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伦琴在这里读大学——荷兰心脏乌得勒支
gaoguanzhong 2018-7-23 16:52
作者 高关中(德国汉堡)2018/7/23 你知道伦琴吧。是他发现了X光射线,第一个摘下诺贝尔物理学奖的桂冠。他是德国人,却在荷兰上大学,他的母校就在乌得勒支。 乌得勒支(Utrecht)西北距阿姆斯特丹40公里,人口27万,是荷兰第四大城市。它几乎位于全国的地理中心,堪称“荷兰心脏”,自古以来便因位居交通中枢而繁荣。现在荷兰的国营铁路局就把总部设在此地,以便居中调度。 乌得勒支是荷兰最古老的城市之一。它于公元47年,由罗马人建设完成,原属于罗马帝国保护莱茵河口的要塞。中世纪时这里成为大主教居城,1122年正式设市,发挥着荷兰宗教和文化中心的作用。乌得勒支的一位主教,甚至当选为教皇,称阿德里安六世(1522-1523年在位),他是历史上唯一的荷兰籍教皇。城中保留有他的故居。 在荷兰16世纪后半期的独立战争中,乌得勒支是反抗西班牙政权的重要基地。1579年,尼德兰北方7省在此成立乌得勒支同盟,团结起来推翻西班牙的残暴统治,为此后的荷兰共和国奠定了基础。 1713 年,乌得勒支甚至在国际舞台上出了风头。这年,为结束西班牙王位继承战争,法、英、西、葡、普鲁士以及荷兰等国在此地签订了一系列条约,史称乌得勒支条约。 今天,乌得勒支既是铁路枢纽,也是水运中心,通过运河沟通阿姆斯特丹与莱茵河。工业多样化,以食品,制药,机械,造纸,建筑和纺织业最突出。此地也是金融,保险业中心和国家造币厂所在地。1916年创办的荷兰王家工业展览会,每年举行春秋两季盛大的商品展。 乌得勒支同时也是一座大学城。乌得勒支大学创建于1636年,如今是荷兰最大的高等学府之一,学生达2.4万多人。1989年又成立了一所人文学科大学(Universiteit voor Humanistiek)。莘莘学子更增添了这座城市的活力。 乌得勒支的火车站大楼与荷兰首屈一指的现代化购物中心Hoog Catharijne合二为一。出站向东走几分钟,就到了纵贯市中心的老运河。虽然荷兰的许多古城都有自己的运河系统,但是乌得勒支的运河却相当独特,最大的特色在于它的码头。这些码头比一般的道路低四五米,沿着运河堤岸走下去,可以看到这些小平台式的码头紧依着水面。站在码头上,可以远望河流蜿蜒穿越一座座拱桥的景观。面向水面的咖啡馆也是唯乌得勒支才有的风景。夏天轻风吹拂,阳光明媚,在这里小憩,心情有说不出的愉快。 从旧运河(Oudegracht)的面包匠桥(Bakkerbrug)上,可以清楚地看到哥特风格的建筑奇迹——大教堂塔(Domtoren)。它建于1321-1382年间,112米高,像个挂在天上的八角型长灯笼,一直是荷兰最高的教堂塔。今日的人们仍然为它的典雅和建筑的大胆而深受感动。爬上465级台阶,印入眼帘的是一片令人屏息的美景。 大教堂(Domkerk)与高塔接近但不相连。原来相连的部分在1674年的暴风雨中倒塌了,索性平整成一片广场。广场南侧竖立着荷兰开国功臣杨·凡·拿骚(Jan van Nassau)的铜像。他是威廉奥伦治亲王的兄弟,促成了乌得勒支同盟的成立。 广场南边的文艺复兴式建筑就是乌得勒支大学的老楼。这里原是牧师们在大教堂附近集中听讲的地方,1579年乌得勒支同盟的签字仪式就在此举行,后来签字大厅成为大学的讲堂(Aula)。 乌得勒支大学在城南新运河边设有大学博物馆(Universiteitsmuseum)。该馆介绍这所大学的历史,展出300多年来学校的各种文献,古文书和使用过的科学仪器。大学刚成立时,只有7个教授,神法医哲4个学院。如今教职员工已达7000多人,其中教授380名。12个学院共2万多学生就读。大多数机构已迁到东郊的新校区。乌得勒支大学已跻身于世界一流大学之列。乌大教师和学生中产生了许多名人,包括7位诺贝尔奖获得者。其中来自德国的学生伦琴,在母亲的家乡乌得勒支求学,因发现X射线而于1901年荣获第一个诺贝尔物理学奖。荷兰生理学家埃因托芬(1860-1927),因发明心电描记仪,做出心电图帮助医生诊断,而获得1924年的诺贝尔生理学医学奖。荷兰病理学家艾克曼(1858-1930)研究证明脚气病是因为缺乏一种营养素引起的,这一论证导致维生素的发现,因而荣获诺贝尔奖。 城中老建筑鳞次栉比,一栋临街楼房大门上方写着MDCLXXX,用罗马字母表示年代的久远。 罗马数字共有 7 个,即 Ⅰ ( 1 )、 Ⅴ ( 5 )、 Ⅹ ( 10 )、 Ⅼ ( 50 )、 Ⅽ ( 100 )、 Ⅾ ( 500 )和 Ⅿ ( 1000 )。 MDCLXXX 就是1680年,像这样三四百年的老建筑比比皆是。有的门框上站立着雕像,有的干脆把石柱做成雕像,美得令人窒息。 乌得勒支博物馆很多,除了大学博物馆以外,还有铁路博物馆(Nederlands Spoorweg Museum),中央博物馆(Centraal Museum,陈列历史文物和乌得勒支画派的作品等)和凯瑟琳修院博物馆(Het Catharijneconvent Museum,主要收藏荷兰中世纪艺术品)。然而最有特色的要数音乐盒及街头风琴博物馆(National Museum van Speelklok tot Pierement)。它设在一座古老的教堂里,展出18世纪以来直到现代的各种自动乐器,如珍奇的音乐盒,自鸣钟,手摇式风琴,投币式留声机,街头风琴等等。尤其是荷兰著名的街头风琴,演奏的时候有木偶和着悠扬的音乐敲敲钟,打打鼓,让观众忍不住兴奋起来。 市东南的一座两层小楼也像博物馆一样,开放参观。这座小楼叫里特弗尔德-施罗德住宅(Rietveld Schrder Huis)。它是由荷兰风格派建筑师里特弗尔德(1888-1964)在1924年设计建造的,房主施罗德太太一直住到1985年去世。这座房屋的特点是超前现代化。如二楼房间的隔墙都是活动的,可以折叠,以便根据需要调整房间大小。早在近百年前,房屋门口就装上了对讲机,以便房主与陌生人远距通话。各房间还采取了自然采光等节能措施。这座房屋作为现代建筑的里程碑闻名于世,2001年被列为世界文化遗产。 乌得勒支城东近20公里的万人小城多伦(Doorn)有个多伦宫(Huis Doorn),被罢黜的德国皇帝威廉二世在此度过余生。这位志大才疏的君王,挑起第一次世界大战,结果到最后,德国一败涂地。皇冠落地的威廉二世匆匆逃到荷兰避难。头两年他住在亚美隆根城堡(Kasteel Amerongen,距多伦8公里),1920年搬进建于14世纪的多伦宫,1941年在此去世。如今这里陈列威廉二世的珍贵收藏品。他死后就葬在多伦宫的后花园里。 16 张照片见 http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_a065430e0102yc3p.html
个人分类: 欧洲各地|1214 次阅读|0 个评论
伦琴在实验室
热度 1 zhangjiuqing 2018-1-6 16:20
伦琴在实验室 1901 年, 首个诺贝尔物理学奖颁给了德国物理学家伦琴( Wi l helm Conrad R ntgen ), 以表彰 他在 1895年冬天 发现 了 X 射线 。 —题记 一 远处,登山者迈开脚步 近处,写生者拿起画笔 眼前,伦琴拉上窗帘 把远处和近处关在实验室外 把冬景和日常生活关在大脑外 多年来,就是这台放电管 诱惑着伦琴的双手 打磨 出精准的数据 如同键弦诱惑着乐师的手 弹拨出动人的旋律 二 植物学家盯着春花秋叶 在大地上荣枯 天文学家盯着日月星辰 在苍穹中旋转 伦琴盯着阴极射线 在放电管里奔跑 从凝视中转眸瞬间 放电管外,一个光点倏然而过 好奇心驱使五十岁的伦琴 捉拿光点呀,游戏开始 三 实验室就是整个世界 光点隐匿了身影 伦琴带着火眼金睛 在清晰线索与模糊空白之间 忙碌穿梭和蹲守 谁能逃过伦琴的毅力呢 混在阴极射线的光点现出原形 它带来的是浓缩的惊喜 彩虹升起,实验室成了万花筒 伦琴让风景次第开放 四 腼腆的伦琴牵着夫人的手 行进在万花筒中 光点闪烁,为物理学史 拍下了最浪漫的瞬间 X 射线,面向未知的新名词 在论文里熠熠生辉 像航标和路标指引同行 自然中的黑箱逐渐透明 掌声从四面八方涌来 致敬伦琴,致敬实验,致敬科学
个人分类: 科普|5085 次阅读|1 个评论
首届诺奖的成果,竟被用来试鞋、偷窥,甚至做成唱片
热度 1 beckzl 2017-1-16 22:35
   年底了,菊长按照惯例去医院做了一套体检,赫然发现学生时代存在感超强的胸透项目已经不见了,虽然依旧要去放射科走差不多一样的流程,但它却已经被替换成了胸片。    菊长疑惑的同时猛然想起几年前的一条新闻: 中国胸透使用率超英国300倍 ,新闻中称胸透的 辐射剂量至少是X光片的10倍 。 各大高校体检喜爱的胸透项目    本以为又是一条危言耸听的新闻,但经过菊长的调查发现,一次X光胸片的辐射剂量约为 0.4-0.5mGy ,而胸透的剂量达到每分钟50mGy,单次剂量视时间长短变化,范围在 0.6-4.85mGy 之间,也就是说, 胸透的辐射剂量最多可达胸片的100倍。    为什么在我国还在普遍适用剂量如此之大的胸透作为体检项目呢?其实也很简单,便宜、快。胸透直接由医生直接当场检视体检者,省去了制X光片需要等待的时间,而且价格仅为几元至二三十元。    为了成本,为了效率,牺牲一定的安全性也尚可以理解,然而在一个世纪以前,还曾有过一段关于X射线的黑暗历史, 人们前赴后继毫无忌惮地把玩这种“上帝射线”,最终全都如愿早早地与上帝见面。    关于第一个制造出X射线的人是谁,其实是有争议的,就连第一张X射线照片究竟是哪张也众说纷纭,除了最广为流传伦琴的故事之外,还有一个关于特斯拉的传说,据说特斯拉早在伦琴创世纪的实验之前就已经制造出了X射线,并将清晰的影响寄给了伦琴。 这张手部照片据说是特斯拉早于伦琴拍摄下的    不过特斯拉虽然制作出产生X射线的装置,却没有正确地认识X射线的本质,伦琴被称作X射线的发现者也无可厚非,但特斯拉真正传奇之处是发现了X射线的危害,并没有继续研究下去。    自从伦琴对世界公布了第一张X射线拍摄的手部照片,人类对这种神秘射线的热情从未低落过, 伦琴也因为这个打开新世界的发现获得了第一届的诺贝尔物理学奖,而X射线在之后的一个世纪里共催生了多达25项获诺奖的研究。 伦琴    勋伯格是德国的第一位X射线专家,鉴于德国是最早研究X射线的国家,他至少也是世界上最早精通X射线的人之一。    勋伯格对X射线的研究是狂热的,他不仅自己研究X射线,还创建了《X射线新进展》期刊、撰写了X射线的教科书,鼓励大家一起来研究(作死)。 X射线先驱勋伯格    然而,勋伯格和众人一样,完全对X射线不设防。在1908年,X射线发现后的第13年,勋伯格的双手由于长期暴露在X射线下, 罹患皮肤癌,被截去了整条左臂,以及右手的中指 ,彻底失去了用手势骂人的能力。十三年后,勋伯格去世,享年56岁,光荣地成为了一名“ X射线烈士 ”。 被X射线过量照射的手臂    无独有偶,同样来自德国的吉赛尔是一名传奇的X射线摄影师,他和好朋友沃克霍夫突发奇想,在牙科手术前用X射线对病人先行诊断,第一次将X射线引入了牙科手术中,不过吉赛尔的命运同样悲惨,也不出意外地死于过度承受辐射所带来的癌症。 正在接受牙医X光检查的患者    在伦琴的故乡,有一位名叫克劳斯专家堪比《隋唐演义》中割肉救母的杨广。他的左手因被X射线过度照射喜闻乐见地癌变了,于是为了不白交学费, 他将自己截下的手保存在伦琴博物馆内 ,断手为戒,警醒后人不要随便搞事情。 克劳斯癌变的左手    X射线祸害了欧洲一众学者,当然也没有放过世界灯塔大美利坚。这回轮到了“暴力”发明大王爱迪生1896年,X射线的消息刚传到美国,爱迪生就闻到了其中的铜臭味,立马施放了他的绝技—— 暴力发明大法。    爱迪生用穷举法试验了超过 1800种化学物质 ,终于找到了一种比氰亚铂酸钡性能更好的荧光材料钨酸钙,也制作出了风靡世界的方锥型头戴观察仪。 酷似现在VR眼镜的X射线观测仪    不过,随着对X射线的研究,爱迪生渐渐地感觉自己的左眼不听使唤,肠胃也开始不好,成天拉稀,就休息了好一阵。    于是他把X光管的预热工作交给了最得力的助手达利,预热无非也就是把手放在X射线源和荧光屏之间,等到手部的骨头清晰可见的时候就算预热好了。    万万没想到,达利预热了几年手部和脸部就出现了损伤,后来截去了整个左臂和右手四个手指,还留下年一根用来操作仪器,再后来他永远失去了胳膊,预热了8年便失去了生命, 年仅39岁,成为全美第一个为X射线献身的勇士 。 长期被X射线照射逐渐病变的双手    爱迪生被达利的遭遇吓惨了,立即彻底放弃一切关于X射线的研究,市场再大也不赚这个钱了。    同时他也终于明白了特斯拉那个老狗没什么再没有跟他抢食,不得不说爱迪生的确有大智慧,不然还真的活不到84岁。 还好老子聪明    同样受害的还有那些外科医生,美国整形外科学会主席发挥带头作用,率先使用X射线做手术,被赞誉为“最巧的手用最好的机器做最棒的活”,不愧是最好的屁股坐最好的鞍,最好的马鞍给最好的驹。    结果不出两年,这屁股就被马鞍硌坏了,不久后连人都驾鹤西去了。    当年 李鸿章 赴日进行《马关条约》的谈判,莫名被日本浪人袭击,还好膝盖安仁无恙,只是面部中了一枪,不然可能将会成为一名守卫。 据说这一枪让大清少赔了一个亿    伤愈后,李鸿章又赴德国与俾斯麦谈笑风生,俾斯麦得知他的伤情,便热情邀请他去参观一个宝贝,在一堆仪器前,李鸿章看见了自己的面目骨骼出现在荧光屏上,同时还有那一颗未被取出的子弹,李鸿章惊叹之余称这个技术为“照骨术”,他也是第一个接受X射线检查的中国人。 李鸿章与俾斯麦    据说,为研讨X射线而成立的伦琴学会,在1920年举办了一次晚宴,其中大多数人看着面前香喷喷的烤鸡落下了悲伤了泪水,甚至指责主办方用烤鸡羞辱了作为一名X射线专家的尊严,只有少数几个有手的默默地吃鸡不说话。    其实不仅是这些学者专家遭受了X射线的伤害,平民百姓也很享受X射线带来的娱乐效果。    最早制成的X射线设备就是用来娱乐的,人们一窝蜂地涌入最时髦的照相馆,只为拍上一张“非主流”的艺术照。 有的小夫妻甚至用X射线拍摄结婚照,只为“刻骨铭心”。    有些选美比赛也赶上了这股浪潮,用最先进的X射线来选美,保证选手的身材的纯天然零添加。    不过真正厉害的还是夜总会,他们会在场子里偷偷安装X射线管,从大厅到浴室厕所都有,而品味特殊的小哥们就会带上X光眼镜看个痛快。    原来透视眼镜并不是科幻,一个世纪前就已经有了,只是不知道他们能看得见小姐姐的曼妙肉体吗,恐怕只有满世界的骨感吧。    关于X射线的发明我最服气的还是这款黑科技试鞋机,孩子们在鞋店看中了喜欢的鞋子,店员便会让他们试穿上,把脚放进机器里,X射线一照,家长、孩子、店员就可以通过三个观察孔一起讨论鞋子的合适程度,简直不能再温馨了。    只是我想问那些一个月能买十几双鞋的公主们,你们的脚可还安好? 曾经的黑科技X光试鞋机    经过几十年的发展,人们终于开始规范X射线的使用,严格控制辐照剂量,医用X射线也逐渐走上了正轨。    不过,X射线又带来了另一种神奇的产业。    上个世纪五十年代,苏美冷战打得火热,一切来自西方资本主义的音乐都被定义为靡靡之音,会腐化人的思想,滋生邪念。    可是贫苦的苏联人民才不管这些, “我不管我不管,我就要听猫王,我就要听查克贝利” ,然而他们买不到这些唱片,更买不起这些富人的玩意。    那就搞盗版吧,反正美帝也不敢查到我们老大哥头上。可是当时的黑胶唱片的成本可不低啊,而且原料乙烯是国家重要的战略物资,一个小小的盗版商人真的弄不到啊。    于是苏联人民充分发挥主观能动性,他们打起了同样材质的X光照片的主意。    从医院的垃圾堆里翻出X光照片几乎零成本,制成唱片之后成本也只卖1卢布,虽然音质差,不耐用,但这种被称为“BoneMusic”的盗版音乐还是成为了时代最“骨感”的记忆。 用废弃X光片制成的盗版唱片    X射线这风风雨雨一百多年的历史,改变了人类的科学进程,也送走了多少名人巧匠,虽然我们倍感惋惜,但也无法左右历史,我想这就是 文明的代价 吧。 X光下裹脚女人的三寸金莲    什么?你问我伦琴呢?    哦,他老人家极力反对把X射线叫做伦琴射线,谢绝了贵族的称号,也没申请专利,深藏功与名。       活到了78岁。     内容为【SME】公众号原创 欢迎关注
2622 次阅读|1 个评论
“亲爱的,来看看我的伟大发现!”
热度 15 wozaikx 2014-12-23 09:34
前几天看新闻,列举了当今世界最贵的十幅照片,最低都在200万美元以上,贵得令人咋舌。当时我想,也许有一张照片也应该位列其中,它就是拍摄于1895年12月22日的人类第一张手部x光照片。尽管以金钱衡量某些物品的价值多少显得有些愚蠢,可是你看,沃森不是也开始卖奖牌了吗? 今天说到这张著名的照片,还是让我们先从伦琴说起。 1895 年威廉 · 康拉德 · 伦琴( Wilhelm Conrad Rntgen 1845 - 1923 )刚好五十岁了, 11 月 8 日是个星期五,那天的傍晚,维尔茨堡大学物理研究所早已人去楼空。深秋的树叶沙沙作响,空荡荡的实验室显得格外安静。不好意思,别怕,气氛渲染得有点儿过了。只有物理所所长伦琴独自在进行实验,如同以前无数周末假日一样。然而就在这一天,一个重大的发现即将通过伦琴展现在人类的面前。 他在前几天的基础上继续阴极射线管的研究,也就是克鲁克斯管,先用黑纸包住它的电极,把房间弄得很暗,检测是否漏光。这时他忽然注意到距离几米远的地方有微弱的光,是他放在工作台上准备下一步使用的氰亚铂酸钡发光。重复后每次都可以看见,按理说阴极射线是不能通过玻璃管壁的,它所放出的光也不可能从黑纸里跑出,他又用黑纸一层一层地把克鲁克斯管紧紧地给包上。屋子黑漆漆的,阴极射线的蓝白色光线,完全被黑纸挡住。可是离放电器两米远的荧光板却依然发着光。停止供电时,荧光板上的光线就消失了。“一定是有一种肉眼看不到的东西从管里跑出来,使荧光屏发光!” 伦琴心里无比激动,又用十张黑纸,再仔细包好,再通电,断电,荧光屏也相应的亮暗。伦琴开始试验不同的物品,放在管与屏之间。木头、书本,铝板、玻璃等都不影响,直到当放入铅板时,屏上才没有亮光。在这个周末,伦琴一遍遍地重复进行着实验,并做了一系列记录,由于是未知的射线,他将之命名为 X 射线。 在之后的七周时间里他对谁也没有说,包括他的妻子,几乎都在实验室度过,甚至把床都搬到了这里,同事和学生都很奇怪,伦琴教授怎么了?除了他已完全进入研究的状态外,主要的原因在于严谨认真的伦琴要检验自己的结论,绝不贸然公布不成熟的实验结论。 这一天, 12 月 22 日,北半球最短的一天即将过去。伦琴夫人也有些生气,自己前往丈夫的实验室一探究竟。推开门,伦琴见到略带 怒气的妻子有些吃惊,连忙说:“亲爱的,来看看我的伟大发现!” 之后,他把妻子的手放在一张柯达底片前面,拍摄了人类历史上第一张身体的 X 光照片。伦琴在显影后的照相底片上用钢笔写上了 1895 年 12 月 22 日。那枚左手无名指上的金戒指由于对 x 光的吸收而变成黑色。妻子微笑了,并放弃圣诞节继续着支持他的工作, 12 月 27 日伦琴写成了第一篇关于 X 射线的报告《关于一种新的射线》,他 把 历时七个星期的发现,写成了 16 个专题。 一经公布,世界轰动。荣誉如潮水般涌来。 伦琴拒绝将射线以其名字命名,拒绝贵族头衔,并且将后来获得的首届诺贝尔物理奖奖金捐给了维尔茨堡大学。并且当德国 A · E · G 电气公司来与伦琴商量购买他的专利,他重申他的态度 : 他并没有发明,只是发现, x 射线属于全人类。在其后的短短几年,伦琴照相以及 X 射线疗法飞速发展,推动了现代医学发展,为人类造福。 荣誉的背后总有嫉妒、诋毁与无知:“最初发现 X 射线的人应该是克鲁克斯”, “应该是古德斯皮都”,甚至心怀恶意的人还说是伦琴窃取了助手的成果,而一些美国议员正呼吁用法律来禁止这种射线的使用。伦琴不为干扰也无暇回应,继续坚持研究。 不喜公众场合的他甚至在诺贝尔颁奖典礼上都没有发言,只是在慕尼黑大学庆祝会上曾这样简单地说: “对科学家来说,最大的快乐是: 无论对什么问题,都不拘泥于偏见, 自由自在地继续进行研究。对研究者来说,没有比问题得到解答时的心满意 足更令他喜悦了。无论外界怎样承认或夸奖都比不上它。”
21949 次阅读|37 个评论
[转载]11月8日---x射线发现115周年纪念日
毛宁波 2010-11-8 09:35
1895年11月8日,是德国科学家伦琴开始进行阴极射线研究的日子。1901年伦琴因为发现x射线及其应用获得诺贝尔物理学奖。今天是X射线发现115周年纪念日,Google的logo也闪烁着X射线呢。 2010-11-08日google的主页 有关x射线的详细资料见维基百科网站: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-ray X-ray From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation , search This article is about the form of radiation. For the method of imaging, see Radiography . For imaging in a medical context, see Radiology . For other uses, see X-ray (disambiguation) . Not to be confused with X-wave . X-rays are part of the electromagnetic spectrum . X-radiation (composed of X-rays ) is a form of electromagnetic radiation . X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers , corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz (3 10 16 Hz to 3 10 19 Hz) and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV . They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma rays . In many languages, X-radiation is called Rntgen radiation , after Wilhelm Conrad Rntgen , who is generally credited as their discoverer, and who had named them X-rays to signify an unknown type of radiation. :12 Correct spelling of X-ray(s) in the English language includes the variants x-ray(s) and X ray(s). XRAY is used as a communications code word for the letter x. X-rays from about 0.12 to 12 keV (10 to 0.10nm wavelength) are classified as soft X-rays, and from about 12 to 120 keV (0.10 to 0.01nm wavelength) as hard X-rays, due to their penetrating abilities. Hard X-rays can penetrate solid objects, and their most common use is to take images of the inside of objects in diagnostic radiography and crystallography . As a result, the term X-ray is metonymically used to refer to a radiographic image produced using this method, in addition to the method itself. By contrast, soft X-rays can hardly be said to penetrate matter at all; for instance, the attenuation length of 600 eV (~ 2nm) x-rays in water is less than 1 micrometer. X-rays are a form of ionizing radiation , and exposure to them can be a health hazard. The distinction between X-rays and gamma rays has changed in recent decades. Originally, the electromagnetic radiation emitted by X-ray tubes had a longer wavelength than the radiation emitted by radioactive nuclei (gamma rays). Older literature distinguished between X- and gamma radiation on the basis of wavelength, with radiation shorter than some arbitrary wavelength, such as 10 11 m, defined as gamma rays. However, as shorter wavelength continuous spectrum X-ray sources such as linear accelerators and longer wavelength gamma ray emitters were discovered, the wavelength bands largely overlapped. The two types of radiation are now usually distinguished by their origin: X-rays are emitted by electrons outside the nucleus, while gamma rays are emitted by the nucleus . Contents 1 Units of measure and exposure 2 Sources 3 Detectors 3.1 Photographic plate 3.2 Photostimulable phosphors (PSPs) 3.3 Geiger counter 3.4 Scintillators 3.5 Image intensification 3.6 Direct semiconductor detectors 3.7 Scintillator plus semiconductor detectors (indirect detection) 3.8 Visibility to the human eye 4 Medical uses 4.1 Risks of medical diagnostic X-rays 5 Shielding against X-Rays 6 Other uses 7 History 7.1 Discovery 7.1.1 Johann Hittorf 7.1.2 Ivan Pulyui 7.1.3 Nikola Tesla 7.1.4 Fernando Sanford 7.1.5 Philipp Lenard 7.1.6 Wilhelm Rntgen 7.1.7 Thomas Edison 7.1.8 Frank Austin and the Frost brothers 7.2 The 20th century and beyond 8 See also 9 Notes 10 References 11 External links // Units of measure and exposure The measure of X-rays ionizing ability is called the exposure: The coulomb per kilogram (C/kg) is the SI unit of ionizing radiation exposure, and it is the amount of radiation required to create one coulomb of charge of each polarity in one kilogram of matter. The roentgen (R) is an obsolete traditional unit of exposure, which represented the amount of radiation required to create one electrostatic unit of charge of each polarity in one cubic centimeter of dry air. 1.00 roentgen = 2.5810 4 C/kg However, the effect of ionizing radiation on matter (especially living tissue) is more closely related to the amount of energy deposited into them rather than the charge generated . This measure of energy absorbed is called the absorbed dose : The gray (Gy), which has units of (Joules/kilogram), is the SI unit of absorbed dose , and it is the amount of radiation required to deposit one joule of energy in one kilogram of any kind of matter. The rad is the (obsolete) corresponding traditional unit, equal to 10 millijoules of energy deposited per kilogram. 100 rad = 1.00 gray. The equivalent dose is the measure of the biological effect of radiation on human tissue. For X-rays it is equal to the absorbed dose . The sievert (Sv) is the SI unit of equivalent dose, which for X-rays is numerically equal to the gray (Gy). The Roentgen equivalent man (rem) is the traditional unit of equivalent dose. For X-rays it is equal to the rad or 10 millijoules of energy deposited per kilogram. 1.00 Sv = 100 rem. Medical X-rays are a significant source of manmade radiation exposure, accounting for 58% in the United States in 1987, but since most radiation exposure is natural (82%), medical X-rays only account for 10% of total American radiation exposure. Reported dosage due to dental X-rays seems to vary significantly. Depending on the source, a typical dental X-ray of a human results in an exposure of perhaps, 3, 40, 300, or as many as 900 mrems (30 to 9,000 Sv ). Sources X-ray K-series spectral line wavelengths (nm) for some common target materials. Target K? K? K? K? Fe 0.17566 0.17442 0.193604 0.193998 Co 0.162079 0.160891 0.178897 0.179285 Ni 0.15001 0.14886 0.165791 0.166175 Cu 0.139222 0.138109 0.154056 0.154439 Zr 0.070173 0.068993 0.078593 0.079015 Mo 0.063229 0.062099 0.070930 0.071359 Hand mit Ringen (Hand with Rings): print of Wilhelm Rntgen's first medical X-ray, of his wife's hand, taken on 22 December 1895 and presented to Professor Ludwig Zehnder of the Physik Institut, University of Freiburg , on 1 January 1896 X-rays are generated by an X-ray tube , a vacuum tube that uses a high voltage to accelerate the electrons released by a hot cathode to a high velocity. The high velocity electrons collide with a metal target, the anode , creating the X-rays. In medical X-ray tubes the target is usually tungsten or a more crack-resistant alloy of rhenium (5%) and tungsten (95%), but sometimes molybdenum for more specialized applications, such as when soft X-rays are needed as in mammography. In crystallography, a copper target is most common, with cobalt often being used when fluorescence from iron content in the sample might otherwise present a problem. The maximum energy of the produced X-ray photon is limited by the energy of the incident electron, which is equal to the voltage on the tube, so an 80kV tube cannot create X-rays with an energy greater than 80keV. When the electrons hit the target, X-rays are created by two different atomic processes: X-ray fluorescence : If the electron has enough energy it can knock an orbital electron out of the inner electron shell of a metal atom, and as a result electrons from higher energy levels then fill up the vacancy and X-ray photons are emitted. This process produces an emission spectrum of X-rays at a few discrete frequencies, sometimes referred to as the spectral lines. The spectral lines generated depend on the target (anode) element used and thus are called characteristic lines. Usually these are transitions from upper shells into K shell (called K lines ), into L shell (called L lines) and so on. Bremsstrahlung : This is radiation given off by the electrons as they are scattered by the strong electric field near the high- Z ( proton number) nuclei. These X-rays have a continuous spectrum . The intensity of the X-rays increases linearly with decreasing frequency, from zero at the energy of the incident electrons, the voltage on the X-ray tube . So the resulting output of a tube consists of a continuous bremsstrahlung spectrum falling off to zero at the tube voltage, plus several spikes at the characteristic lines. The voltages used in diagnostic X-ray tubes, and thus the highest energies of the X-rays, range from roughly 20 to 150 kV. Both of these X-ray production processes are very inefficient, with a production efficiency of only about one percent, and hence, to produce a usable flux of X-rays, most of the electric power consumed by the tube is released as waste heat. The X-ray tube must be designed to dissipate this excess heat. In medical diagnostic applications, the low energy (soft) X-rays are unwanted, since they are totally absorbed by the body, increasing the dose. Hence, a thin metal sheet, often of aluminum, called an X-ray filter , is usually placed over the window of the X-ray tube, filtering out the low energy components in the spectrum. This is called hardening the beam. Radiographs obtained using X-rays can be used to identify a wide spectrum of pathologies. Because the body structures being imaged in medical applications are large compared to the wavelength of the X-rays, the X-rays can be analyzed as particles rather than waves. (This is in contrast to X-ray crystallography , where their wave-like nature is more important because the wavelength is comparable to the sizes of the structures being imaged.) To make an X-ray image of human or animal bones, short X-ray pulses illuminate the body or limb, with radiographic film placed behind it. Any bones that are present absorb most of the X-ray photons by photoelectric processes. This is because bones have a higher electron density than soft tissues. Note that bones contain a high percentage of calcium (20 electrons per atom), potassium (19 electrons per atom) magnesium (12 electrons per atom), and phosphorus (15 electrons per atom). The X-rays that pass through the flesh leave a latent image in the photographic film . When the film is developed, the parts of the image corresponding to higher X-ray exposure are dark, leaving a white shadow of bones on the film. To generate an image of the cardiovascular system, including the arteries and veins ( angiography ) an initial image is taken of the anatomical region of interest. A second image is then taken of the same region after iodinated contrast material has been injected into the blood vessels within this area. These two images are then digitally subtracted, leaving an image of only the iodinated contrast outlining the blood vessels. The radiologist or surgeon then compares the image obtained to normal anatomical images to determine if there is any damage or blockage of the vessel. A specialized source of X-rays which is becoming widely used in research is synchrotron radiation , which is generated by particle accelerators . Its unique features are X-ray outputs many orders of magnitude greater than those of X-ray tubes, wide X-ray spectra, excellent collimation , and linear polarization . Detectors Photographic plate The detection of X-rays is based on various methods. The most commonly known methods are photographic plates , photographic film in cassettes, and rare earth screens. Regardless of what is catching the image, they are all categorized as Image Receptors (IR). Before the advent of the digital computer and before the invention of digital imaging, photographic plates were used to produce most radiographic images. The images were produced right on the glass plates. Photographic film largely replaced these plates, and it was used in X-ray laboratories to produce medical images. In more recent years, computerized and digital radiography has been replacing photographic film in medical and dental applications, though film technology remains in widespread use in industrial radiography processes (e.g. to inspect welded seams). Photographic plates are mostly things of history, and their replacement, the intensifying screen, is also fading into history. The metal silver (formerly necessary to the radiographic photographic industries) is a non-renewable resource. Thus it is beneficial that this is now being replaced by digital (DR) and computed (CR) technology. Where photographic films required wet processing facilities, these new technologies do not. The digital archiving of images utilizing these new technologies also saves storage space. Since photographic plates are sensitive to X-rays, they provide a means of recording the image, but they also required much X-ray exposure (to the patient), hence intensifying screens were devised. They allow a lower dose to the patient, because the screens take the X-ray information and intensify it so that it can be recorded on film positioned next to the intensifying screen. The part of the patient to be X-rayed is placed between the X-ray source and the image receptor to produce a shadow of the internal structure of that particular part of the body. X-rays are partially blocked (attenuated) by dense tissues such as bone, and pass more easily through soft tissues. Areas where the X-rays strike darken when developed, causing bones to appear lighter than the surrounding soft tissue. Contrast compounds containing barium or iodine , which are radiopaque , can be ingested in the gastrointestinal tract (barium) or injected in the artery or veins to highlight these vessels. The contrast compounds have high atomic numbered elements in them that (like bone) essentially block the X-rays and hence the once hollow organ or vessel can be more readily seen. In the pursuit of a non-toxic contrast material, many types of high atomic number elements were evaluated. For example, the first time the forefathers used contrast it was chalk, and was used on a cadaver's vessels. Unfortunately, some elements chosen proved to be harmful for example, thorium was once used as a contrast medium ( Thorotrast ) which turned out to be toxic in some cases (causing injury and occasionally death from the effects of thorium poisoning). Modern contrast material has improved, and while there is no way to determine who may have a sensitivity to the contrast, the incidence of allergic-type reactions are low. (The risk is comparable to that associated with penicillin. ) Photostimulable phosphors (PSPs) An increasingly common method is the use of photostimulated luminescence (PSL), pioneered by Fuji in the 1980s. In modern hospitals a photostimulable phosphor plate (PSP plate) is used in place of the photographic plate. After the plate is X-rayed, excited electrons in the phosphor material remain trapped in colour centres in the crystal lattice until stimulated by a laser beam passed over the plate surface. The light given off during laser stimulation is collected by a photomultiplier tube and the resulting signal is converted into a digital image by computer technology, which gives this process its common name, computed radiography (also referred to as digital radiography ). The PSP plate can be reused, and existing X-ray equipment requires no modification to use them. Geiger counter Initially, most common detection methods were based on the ionization of gases , as in the Geiger-Mller counter : a sealed volume, usually a cylinder, with a mica, polymer or thin metal window contains a gas, a cylindrical cathode and a wire anode ; a high voltage is applied between the cathode and the anode. When an X-ray photon enters the cylinder, it ionizes the gas and forms ions and electrons. Electrons accelerate toward the anode, in the process causing further ionization along their trajectory. This process, known as a Townsend avalanche , is detected as a sudden current, called a count or event. In order to gain energy spectrum information, a diffracting crystal may be used to first separate the different photons. The method is called wavelength dispersive X-ray spectroscopy ( WDX or WDS). Position-sensitive detectors are often used in conjunction with dispersive elements. Other detection equipment that is inherently energy-resolving may be used, such as the aforementioned proportional counters . In either case, use of suitable pulse-processing (MCA) equipment allows digital spectra to be created for later analysis. For many applications, counters are not sealed but are constantly fed with purified gas, thus reducing problems of contamination or gas aging. These are called flow counters. Scintillators Some materials such as sodium iodide (NaI) can convert an X-ray photon to a visible photon; an electronic detector can be built by adding a photomultiplier . These detectors are called scintillators , filmscreens or scintillation counters . The main advantage of using these is that an adequate image can be obtained while subjecting the patient to a much lower dose of X-rays. Image intensification X-ray during cholecystectomy X-rays are also used in real-time procedures such as angiography or contrast studies of the hollow organs (e.g. barium enema of the small or large intestine) using fluoroscopy acquired using an X-ray image intensifier . Angioplasty , medical interventions of the arterial system, rely heavily on X-ray-sensitive contrast to identify potentially treatable lesions. Direct semiconductor detectors Since the 1970s, new semiconductor detectors have been developed ( silicon or germanium doped with lithium , Si(Li) or Ge(Li)). X-ray photons are converted to electron-hole pairs in the semiconductor and are collected to detect the X-rays. When the temperature is low enough (the detector is cooled by Peltier effect or even cooler liquid nitrogen ), it is possible to directly determine the X-ray energy spectrum; this method is called energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX or EDS); it is often used in small X-ray fluorescence spectrometers . These detectors are sometimes called solid state detectors. Detectors based on cadmium telluride ( Cd Te) and its alloy with zinc , cadmium zinc telluride , have an increased sensitivity, which allows lower doses of X-rays to be used. Practical application in medical imaging started in the 1990s. Currently amorphous selenium is used in commercial large area flat panel X-ray detectors for mammography and chest radiography . Current research and development is focused around pixel detectors, such as CERN 's energy resolving Medipix detector. Note: A standard semiconductor diode , such as a 1N4007, will produce a small amount of current when placed in an X-ray beam. A test device once used by Medical Imaging Service personnel was a small project box that contained several diodes of this type in series , which could be connected to an oscilloscope as a quick diagnostic. Silicon drift detectors (SDDs), produced by conventional semiconductor fabrication , now provide a cost-effective and high resolving power radiation measurement. Unlike conventional X-ray detectors, such as Si(Li)s, they do not need to be cooled with liquid nitrogen. Scintillator plus semiconductor detectors (indirect detection) With the advent of large semiconductor array detectors it has become possible to design detector systems using a scintillator screen to convert from X-rays to visible light which is then converted to electrical signals in an array detector. Indirect Flat Panel Detectors (FPDs) are in widespread use today in medical, dental, veterinary and industrial applications. The array technology is a variant on the amorphous silicon TFT arrays used in many flat panel displays , like the ones in computer laptops. The array consists of a sheet of glass covered with a thin layer of silicon that is in an amorphous or disordered state. At a microscopic scale, the silicon has been imprinted with millions of transistors arranged in a highly ordered array, like the grid on a sheet of graph paper. Each of these thin film transistors (TFTs) is attached to a light-absorbing photodiode making up an individual pixel (picture element). Photons striking the photodiode are converted into two carriers of electrical charge , called electron-hole pairs. Since the number of charge carriers produced will vary with the intensity of incoming light photons, an electrical pattern is created that can be swiftly converted to a voltage and then a digital signal, which is interpreted by a computer to produce a digital image. Although silicon has outstanding electronic properties, it is not a particularly good absorber of X-ray photons. For this reason, X-rays first impinge upon scintillators made from e.g. gadolinium oxysulfide or caesium iodide . The scintillator absorbs the X-rays and converts them into visible light photons that then pass onto the photodiode array. Visibility to the human eye While generally considered invisible to the human eye, in special circumstances X-rays can be visible. Brandes, in an experiment a short time after Rntgen's landmark 1895 paper, reported after dark adaptation and placing his eye close to an X-ray tube, seeing a faint blue-gray glow which seemed to originate within the eye itself. Upon hearing this, Rntgen reviewed his record books and found he too had seen the effect. When placing an X-ray tube on the opposite side of a wooden door Rntgen had noted the same blue glow, seeming to emanate from the eye itself, but thought his observations to be spurious because he only saw the effect when he used one type of tube. Later he realized that the tube which had created the effect was the only one powerful enough to make the glow plainly visible and the experiment was thereafter readily repeatable. The knowledge that X-rays are actually faintly visible to the dark-adapted naked eye has largely been forgotten today; this is probably due to the desire not to repeat what would now be seen as a recklessly dangerous and potentially harmful experiment with ionizing radiation . It is not known what exact mechanism in the eye produces the visibility: it could be due to conventional detection (excitation of rhodopsin molecules in the retina), direct excitation of retinal nerve cells, or secondary detection via, for instance, X-ray induction of phosphorescence in the eyeball with conventional retinal detection of the secondarily produced visible light. Though X-rays are otherwise invisible it is possible to see the ionization of the air molecules if the intensity of the X-ray beam is high enough. The beamline from the wiggler at the ID11 at ESRF is one example of such high intensity. Medical uses X-ray image of the paranasal sinuses , lateral projection Head CT scan (transverse plane) slice a modern application of X-rays Since Rntgen's discovery that X-rays can identify bone structures, X-rays have been developed for their use in medical imaging , the first use was less than a month after his seminal paper on the subject. Radiology is a specialized field of medicine . Radiologists employ radiography and other techniques for diagnostic imaging . This is probably the most common use of X-ray technology. X-rays are especially useful in the detection of pathology of the skeletal system , but are also useful for detecting some disease processes in soft tissue . Some notable examples are the very common chest X-ray , which can be used to identify lung diseases such as pneumonia , lung cancer or pulmonary edema , and the abdominal X-ray , which can detect intestinal obstruction, free air (from visceral perforations) and free fluid (in ascites ). X-rays may also be used to detect pathology such as gallstones (which are rarely radiopaque ) or kidney stones which are often (but not always) visible. Traditional plain X-rays are less useful in the imaging of soft tissues such as the brain or muscle . Imaging alternatives for soft tissues are computed axial tomography (CAT or CT scanning), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or ultrasound . The latter two do not subject the individual to ionizing radiation. In addition to plain X-rays and CT scans, physicians use fluoroscopy as an X-ray test methodology. This method often uses administration of a medical contrast material ( intravenously , orally or via enema ). Examples include cardiac catheterization (to examine for coronary artery blockages) and Barium swallow (to examine for esophageal disorders. Since 2005, X-rays are listed as a carcinogen by the U.S. government. The use of X-rays as a treatment is known as radiotherapy and is largely used for the management (including palliation ) of cancer ; it requires higher radiation energies than for imaging alone. Risks of medical diagnostic X-rays X-Ray of a pregnant woman X-rays are a relatively safe method of investigation and the radiation exposure is relatively low, depending upon the study. Experimental and epidemiological data, however, do not support the proposition that there is a threshold dose of radiation below which there is no increased risk of cancer. Diagnostic X-rays account for 14% of the total annual radiation exposure from man-made and natural sources worldwide. It is estimated that the additional radiation will increase a person's cumulative risk of getting cancer by age 75 by 0.61.8%. The amount of absorbed radiation depends upon the type of X-ray test and the body part involved. CT and fluoroscopy entail higher doses of radiation than do plain X-rays. To place the increased risk in perspective, a plain chest X-ray or dental X-ray will expose a person to the same amount from background radiation that we are exposed to (depending upon location) everyday over 10 days. Each such X-ray would add less than 1 per 1,000,000 to the lifetime cancer risk. An abdominal or chest CT would be the equivalent to 23 years of background radiation, increasing the lifetime cancer risk between 1 per 10,000 and 1 per 1,000. These numbers are very small compared to the roughly 40% chance of developing any cancer during our lifetime. Fathers exposed to diagnostic x-rays are more likely to have infants who contract leukemia, especially if exposure is closer to conception or includes two or more X-rays of the lower gastrointestinal (GI) tract or lower abdomen. The risk of radiation is greater to unborn babies, so in pregnant patients, the benefits of the investigation (X-ray) should be balanced with the potential hazards to the unborn fetus. In the US, there are an estimated 62,000,000 CT scans performed annually, including more than 4,000,000 on children. Avoiding unnecessary X-rays (especially CT scans) will reduce radiation dose and any associated cancer risk. Shielding against X-Rays Lead is the most common shield against X-rays because of its high density (11340kg/m 3 ), stopping power, ease of installation and low cost. The maximum range of a high-energy photon such as an X-ray in matter is infinite; at every point in the matter traversed by the photon, there is a probability of interaction. Thus there is a very small probability of no interaction over very large distances. The shielding of photon beam is therefore exponential (with an attenuation length being close to the radiation length of the material); doubling the thickness of shielding will square the shielding effect. The following table shows the recommended thickness of lead shielding in function of X-ray energy, from the Recommendations by the Second International Congress of Radiology. X-Rays generated by peak voltages not exceeding Minimum thickness of Lead 75 kV 1.0mm 100 kV 1.5mm 125 kV 2.0mm 150 kV 2.5mm 175 kV 3.0mm 200 kV 4.0mm 225 kV 5.0mm 300 kV 9.0mm 400 kV 15.0mm 500 kV 22.0mm 600 kV 34.0mm 900 kV 51.0mm Other uses Each dot, called a reflection, in this diffraction pattern forms from the constructive interference of scattered X-rays passing through a crystal. The data can be used to determine the crystalline structure. Other notable uses of X-rays include X-ray crystallography in which the pattern produced by the diffraction of X-rays through the closely spaced lattice of atoms in a crystal is recorded and then analysed to reveal the nature of that lattice. A related technique, fiber diffraction , was used by Rosalind Franklin to discover the double helical structure of DNA . X-ray astronomy , which is an observational branch of astronomy , which deals with the study of X-ray emission from celestial objects. X-ray microscopic analysis , which uses electromagnetic radiation in the soft X-ray band to produce images of very small objects. X-ray fluorescence , a technique in which X-rays are generated within a specimen and detected. The outgoing energy of the X-ray can be used to identify the composition of the sample. Industrial radiography uses X-rays for inspection of industrial parts, particularly welds . Paintings are often X-rayed to reveal the underdrawing and pentimenti or alterations in the course of painting, or by later restorers. Many pigments such as lead white show well in X-ray photographs. Airport security luggage scanners use X-rays for inspecting the interior of luggage for security threats before loading on aircraft. Border security truck scanners use X-rays for inspecting the interior of trucks for at country borders. X-ray fine art photography Roentgen Stereophotogrammetry is used to track movement of bones based on the implantation of markers X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy is a chemical analysis technique relying on the photoelectric effect , usually employed in surface science . X-ray fine art photography of needlefish by Peter Dazeley History Discovery German physicist Wilhelm Rntgen is usually credited as the discoverer of X-rays because he was the first to systematically study them, though he is not the first to have observed their effects. He is also the one who gave them the name X-rays, though many referred to these as Rntgen rays for several decades after their discovery and to this day in some languages, including Rntgen's native German , and Swedish . X-rays were found emanating from Crookes tubes , experimental discharge tubes invented around 1875, by scientists investigating the cathode rays , that is energetic electron beams, that were first created in the tubes. Crookes tubes created free electrons by ionization of the residual air in the tube by a high DC voltage of anywhere between a few kilovolts and 100 kV. This voltage accelerated the electrons coming from the cathode to a high enough velocity that they created X-rays when they struck the anode or the glass wall of the tube. Many of the early Crookes tubes undoubtedly radiated X-rays, because early researchers noticed effects that were attributable to them, as detailed below. Wilhelm Rntgen was the first to systematically study them, in 1895. The important early researchers in X-rays were Ivan Pulyui , William Crookes , Johann Wilhelm Hittorf , Eugen Goldstein , Heinrich Hertz , Philipp Lenard , Hermann von Helmholtz , Nikola Tesla , Thomas Edison , Charles Glover Barkla , Max von Laue , and Wilhelm Conrad Rntgen . Johann Hittorf German physicist Johann Hittorf (18241914), a co-inventor and early researcher of the Crookes tube, found when he placed unexposed photographic plates near the tube, that some of them were flawed by shadows, though he did not investigate this effect. Ivan Pulyui In 1877 Ukrainian -born Pulyui , a lecturer in experimental physics at the University of Vienna , constructed various designs of vacuum discharge tube to investigate their properties. He continued his investigations when appointed professor at the Prague Polytechnic and in 1886 he found that sealed photographic plates became dark when exposed to the emanations from the tubes. Early in 1896, just a few weeks after Rntgen published his first X-ray photograph, Pulyui published high-quality X-ray images in journals in Paris and London. Although Pulyui had studied with Rntgen at the University of Strasbourg in the years 187375, his biographer Gaida (1997) asserts that his subsequent research was conducted independently. Nikola Tesla In April 1887, Nikola Tesla began to investigate X-rays using high voltages and tubes of his own design, as well as Crookes tubes . From his technical publications, it is indicated that he invented and developed a special single-electrode X-ray tube, which differed from other X-ray tubes in having no target electrode. The principle behind Tesla's device is called the Bremsstrahlung process, in which a high-energy secondary X-ray emission is produced when charged particles (such as electrons) pass through matter. By 1892, Tesla performed several such experiments, but he did not categorize the emissions as what were later called X-rays. Tesla generalized the phenomenon as radiant energy of invisible kinds. Tesla stated the facts of his methods concerning various experiments in his 1897 X-ray lecture before the New York Academy of Sciences . Also in this lecture, Tesla stated the method of construction and safe operation of X-ray equipment. His X-ray experimentation by vacuum high field emissions also led him to alert the scientific community to the biological hazards associated with X-ray exposure. Fernando Sanford X-rays were generated and detected by Fernando Sanford (18541948), the foundation Professor of Physics at Stanford University , in 1891. From 1886 to 1888 he had studied in the Hermann Helmholtz laboratory in Berlin, where he became familiar with the cathode rays generated in vacuum tubes when a voltage was applied across separate electrodes, as previously studied by Heinrich Hertz and Philipp Lenard . His letter of January 6, 1893 (describing his discovery as electric photography) to The Physical Review was duly published and an article entitled Without Lens or Light, Photographs Taken With Plate and Object in Darkness appeared in the San Francisco Examiner . Philipp Lenard Philipp Lenard , a student of Heinrich Hertz, wanted to see whether cathode rays could pass out of the Crookes tube into the air. He built a Crookes tube (later called a Lenard tube) with a window in the end made of thin aluminum, facing the cathode so the cathode rays would strike it. He found that something came through, that would expose photographic plates and cause fluorescence. He measured the penetrating power of these rays through various materials. It has been suggested that at least some of these Lenard rays were actually X-rays. Hermann von Helmholtz formulated mathematical equations for X-rays. He postulated a dispersion theory before Rntgen made his discovery and announcement. It was formed on the basis of the electromagnetic theory of light. However, he did not work with actual X-rays. Wilhelm Rntgen On November 8, 1895, German physics professor Wilhelm Rntgen stumbled on X-rays while experimenting with Lenard and Crookes tubes and began studying them. He wrote an initial report On a new kind of ray: A preliminary communication and on December 28, 1895 submitted it to the Wrzburg 's Physical-Medical Society journal. This was the first paper written on X-rays. Rntgen referred to the radiation as X, to indicate that it was an unknown type of radiation. The name stuck, although (over Rntgen's great objections) many of his colleagues suggested calling them Rntgen rays . They are still referred to as such in many languages, including German and Russian. Rntgen received the first Nobel Prize in Physics for his discovery. There are conflicting accounts of his discovery because Rntgen had his lab notes burned after his death, but this is a likely reconstruction by his biographers: Rntgen was investigating cathode rays with a fluorescent screen painted with barium platinocyanide and a Crookes tube which he had wrapped in black cardboard so the visible light from the tube wouldn't interfere. He noticed a faint green glow from the screen, about 1 meter away. He realized some invisible rays coming from the tube were passing through the cardboard to make the screen glow. He found they could also pass through books and papers on his desk. Rntgen threw himself into investigating these unknown rays systematically. Two months after his initial discovery, he published his paper. Rntgen discovered its medical use when he saw a picture of his wife's hand on a photographic plate formed due to X-rays. His wife's hand's photograph was the first ever photograph of a human body part using X-rays. Thomas Edison Diagram of a water cooled X-ray tube (simplified/outdated) In 1895, Thomas Edison investigated materials' ability to fluoresce when exposed to X-rays, and found that calcium tungstate was the most effective substance. Around March 1896, the fluoroscope he developed became the standard for medical X-ray examinations. Nevertheless, Edison dropped X-ray research around 1903 after the death of Clarence Madison Dally , one of his glassblowers. Dally had a habit of testing X-ray tubes on his hands, and acquired a cancer in them so tenacious that both arms were amputated in a futile attempt to save his life. At the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York, an assassin shot President William McKinley twice at close range with a .32 caliber revolver. The first bullet was removed but the second remained lodged somewhere in his stomach. McKinley survived for some time and requested that Thomas Edison rush an X-ray machine to Buffalo to find the stray bullet. It arrived but wasn't used ... McKinley died of septic shock due to bacterial infection. Frank Austin and the Frost brothers The first medical X-ray made in the United States was obtained using a discharge tube of Pulyui's design. In January 1896, on reading of Rntgen's discovery, Frank Austin of Dartmouth College tested all of the discharge tubes in the physics laboratory and found that only the Pulyui tube produced X-rays. This was a result of Pulyui's inclusion of an oblique target of mica , used for holding samples of fluorescent material, within the tube. On 3 February 1896 Gilman Frost, professor of medicine at the college, and his brother Edwin Frost, professor of physics, exposed the wrist of Eddie McCarthy, whom Edwin had treated some weeks earlier for a fracture, to the X-rays and collected the resulting image of the broken bone on gelatin photographic plates obtained from Howard Langill, a local photographer also interested in Rntgen's work. The 20th century and beyond A male technician taking an x-ray of a female patient in 1940. This image was used to argue that exposure to radiation during the x-ray procedure would be a myth . The many applications of X-rays immediately generated enormous interest. Workshops began making specialized versions of Crookes tubes for generating X-rays, and these first generation cold cathode or Crookes X-ray tubes were used until about 1920. Crookes tubes were unreliable. They had to contain a small quantity of gas (invariably air) as a current will not flow in such a tube if they are fully evacuated. However as time passed the X-rays caused the glass to absorb the gas, causing the tube to generate harder X-rays until it soon stopped operating. Larger and more frequently used tubes were provided with devices for restoring the air, known as softeners. These often took the form of a small side tube which contained a small piece of mica: a substance that traps comparatively large quantities of air within its structure. A small electrical heater heated the mica and caused it to release a small amount of air, thus restoring the tube's efficiency. However the mica had a limited life and the restore process was consequently difficult to control. In 1904, John Ambrose Fleming invented the thermionic diode valve (vacuum tube). This used a hot cathode which permitted current to flow in a vacuum. This idea was quickly applied to X-ray tubes, and heated cathode X-ray tubes, called Coolidge tubes, replaced the troublesome cold cathode tubes by about 1920. Two years later, physicist Charles Barkla discovered that X-rays could be scattered by gases, and that each element had a characteristic X-ray. He won the 1917 Nobel Prize in Physics for this discovery. Max von Laue , Paul Knipping and Walter Friedrich observed for the first time the diffraction of X-rays by crystals in 1912. This discovery, along with the early works of Paul Peter Ewald , William Henry Bragg and William Lawrence Bragg gave birth to the field of X-ray crystallography . The Coolidge tube was invented the following year by William D. Coolidge which permitted continuous production of X-rays; this type of tube is still in use today. ROSAT image of X-ray fluorescence of, and occultation of the X-ray background by, the Moon The use of X-rays for medical purposes (to develop into the field of radiation therapy ) was pioneered by Major John Hall-Edwards in Birmingham , England . In 1908, he had to have his left arm amputated owing to the spread of X-ray dermatitis . The X-ray microscope was invented in the 1950s. The Chandra X-ray Observatory , launched on July 23, 1999, has been allowing the exploration of the very violent processes in the universe which produce X-rays. Unlike visible light, which is a relatively stable view of the universe, the X-ray universe is unstable, it features stars being torn apart by black holes , galactic collisions, and novas, neutron stars that build up layers of plasma that then explode into space. An X-ray laser device was proposed as part of the Reagan Administration 's Strategic Defense Initiative in the 1980s, but the first and only test of the device (a sort of laser blaster, or death ray , powered by a thermonuclear explosion) gave inconclusive results. For technical and political reasons, the overall project (including the X-ray laser) was de-funded (though was later revived by the second Bush Administration as National Missile Defense using different technologies). See also Backscatter X-ray detective quantum efficiency Fluoroscopy Geiger counter High energy X-rays N-ray Neutron radiation Radiography Radiologic technologist Radiology Resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) Small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) X-ray absorption spectroscopy X-ray astronomy X-ray crystallography X-Ray filters X-ray generation X-ray machine X-ray marker X-ray microscope X-ray nanoprobe X-ray optics X-ray vision X-ray welding Notes ^ Novelline, Robert. Squire's Fundamentals of Radiology . Harvard University Press. 5th edition. 1997. ISBN 0674833392 . ^ Oxford English Dictionary http://www.oed.com ^ Merriam-Webster Dictionary http://www.merriam-webster.com/ ^ http://physics.nist.gov/cgi-bin/ffast/ffast.pl?Formula=H2Ogtype=5range=Slower=0.300upper=2.00density=1.00 ^ a b Dendy, P. P.; B. Heaton (1999). Physics for Diagnostic Radiology . USA: CRC Press. p.12. ISBN 0750305916 . http://books.google.com/?id=1BTQvsQIs4wCpg=PA12 . ^ Charles Hodgman, Ed. (1961). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 44th Ed. . USA: Chemical Rubber Co.. p.2850. ^ Feynman, Richard; Robert Leighton, Matthew Sands (1963). The Feynman Lectures on Physics, Vol.1 . USA: Addison-Wesley. pp.25. ISBN 0201021161 . ^ L'Annunziata, Michael; Mohammad Baradei (2003). Handbook of Radioactivity Analysis . Academic Press. p.58. ISBN 0124366031 . http://books.google.com/?id=b519e10OPT0Cpg=PA58dq=gamma+x-ray . ^ Grupen, Claus; G. Cowan, S. D. Eidelman, T. Stroh (2005). Astroparticle Physics . Springer. p.109. ISBN 3540253122 . ^ US National Research Council (2006). Health Risks from Low Levels of Ionizing Radiation, BEIR 7 phase 2 . National Academies Press. pp.5, fig.PS2. ISBN 030909156X . http://books.google.com/?id=Uqj4OzBKlHwCpg=PA5 . , data credited to NCRP (US National Committee on Radiation Protection) 1987 ^ http://www.doctorspiller.com/Dental%20_X-Rays.htm and http://www.dentalgentlecare.com/x-ray_safety.htm ^ ^ ^ http://www.solarstorms.org/SWChapter8.html and http://www.powerattunements.com/x-ray.html ^ David R. Lide, ed (1994). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics 75th edition . CRC Press. pp.10227. ISBN 0-8493-0475-X . ^ Kevles, Bettyann Holtzmann (1996). Naked to the Bone Medical Imaging in the Twentieth Century . Camden, NJ: Rutgers University Press . pp.1922. ISBN 0813523583 . ^ Sample, Sharron (2007-03-27). X-Rays . The Electromagnetic Spectrum . NASA . http://science.hq.nasa.gov/kids/imagers/ems/xrays.html . Retrieved 2007-12-03 . ^ Whaites, Eric; Roderick Cawson (2002). Essentials of Dental Radiography and Radiology . Elsevier Health Sciences. pp.1520. ISBN 044307027X . http://books.google.com/?id=x6ThiifBPcsCdq=radiography+kilovolt+x-ray+machine . ^ Bushburg, Jerrold; Anthony Seibert, Edwin Leidholdt, John Boone (2002). The Essential Physics of Medical Imaging . USA: Lippincott Williams Wilkins. p.116. ISBN 0683301187 . http://books.google.com/?id=VZvqqaQ5DvoCpg=PT33dq=radiography+kerma+rem+Sievert . ^ Emilio, Burattini; Antonella Ballerna (1994). Preface . Biomedical Applications of Synchrotron Radiation: Proceedings of the 128th Course at the International School of Physics -Enrico Fermi- 1222 July 1994, Varenna, Italy . IOS Press. pp.xv. ISBN 9051992483 . http://books.google.com/books?id=VEld4080nekCpg=PA129dq=%22synchrotron+radiation%22+x-ray+advantagesas_brr=3 . Retrieved 2008-11-11 . ^ Martin, Dylan (2005). X-Ray Detection . University of Arizona Optical Sciences Center . http://www.u.arizona.edu/~dwmartin/ . Retrieved 2008-05-19 . ^ Frame, Paul. Wilhelm Rntgen and the Invisible Light . Tales from the Atomic Age . Oak Ridge Associated Universities . http://www.orau.org/ptp/articlesstories/invisiblelight.htm . Retrieved 2008-05-19 . ^ Eements of Modern X-Ray Physics . John Wiley Sons Ltd,. 2001. pp.4041. ISBN 0-471-49858-0 . ^ a b Spiegel, Peter K (1995). The first clinical X-ray made in America100 years . American Journal of Roentgenology (Leesburg, VA: American Roentgen Ray Society) 164 (1): 241243. ISSN: 1546-3141. PMID 7998549 . http://www.ajronline.org/cgi/reprint/164/1/241.pdf . ^ Herman, Gabor T. (2009). Fundamentals of Computerized Tomography: Image Reconstruction from Projections (2nd ed.). Springer. ISBN 978-1-85233-617-2 ^ 11th Report on Carcinogens . Ntp.niehs.nih.gov . http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/ntp/roc/toc11.html . Retrieved 2010-11-08 . ^ Upton, AC (2003). The state of the art in the 1990s: NCRP report No. 136 on the scientific bases for linearity in the dose-response relationship for ionizing radiation. Health Physics 85 : 1522. ^ United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation. New York. United Nations, 2000 ^ Berrington; de Gonzalez, A; Darby, S (2004). Risk of cancer from diagnostic X-rays: estimates for the UK and 14 other countries. Lancet 363 : 345351. ^ a b Brenner DJ and Hall EJ (2007). Computed tomography- an increasing source of radiation exposure. . New England Journal of Medicine 357 : 22772284 . http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMra072149 . ^ a b |Radiological Society of North America and American College of Radiology ^ |National Cancer Institute: Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) data ^ Xiao-Ou, Shu; et al (December 1994). Association of paternal diagnostic X-ray exposure with risk of infant leukemia . Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers Prevention (American Association for Cancer Research) 3 (8): 645. ISSN 1538-7755 . PMID 7881337 . http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7881337 . ^ Stewart, Alice M; Webb, J.W.; Giles, B.D.; Hewitt, D. (1956). Preliminary Communication: Malignant Disease in Childhood and Diagnostic Irradiation In-Utero. Lancet 271 (6940): 447. PMID 13358242 . ^ Pregnant Women and Radiation Exposure . eMedicine Live online medical consultation . Medscape . 28 December 2008 . http://emedicinelive.com/index.php/Women-s-Health/pregnant-women-and-radiation-exposure.html . Retrieved 2009-01-16 . ^ Donnelly, CF (2005). Reducing radiation dose associated with pediatric CT by decreasing unnecessary examinations. American Journal Roentgenology 32 : 242244. ^ Alchemy Art Lead Products Lead Shielding Sheet Lead For Shielding Applications . Retrieved 2008-12-07. ^ Kasai, Nobutami; Masao Kakudo (2005). X-ray diffraction by macromolecules . Tokyo: Kodansha. pp.2912. ISBN 3540253173 . ^ The history, development, and impact of computed imaging in neurological diagnosis and neurosurgery: CT, MRI, DTI: Nature Precedings DOI: 10.1038/npre.2009.3267.5 . ^ a b c Gaida, Roman; et al. (1997). Ukrainian Physicist Contributes to the Discovery of X-Rays . Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research . Archived from the original on 2008-05-28 . http://web.archive.org/web/20080528172938/http://www.meduniv.lviv.ua/oldsite/puluj.html . Retrieved 2008-04-06 . ^ Morton, William James, and Edwin W. Hammer, American Technical Book Co., 1896. Page 68. ^ U.S. Patent 514,170 , Incandescent Electric Light , and U.S. Patent 454,622 , System of Electric Lighting . ^ Cheney, Margaret, Tesla: Man Out of Time . Simon and Schuster, 2001. Page 77. ^ Thomas Commerford Martin (ed.), The Inventions, Researches and Writings of Nikola Tesla . Page 252 When it forms a drop, it will emit visible and invisible waves. . (ed., this material originally appeared in an article by Nikola Tesla in The Electrical Engineer of 1894.) ^ Nikola Tesla, The stream of Lenard and Roentgen and novel apparatus for their production, Apr. 6, 1897. ^ Cheney, Margaret, Robert Uth, and Jim Glenn, Tesla, master of lightning . Barnes Noble Publishing, 1999. Page 76. ISBN 0760710058 ^ Wyman, Thomas (Spring 2005). Fernando Sanford and the Discovery of X-rays. Imprint, from the Associates of the Stanford University Libraries : 515. ^ Thomson, Joseph J. (1903). The Discharge of Electricity through Gasses . USA: Charles Scribner's Sons. pp.182186 . http://books.google.com/?id=Ryw4AAAAMAAJpg=PA138 . ^ Thomson, 1903, p.185 ^ Wiedmann's Annalen , Vol. XLVIII ^ Stanton, Arthur (1896-01-23). Wilhelm Conrad Rntgen On a New Kind of Rays: translation of a paper read before the Wrzburg Physical and Medical Society, 1895 (Subscription-only access Scholar search ). Nature 53 (1369): 2746. doi : 10.1038/053274b0 . http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v53/n1369/pdf/053274b0.pdf see also pp. 268 and 276 of the same issue. ^ Peters, Peter (1995). W. C. Roentgen and the discovery of x-rays . Ch.1 Textbook of Radiology . Medcyclopedia.com, GE Healthcare . http://www.medcyclopaedia.com/library/radiology/chapter01.aspx . Retrieved 2008-05-05 . ^ National Library of Medicine. Could X-rays Have Saved President William McKinley? Visible Proofs: Forensic Views of the Body . http://www.nlm.nih.gov/visibleproofs/galleries/cases/mckinley.html ^ References NASA Goddard Space Flight centre introduction to X-rays. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to: X-ray Look up x-ray in Wiktionary , the free dictionary. Example Radiograph: Fractured Humerus A Photograph of an X-ray Machine X-ray Safety An X-ray tube demonstration (Animation) 1896 Article: On a New Kind of Rays Digital X-Ray Technologies Project A video of a medical X-ray procedure example What is Radiology? a simple tutorial 50,000 X-ray, MRI, and CT pictures MedPix medical image database Index of Early Bremsstrahlung Articles Extraordinary X-Rays slideshow by Life magazine
个人分类: 其他|6450 次阅读|1 个评论
姚远:《点石斋画报》与中国第一台X光机
kexuechuanbo 2010-10-30 08:51
作者:姚远 来源: 科学时报 发布时间:2008-7-9 23:7:36 《点石斋画报》与中国第一台X光机 清光绪二十三年(1897年)的《点石斋画报》六集利三,以宝镜新奇为题,介绍了刚传入我国的X 光机: 苏垣天赐庄博习医院西医生柏乐文, 闻美国新出一种宝镜, 可以照人脏腑, 因不惜千金购运至苏。其镜长尺许, 形式长圆, 一经鉴照, 无论何人, 心腹肾肠昭然若揭。苏人少见多怪, 趋而往观者甚众。该医生自得此镜, 视人疾病即知患之所在, 以药投之, 无不沉疴立起。 其中,苏垣为苏州;柏乐文(Park William Hector,1857~1927)为美国监理公会传教医师,1882年来华,协助姐夫蓝华德医生在苏州创办博习医院(Soochow Hospital),任外科主任30余年,在博习医院引进和使用了中国第一台X 光机,其正式的全套X光仪器安装则在1917年。其实,《点石斋画报》的画师并未亲见X 光机, 所绘露天场景、X 光成为可见光、机器与患者距离等均与实际不符。然而,这是有关中国第一台X光机引进和使用最早的的图文报道,故具有重要的新闻价值和文献价值。同年11月的《时务报》第43,44册,也有曷格司射光和用于照鸡鸭辨生蛋与否,以及法国海关照验行李的纯文字报道。 自伦琴(1845~1923)于1895 年发现X 射线后, 这一技术很快被运用到各个领域。我国第一个使用X光机诊病的是李鸿章。这个故事发生在甲午战争之后,北洋水师覆灭,李鸿章被迫赴日本马关议和。谈判期间,李鸿章遭浪人枪击,子弹从左脸颊穿进,时为1895年3月24日。当年李鸿章已73岁,又是以战败国总理的身份前去谈判议和的,因此国际舆论普遍谴责日方。在德国医生的强烈建议下,李鸿章拒绝在日本医院接受外科手术,因此子弹头一直留在颅内。第二年,李鸿章以清廷头等钦差大臣的身份出访欧美,经人介绍接受了一次X光诊视,这时候离伦琴发表关于X射线的论文只有半年。 《点石斋画报》旬刊,创刊于光绪十年四月(1884 年5 月), 是中国近代第一份采用石印术的新闻画报, 由《申报》馆馆主英国人美查(Major Ernest) 创办。它每期有8 张双页黑白图画, 每图配以数百字的文字说明, 随《申报》附送, 亦单独发售。至1898 年底画报终刊时, 共发行了528 号,共有4600余幅新闻图画,而其中有关科学技术新闻者就有280余幅。它以时事新闻画为主要题材, 画师吴有如等人采用中国传统白描技巧绘画, 承袭明清以来的版画风格, 也有少数模仿西画风格。其中有关火车、轮船、潜艇、气球、电报、电灯、空中跳伞等 新奇可喜之事的报道具有重要的科学技术文献史料价值。
个人分类: 期刊传播史论2|8145 次阅读|0 个评论

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