WorksheetsX-Ray Production Review – Multiple Choice Questions
Total questions: 61
Worksheet time: 36mins
What percentage of electron interactions in the x-ray tube actually produce x-rays?
1%
5%
25%
50%
What happens to most of the kinetic energy of filament electrons during x-ray production?
It is converted into characteristic photons
It is converted into heat
It escapes the anode as scatter radiation
It is absorbed by the focusing cup
Which component helps dissipate the heat generated in the x-ray tube?
Filament
Rotating anode and oil bath
Collimator blades
Target window
What event must occur for characteristic radiation to be produced?
Outer-shell excitation
Inner-shell ionization
Bremsstrahlung deflection
Heat generation
Why are K-shell interactions in tungsten most important for diagnostic imaging?
They produce the highest energy photons
They produce the most photons
They have the lowest binding energy
They occur outside the focal track
The energy of a characteristic photon is equal to:
The kinetic energy of the incoming electron
The speed of the deflected electron
The difference between the binding energies of the involved shells
The atomic number of the target material
The term Bremsstrahlung means:
Scattered beam
Braking radiation
Secondary emission
Magnetic interaction
The energy of a Bremsstrahlung photon depends primarily on:
The binding energy of the K-shell
The atomic number of tungsten only
The distance the electron passes from the nucleus
The number of outer-shell vacancies
Which of the following best compares Bremsstrahlung and characteristic radiation?
Bremsstrahlung = discrete spectrum; characteristic = continuous spectrum
Bremsstrahlung = continuous spectrum; characteristic = discrete spectrum
Both are continuous
Both are discrete
Beam quantity is defined as:
The energy of x-ray photons
The number of photons in the beam
The wavelength of the beam
The thickness of the patient
Beam quality refers to:
Photon number
Penetrating ability or energy
Filtration thickness
Focal spot size
Increasing filtration will:
Increase both beam quality and quantity
Decrease both beam quality and quantity
Increase quality but decrease quantity
Decrease quality but increase quantity
According to the 15% rule, increasing kVp by 15% has the same effect as:
Doubling mAs
Halving mAs
Doubling SID
Halving filtration
What happens to beam intensity when the SID is doubled?
It doubles
It is cut in half
It becomes one-fourth as intense
It quadruples
Total filtration equals:
Added + scatter
Inherent + added
Primary + remnant
Tungsten + molybdenum
The purpose of compensating filters (e.g., wedge filters) is to:
Increase contrast by reducing scatter
Equalize exposure across body parts of varying thickness
Reduce patient dose by lowering mAs
Soften the beam
The half-value layer (HVL) is defined as:
The beam intensity level that doubles patient exposure
The thickness needed to reduce beam intensity by 50%
The number of photons reaching the detector
The filtration limit set by the manufacturer
The x-ray beam before striking the patient is called the:
Primary beam
Remnant beam
Exit beam
Scattered beam
The x-ray beam that exits the patient and exposes the image receptor is the:
Primary beam
Remnant beam
Attenuated beam
Refracted beam
On an emission spectrum graph, the x-axis represents ______ and the y-axis represents ______.
Photon energy; photon quantity
Photon quantity; photon energy
Beam intensity; wavelength
Beam hardness; beam quality
What percentage of interactions in the x-ray tube result in the production of x-rays?
1%
10%
The majority of the kinetic energy from incident electrons is converted into:
X-rays
Heat
Secondary radiation
Binding energy
Which design feature helps manage the large amounts of heat produced in the anode?
Stationary target
Rotating anode and oil cooling system
Lead housing
Filament coil
Excessive heat during exposures can cause:
Scatter radiation
Pitting or cracking of the anode surface
Increased beam intensity
Faster exposure times
Characteristic radiation occurs when:
A. A filament electron passes near the nucleus
B. An outer-shell electron is excited
C. An inner-shell electron is ejected
D. The filament overheats
The resulting photon energy from a characteristic interaction equals:
The sum of the two binding energies
The difference between the two binding energies
The kinetic energy of the incoming electron
The distance from the nucleus
The K-shell characteristic x-rays in tungsten are most useful because:
They have low energy and high contrast
They have high energy and fall within the diagnostic range
They are easily filtered out by aluminum
They are produced by Bremsstrahlung interactions
The “characteristic cascade” refers to:
The continuous photon emission from decelerating electrons
The chain of electron transitions filling inner-shell vacancies
The alternating changes in photon frequency
The motion of electrons in the filament
If a tungsten atom has a K-shell binding energy of 69 keV and an L-shell energy of 12 keV, the characteristic photon energy produced would be:
81 keV
57 keV
12 keV
69 keV
“Bremsstrahlung” means:
Breaking or braking radiation
Characteristic energy emission
Diffuse scatter
Magnetic attraction
Bremsstrahlung radiation is produced when:
An electron collides with an inner-shell electron
An electron passes near the nucleus and slows down
A photon is absorbed by the anode
Filtration removes low-energy photons
The closer an electron passes to the nucleus during Bremsstrahlung production:
The lower the photon energy
The higher the photon energy
Which type of radiation accounts for the majority of the x-ray beam in diagnostic imaging?
Bremsstrahlung
Characteristic
Photoelectric
Compton
Which best describes the difference between Bremsstrahlung and characteristic radiation?
Bremsstrahlung = discrete spectrum; characteristic = continuous
Bremsstrahlung = continuous spectrum; characteristic = discrete
Both are discrete
Both are continuous
Beam quantity refers to:
Photon energy
The number of photons produced
Filtration thickness
Focal spot size
Beam quality describes:
Photon number
Beam energy or penetrating power
Scatter reduction
Target efficiency
The primary factor controlling beam quantity is:
kVp
mAs
Filtration
SID
The primary factor controlling beam quality is:
Filtration
mA
kVp
Exposure time
Increasing kVp affects the beam by:
Increasing quantity and quality
Increasing quantity but decreasing quality
Increasing quality but decreasing quantity
Decreasing both
Increasing filtration will:
Increase beam quantity
Decrease beam quality
Decrease quantity but increase quality
Decrease both
The 15% rule states that increasing kVp by 15% will:
Halve beam intensity
Double beam intensity (same as doubling mAs)
Reduce scatter
Increase HVL
If you double the SID, the intensity of the beam will:
Double
Quadruple
Become one-fourth as intense
Remain the same
According to the inverse square law, intensity is:
Halving the distance between the tube and the image receptor will:
Double the exposure
Increase intensity fourfold
Reduce beam intensity to one-fourth
No change
Inherent filtration occurs:
Within the glass envelope, oil, and window of the tube
After x-rays leave the tube
At the collimator blades only
Within compensating filters
Added filtration consists of:
The anode and housing
Aluminum sheets added by the manufacturer or radiographer
Scatter grids
The patient's tissues
Total filtration equals:
Inherent + added
Added + scatter
Inherent + scatter
Primary + remnant
The purpose of filtration is to:
Reduce patient dose by removing low-energy photons
Increase the number of photons produced
Soften the beam for imaging thicker parts
Create characteristic radiation
Increasing filtration results in which combination?
↑ Quantity, ↓ Quality
↓ Quantity, ↑ Quality
↓ Quantity, ↓ Quality
↑ Quantity, ↑ Quality
Compensating filters, such as a wedge filter, are used to:
Create a uniform image by compensating for body part thickness
Increase contrast
Reduce scatter radiation
Protect the tube from heat
The half-value layer (HVL) is the:
Amount of filtration required to remove scatter
Thickness of material that reduces beam intensity by 50%
Number of photons reaching the IR
Width of the emission spectrum
A higher HVL value indicates:
A softer beam with lower energy
A harder beam with greater penetrating power
Greater patient dose
Lower kVp
Typical diagnostic x-ray beams have HVLs of approximately:
1–2 mm Al
3–5 mm Al
6–10 mm Al
0.5–1 mm Al
The x-ray beam that exits the tube before reaching the patient is the:
Remnant beam
Primary beam
Exit beam
Attenuated beam
The beam that passes through the patient and exposes the image receptor is the:
Remnant beam
Primary beam
Scatter beam
Backscatter
The portion of the primary beam that interacts with matter and changes direction is:
Attenuated radiation
Secondary or scatter radiation
Bremsstrahlung
Characteristic
The x-axis on an x-ray emission spectrum represents:
Photon quantity
Photon energy
Tube current
Exposure time
The y-axis on an emission spectrum represents:
Photon quantity
Photon energy
Beam hardness
Penetration depth
Characteristic radiation on the emission spectrum appears as:
What is the correct answer?
(Not shown)
A series of discrete spikes or bars
Random fluctuations
A flat line
Increasing kVp shifts the emission spectrum: What is the correct answer?
Downward and to the left
Upward and to the right (higher energy and quantity)
Upward only
To the left only
