X-ray tube with a molybdenum (Mo) anode
Monocrystal (NaCl) in the X-ray machine
Monocrystal (NaCl)
Monocrystal - Wear plastic gloves when handling
Learnt the principles of x-ray generation and x-ray spectra recorded by means of Bragg diffraction
Learnt the fundamentals of Bragg diffraction and the application of Bragg's Law to crystallography
Understood the energy spectra as a superposition of the continuum of bremsstrahlung radiation and the lines of the characteristic x-ray radiation of the anode material
Learnt the operation of a computer controlled x-ray apparatus and gonimeter
Kept and submitted a clearly laid out set of laboratory notes
X-rays are electromagnetic waves in a range which have a wavelength comparable to atomic separation in crystals. When they impinge on such a crystal the waves are diffracted into patterns which are dependent on the structure of the crystal.
One reliable method of producing x-rays is to fire thermal electrons at a copper target in an "x-ray tube" as shown in Fig. 1.
Fig 1. X-ray tube
This technology is fundamentally the same as the electron gun in any cathode ray tube, but with a copper target instead of a phosphor one.
The script for this experiment can be found in the lab script book or on DUO.