The Atom

Atom – The smallest part of an element that has all the properties of the elements
Centuries of Discoveries
1. Greek Atom
2. Dalton Atom – John Dalton (1808) Eye and Hook affair

3. Thompson atom – JJ Thompson Plum Pudding

4. Rutherford atom – Ernest Rutherford (1911) Nuclear Model
5. Bohr atom – Niels Bohr (1913) Miniature solar system
6. Quantum Mechanics
Electron –
Proton + (1 amu)
Neutron 0 (1 amu)
Proton – Eugene Goldstein
Neutron – James Chadwick (1932)
Electro – JJ Thompson (1897)
Nucleus – Ernest Rutherford (1911)

When an atom or molecule gain or loses an electron it becomes an ion.

A cation has lost an electron and therefore has a positive charge
An anion has gained an electron and therefore has a negative charge.
Structure of Atom
Nucleus – Center of Atom (P and N)
Electron “cloud” – Area surrounding nucleus (electrons)

Interaction of Radiation with Matter

Attenuation – intensity REDUCTION of X-ray as a pass-through matter

Five interactions of X-rays and Gamma Rays with Matter

Photoelectric effect – Very important in diagnostic radiology
Compton scatter – Very important in radiotherapy
Coherent scatter – Not important in diagnostic or therapeutic radiology
Pair production – important in diagnostic radiology
Photodisintegration – Neutron contamination of therapy beams

Alpha particles – Mass+=(4amu)2 N and 2 P (+2) short distance = 10 cm in air (paper or layer of
skin)
Beta particles –(Decay of Neutron into a P and E) small electric charge particles similar to
electrons (-1) (wood, aluminum foil)
Gamma-rays –(not particle) Electromagnetic photons or radiation (highly penetrating)
X-rays – Overlap with gamma-rays (highly penetrating)

Personal dosimeters – Provide a record of accumulated exposures

Alpha – Proportional or scintillation counters
Beta, gamma – Geiger-Mueller or Proportional counters
X-ray, gamma – Ionization chambers
Neutrons – Proportional counters

Transmutation – Changing one element into another through radioactive decay

Nuclear fission=Divide
Nuclear fusion=opposite of fission

PET – Positron Emission Tomography

-a 3D image of functional processes in the body
-Inject radioactive tracers (a simple sugar and a small amount of radioactive fluorine)
-Detects gamma rays emitted
-avoid unnecessary surgery
SPECT-Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography
-Uses single photons
-Inject radionuclides
-scintillation cameras that acquire 2d planar projection images the projection data are
reconstructed into 3d images
-Produce 3d distribution of the gamma rays
-Technetium-99m (149keV) or iodine-123
-Physiological information
-looks like CT or MRI system
-A pulse Height Analyzer (PHA) decodes the energy of the emitted photon
SPECT images can be taken in 2 modes
-Continuous Acquisition – camera heads in motion
-Step and shoot – Camera stop and defined angles
180 = most common generally
360 = common in brain SPECT

Gamma camera-a device that use gamma rays to carry out functional scans on patients

1. Collimator – limits the passage of gamma rays

2. Scintillator – made up of Sodium Iodide (Nal) crystal – Produces multi-photon flashes of
light when incoming gamma rays hit to the surface of the crystal
3. Photomultiplier tube (PMT) – convert the light signal into a useable current pulse
4. Computer – process current pulse into a useable image
5. Monitor – displayed the image