ABSTRACT
This chapter summarizes the physics of x-ray generation in an x-ray tube anode, including the penetration of electrons into the target, and the particle-atom interactions that generate x rays. The chapter begins with a discussion of the salient points of electron transport at energies corresponding to kilovoltage potentials, including inelastic collisions and multiple elastic scattering as well as the relatively rare bremsstrahlung events. The topic of bremsstrahlung production is elaborated on in detail, with results for the energy and angular distributions in various approximations discussed. Finally, the generation of characteristic x-ray emissions is covered, via both inner-shell impact ionization and photon-atom interactions.
