RADIATION PRODUCTION---FINALS

Name: Brunhild D. Bangayan

Section: Carolina

Define or otherwise explain the following according to your

understanding.

a. Classical scattering- is an interaction which occurs between very low-energy x-ray photons and
matter. It is also called coherent scatter or unmodified scatter. This interaction has little
significance to diagnostic imaging.
b. Rayleigh scattering- involves all of the electrons of the atom in the interaction.
c. Image noise- background information that the imaging receptor receives.
d. Electron binding energy- the amount of energy needed to remove the electron from the atom.
e. Incident ray- is a ray of light that strikes a surface. The angle between this ray and the
perpendicular or normal to the surface is the angle of incidence.
f. Backscatter radiation- photons that deflect back toward the source, traveling in the opposite
direction of the incident photon.
g. Remnant radiation- the resulting beam that is able to exit from the patient.
h. Leakage radiation- any photons that escape from the housing except at the port are leakage
radiation. Leakage radiation must not exceed 100 mR/ hr at 1 meter.
i. Scattered radiation- non-diagnostic radiation, along the way an x-ray photon may interact with
the body’s matter in such a way that the resulting photon continues its travel in a different
direction.
j. Image forming x-ray- a radiographic image is created by passing an x-ray beam through the
patient and interacting with an image receptor.

Explain the difference between the electron interaction to matter and x-

ray interaction to matter?

Electron interaction with matter;

The interaction and transfer of energy from photon to tissue has two phases. The first is the ‘one-shot’
interaction between the photon and an electron in which all or a significant part of the photon energy is
transferred: the second is the transfer of energy from the energized electron as it moves through the
tissue. This occurs as a series of interactions, each of which transfers a relatively small amount of
energy. In photoelectric interactions, the energy of the electron is equal to the energy of the incident
photon less the binding energy of the electron within the atom. As the electrons leave the interaction
site, they immediately begin to transfer their energy to the surrounding material. Because the electron
carries an electrical charge, it can interact with other electrons without touching them. As it passes
though the material, the electron, in effect, pushes the other electrons away from its path. If the force
of an electron is sufficient to remove it from its atom, ionization results. In some cases, the atomic or
molecular structures are raised to a higher energy level, or excited state. Regardless of the type of
interaction, the moving electron loses some of its energy.

X-ray interaction with matter;

When an x-ray beam passes through matter, it undergoes a process called attenuation. Attenuation is
the reduction in the number of x-ray photons in the beam, and subsequent loss of energy, as the beam
passes through matter. Attenuation is the result of x-ray photons interacting with matter and losing
energy through these interactions. While some photons will pass through matter and not interact, an x-
ray photon can interact with the whole atom, an orbital electron, or directly with the nucleus. This will
depend on the energy of the photon. Low energy photons are most likely to interact with the whole
atom. Intermediate-energy photons generally interact with orbital electrons while very high-energy
photons, such as those used for radiation therapy, are capable for interacting with the nucleus. In the
diagnostic x-ray range, the interactions are most commonly with orbital electrons

Explain the importance of atomic number, electron arrangement, and

electron binding energy to effects in the x-ray interaction with matter.

Atomic number

The main reason the atomic number is important is because it’s how you identify the element of an
atom. Another big reason it matters is because the modern periodic table is organized according to
increasing atomic number. Finally, the atomic number is a key factor in determining the properties of an
element. However, the number of valence electrons determines chemical bonding behavior. No matter
how many neutrons or electrons it has, an atom with one proton is always atomic number 1 and always
hydrogen. An atom that contains 6 protons is by definition an atom of carbon. An atom with 55 protons
is always cesium.

Therefore, the higher the atomic number of an element, the more energy will be required to remove a
K-shell electron from the atom.

Electron arrangement

The important aspect is that we realize that knowing electron configurations help us determine the
valence electrons on an atom. This is important because valence electrons contribute to the unique
chemistry of each atom.

Shells are named K, L, M, N, O.

K closest to nucleus (highest binding energy).

Maximum number of electrons in a shell is 2n squared.

Electron binding energy

 Atomic electrons are held in place by the electrostatic pull of the positively charged nucleus. The energy
required to completely remove an electron from an atom is called the electron binding energy. Binding
energies are unique for each electron shell of each element. The binding energy of outer shell
electrons is small. Outer shell electron binding energies are only a few electron volts. The binding
energy of inner shell electrons is large. For most elements, the binding energy of inner shell electrons is
measured in thousands of electron volts. K-shell binding energies increase with atomic number.  

Energetic particles can knock out inner shell electrons only if their energy is greater than the electron
binding energy. A 50 keV electron cannot eject a tungsten K-shell electron (K-shell binding energy is 70
keV) whereas a 100 keV electron can. A vacancy in the K shell will be filled by an electron from a higher
shell. Electrons moving from an outer shell to an inner shell may emit excess energy as electromagnetic
radiation. The excess energy may be transferred to an Auger electron, which then leaves the atom.
Auger electron energy is the characteristic x-ray energy minus the binding energy of the outer shell
electron. A K-shell vacancy results in either a characteristic x-ray or an Auger electron being emitted
from the atom.

How thus differential absorption is important in the contrast of the image

produce and how it is produce?

X-ray images are created when X-rays from a source penetrate an object and then expose a film. The
difference in how different materials absorb the X-rays in the beam produces the contrast that
generates the detail of the image.

For a typical medical diagnostic image, the X-ray interaction with matter is primarily through the
Photoelectric effect and Compton scattering. The strength of these two mechanisms depends upon the
energy of the X-ray photons, the atomic number of the material as well as the density of the material.

This simulation provides a qualitative exploration of the difference of how X-rays interact with varying
material properties and how this difference can produce contrast in the x-ray image.

Why is it that only 1% of the x-ray produce and interacted in the patient
will reach the image receptor?

The target interactions that produce the x-ray photons consist of less than 1 percent of the total kinetic
energy of the incident electrons. Over 99.8 percent of the kinetic energy of the incident electrons is
coverted to heat. This is the reason why so much technical research has gone into the development of
the thermal aspects of x-ray tubes. In spite of the cost and performance capabilities of modern x-ray
tubes, they are tremendously inefficient because they waste over 99 percent of the energy they use. As
the kinetic energy of the incident electrons increases, so does the efficiency of photon production. By
the time the therapeutic MeV is reached, the majority of the energy is producing photons of heat.
Because they have such high kinetic energy, incident electrons seldom transfer enough energy to the
outer shells of the target atoms to cause ionizatio. Instead they transfer enough energy to excite the
outer shell electrons to the point where they will emit infrared radiation as heat. These electrons then
return to their normal state where they will be re-excited again and again, each time emitting infrared
radiation as heat.

What is attenuation and how it is occur and explain its important

contribution in the image formation?
Attenuation is the reduction in the total number of x-ray photons remaining in the beam after
passing through a given thickness of material. It is the result of x-rays interacting with matter and
being absorbed or scatter. As an x-ray passes through a patient, the beam is attenuated. The thicker
the body part being radiographed, the greater the attenuation. In order to provide a sufficient
number of x-ray photons for interaction with the image receptor, the original quantity or quality of
the photons must be increased body part thickness. The incident beam is significantly altered as it
passes through the patient. The beam emitted from the patient contains the radiologically
significant information needed by the radiologist to make a diagnosis. The amount of attenuation
will be determined by the amount and type of irradiated material. The patient is the greatest
variable that the radiographer faces when performing a radiographic procedure. The composition of
the human body determines its radiographic appearance. When studying the absorption
characteristics of the body, four major substances account for most of the variations in x-ray
absorption; air, fat, muscle and bone. The patient has an impact on all the properties that affect
radiographic quality; density, contrast recorded detail, and distortion. The relationships between
these factors and the patient ( subject ) are termed subject density, subject contrast, subject detail,
and subject distortion.

Using this equation Ei = Es ( Eb + EKE ) compute the following value

of scatter radiation.

A 50-keV x-ray ionized an atom of the barium by ejecting the L shell electron with kinetic energy of 15
keV. What is the value/ energy of the scatter radiation?

Ei = Es (Eb+Eke)

50 keV = Es + (6 keV + 15 keV)

Es = 50 keV – (6 keV + 15 keV)

= 50 keV – (21 keV)

= 29 keV

A 30-keV x-ray ionized an atom of the tungsten by ejecting the M shell electron with kinetic energy of 10
keV. What is the value/ energy of the scatter radiation?

Ei = Es (Eb+Eke)
30 keV = Es + (2.8 keV + 10 keV)

Es = 30 keV – (2.8 keV + 10 keV)

= 30 keV – (12.8 keV)

= 17.2 keV

A 25-keV x-ray ionized an atom of the carbon by ejecting the L shell electron with kinetic energy of 5
keV. What is the value/ energy of the scatter radiation?

Ei = Es (Eb+Eke)

25 keV = Es + (0.01 keV + 5 keV)

Es = 25 keV – (0.01 keV + 5 keV)

= 25 keV – (5.01 keV)

= 19.99 keV