om e tric Unsharpne ss
Filte rs in R adiography
come a variety of shapes and sizes. The image below Scatte r/R adiation C ontrol
shows a portion of the Roentgen tube collection of R adiation Safe ty

Grzegorz Jezierski, a professor at Opole University Equipment & Materials

X-ray Ge ne rators
of Technology. For more information on X-ray tubes R adio Isotope Source s
visit Dr. Jezierski's website at R adiographic Film
Ex posure Vaults
www.xraylamp.webd.pl
Techniques & Calibrations
The tube cathode (filament) is heated with a low- Im aging C onside ration
C ontrast
voltage current of a few amps. The filament heats up De finition
R adiographic De nsity
and the electrons in the wire become loosely held. A large electrical potential is created C haracte ristic C urve s
Ex posure C alculations
between the cathode and the anode by the high-voltage generator. Electrons that break free of C ontrolling Q uality
the cathode are strongly attracted to the anode Film Proce ssing
Vie wing R adiographs
target. The stream of electrons between the R adiograph Inte rp-W e lds
R adiograph Inte rp -
cathode and the anode is the tube current. The C astings
tube current is measured in milliamps and is
A dvanced Techniques
controlled by regulating the low-voltage, R e al-tim e R adiography
heating current applied to the cathode. The C om pute d Tom ography
XR SIM
higher the temperature of the filament, the
larger the number of electrons that leave the R e fe re nce s

cathode and travel to the anode. The milliamp Quizzes

or current setting on the control console -

regulates the filament temperature, which

relates to the intensity of the X-ray output.

The high-voltage between the cathode and the anode affects the speed at which the electrons
travel and strike the anode. The higher the kilovoltage, the more speed and, therefore, energy
the electrons have when they strike the anode. Electrons striking with more energy results in X-
rays with more penetrating power. The high-voltage potential is measured in kilovolts, and this is
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1/28/13 X-Ray Generators

controlled with the voltage or kilovoltage control on the control console. An increase in the
kilovoltage will also result in an increase in the intensity of the radiation.

A focusing cup is used to concentrate the stream of electrons to a small area of the target called
the focal spot. The focal spot size is an important factor in the system's ability to produce a
sharp image. See the information on image resolution and geometric unsharpness for more
information on the effect of the focal spot size. Much of the energy applied to the tube is
transformed into heat at the focal spot of the anode. As mentioned above, the anode target is
commonly made from tungsten, which has a high melting point in addition to a high atomic
number. However, cooling of the anode by active or passive means is necessary. Water or oil
recirculating systems are often used to cool tubes. Some low power tubes are cooled simply
with the use of thermally conductive materials and heat radiating fins.

It should also be noted that in order to prevent the cathode from burning up and to prevent
arcing between the anode and the cathode, all of the oxygen is removed from the tube by pulling
a vacuum. Some systems have external vacuum pumps to remove any oxygen that may have
leaked into the tube. However, most industrial X-ray tubes simply require a warm-up
procedure to be followed. This warm-up procedure carefully raises the tube current and voltage
to slowly burn any of the available oxygen before the tube is operated at high power.

The other important component of an X-ray generating

system is the control console. Consoles typically have a
keyed lock to prevent unauthorized use of the system.
They will have a button to start the generation of X-rays
and a button to manually stop the generation of X-rays.
The three main adjustable controls regulate the tube
voltage in kilovolts, the tube amperage in millivolts, and
the exposure time in minutes and seconds. Some systems
also have a switch to change the focal spot size of the
tube.

X-ray Generator Options

Kilovoltage - X-ray generators come in a large variety of sizes and configurations. There are
stationary units that are intended for use in lab or production environments and portable systems
that can be easily moved to the job site. Systems are available in a wide range of energy levels.
When inspecting large steel or heavy metal components, systems capable of producing millions
of electron volts may be necessary to penetrate the full thickness of the material. Alternately,
small, lightweight components may only require a system capable of producing only a few tens
of kilovolts.

Focal Spot Size - Another important consideration is the focal spot size of the tube since this
factors into the geometric unsharpness of the image produced. Generally, the smaller the spot
size the better. But as the electron stream is focused to a smaller area, the power of the tube

must be reduced to prevent overheating at the tube anode.

Therefore, the focal spot size becomes a tradeoff of resolving
capability and power. Generators can be classified as a
conventional, minifocus, and microfocus system. Conventional
units have focal-spots larger than about 0.5 mm, minifocus
units have focal-spots ranging from 50 microns to 500
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1/28/13have focal-spots ranging from 50 microns to 500 X-Ray Generators
units
microns (.050 mm to .5 mm), and microfocus systems have
focal-spots smaller than 50 microns. Smaller spot sizes are
especially advantageous in instances where the magnification
of an object or region of an object is necessary. The cost of a
system typically increases as the spot size decreases and
some microfocus tubes exceed $100,000. Some
manufacturers combine two filaments of different sizes to make a dual-focus tube. This usually
involves a conventional and a minifocus spot-size and adds flexibility to the system.

AC and Constant Potential Systems - AC X-ray systems supply the tube with sinusoidal
varying alternating current. They produce X-rays only during one half of the 1/60th second
cycle. This produces bursts of radiation rather than a constant stream. Additionally, the voltage
changes over the cycle and the X-ray energy varies as the voltage ramps up and then back
down. Only a portion of the radiation is useable and low energy radiation must usually be
filtered out. Constant potential generators rectify the AC wall current and supply the tube with
DC current. This results in a constant stream of relatively consistent radiation. Most newer
systems now use constant potential generators.

Flash X-Ray Generators

Flash X-ray generators produce short, intense bursts of radiation. These systems are useful
when examining objects in rapid motion or when studying transient events such as the tripping of
an electrical breaker. In these type of situations, high-speed video is used to rapidly capture
images from an image intensifier or other real-time detector. Since the exposure time for each
image is very short, a high level of radiation intensity is needed in order to get a usable output
from the detector. To prevent the imaging system from becoming saturated from a continuous
exposure high intensity radiation, the generator supplies microsecond bursts of radiation. The
tubes of these X-ray generators do not have a heated filament but instead electrons are pulled
from the cathode by the strong electrical potential between the cathode and the anode. This
process is known as field emission or cold emission and it is capable of producing electron
currents in the thousands of amperes.

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