Tube and Components - Video Lesson

Hey, everybody. Welcome back. This video is an introduction to the X-ray tube. There are several modalities in radiology that use x-ray tubes. Radiography, mammography, computed tomography, all use very similar X-ray tubes. In all cases, the X-ray tube has the same basic function and the same basic components. To start with, all x-ray tubes have a cathode. The cathode creates free electrons through the process of thermionic emission. You should also know that the cathode is negatively charged. This makes sense because the cathode is the source of these negatively charged electrons. The next major component of the x-ray tube is the anode. The anode absorbs electrons and creates x rays. The anode is positively charged. This makes sense as the an