X-rays

3 Pages 785 Words

x-rays

X-rays were first discovered in 1895 by Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen who was a german physicist. During experiments with electric currents passing through a vacuum tube, Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen observed that a nearby fluorescent screen glowed when the current was being passed. After turning on high voltage current, Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen noticed a green glow and the fogging of photographic plates. He then tried covering the tube with black paper reassuring that no light would pass through. Still, something came through that affected the photographic plate. He noted this effect being caused by unknown rays which in turn he later called X-rays, X being used as the unknown rays.
Soon after Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen took an x-ray of his wife’s hand. The wedding ring appeared on the picture and had completely blocked out the x-rays. This is the reason that they appear black. This new form of radiation created a great interest in both the scientific field and public sector.



What are x-rays and what are they used for?

X-rays are a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have high energy and short wavelength and are able to pass through tissue. Going through the body, the denser tissues, such as the bones, will block more of the rays than will the less dense tissues, such as the lung. The shorter the wavelength the greater its energy and its penetrating power. In the Webster dictionary an x-ray is defined as, “a radiation of the same nature as light rays but of extremely short wavelength, that is generated by the striking of a stream of electrons against a metal surface in a vacuum, and that is able to penetrate through various thickness of solids”
x-ray pictures are also known as radiographs. A special type of photographic film is used to record X-ray pictures. The X-rays are converted into light and the more energy that has reached the recording system, the darker that region of the film will be. This is why the...