Production of x-rays?

Question

What are the two physical processes that give rise to the production of x-rays from energetic electrons.

How would a spectrum change if the target were made thin?

Answer 1

no clue

Answer 2

When electrons are accelerated in the x-ray tube, they gain kinetic energy -- lots of it.  More energy than even the electrons inside of a television CRT.

When these high-energy electrons strike the anode/target, they knock off electrons from the target atoms.  These knocked off electrons move from their valence bands to higher energy bands in defined quanta.  For certain materials such as tungsten, these higher energy quanta from valence out to ionization are the same as x-rays.  As the knocked off electrons fall back into their stable orbitals, they release photons of x-rays.

Changing the depth of the material will not change the spectrum of the x-rays.  Changing the material will.  You can taylor an x-ray spectrum by changing the target anode material, but tungsten is most often used because:

1. it has the highest melting point of any element,

2. it is conductive

3. it is heat conductive

These 3 items make for a target anode that can 'take' a lot of power, to produce a high intensity of x-rays (at the spectrum of tungsten).

Other materials will give you 'soft' or 'hard' spectrum x-rays but they do not hold up as well as tungsten.  You can't over power them to get a high intensity.

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