Tag: x ray

2 min read 2

Attenuation: Photoelectric Effect

This is the last post on attenuation methods. Photoelectric effect There are three main steps in photoelectric effect. 1. A high energy incoming x ray photon knocks out an orbital electron (diagrams show K shell electron being knocked out). The energy of the x ray photon must be equal to…
1 min read 0

Attenuation: Compton Scatter

This post is the second method of scatter attenuation. Compton scatter (or Incoherent scatter) There are three main steps in compton scatter. 1. An incoming x ray photon interacts with an outer orbital electron. 2. The incoming x ray photon knocks the orbital electron out of it orbit (becoming a…
2 min read 1

Attenuation: Coherent Scatter

This post is the first of three involving methods of attenuation.  The first two posts will be on types of scatter; coherent scatter and compton scatter.  The last post will be on absorption; photoelectric effect.  These are physics topics and more likely apply to students as they are learning about…
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All about attenuation of x rays

Attenuation is when the quantity of x rays is reduced by either absorption or scatter as it travels through matter.   Absorption is when x ray photons ionize atoms and transfer its energy to electrons (i.e. photoelectric effect).  Scattering is when the x ray photons are ejected out of the primary…
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X is for x ray: Image Density

Today is all about image density and how different settings on the x ray unit as well as the subject being imaged will effect this.  The four topics I will be covering are: milliampere (mA), kilovoltage peak (kVp), exposure time, and subject thickness.  I have covered some of these topics…