Quasi-monochromatic x-ray production from the cerium target

Quasi-monochromatic x-ray production from the plasma flash x-ray generator having a cerium-target radiation tube is described. The K-series characteristic x-rays from the cerium target are very useful in order to perform angiography using iodine-based contrast medium because the photon energies of the x-rays are just over the K-absorption edge of iodine. The generator employs a high-voltage power supply, a low-impedance coaxial transmission line, a high-voltage condenser with a capacity of 200 nF, a turbo-molecular pump, a thyristor pulse generator as a trigger device, and a flash x-ray tube. The high-voltage main condenser is charged up to 60 kV by the power supply, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the tube after triggering the cathode electrode. The flash x-rays are then produced. The x-ray tube is of a demountable triode that is connected to the turbo molecular pump with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. As the electron flows from the cathode electrode are roughly converged to the cerium target by the electric field in the tube, the plasma x-ray source, which consists of metal ions and electrons, forms by the target evaporating. Both the tube voltage and current displayed damped oscillations, and their peak values increased according to increases in the charging voltage. In the present work, the peak tube voltage was much higher than the initial charging voltage of the main condenser, and the peak current was about 25 kA with a charging voltage of 60 kV. When the charging voltage was increased, the plasma x-ray source formed, and the characteristic x-ray intensities of K-series lines increased. In this experiment, we observed low-photon-energy bremsstrahlung rays at the region of less than the K-absorption edge, because the tube current maximized at a low tube voltage.