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In the plasma flash x-ray generator, a 200 nF condenser is charged up to 50 kV by a power supply, and flash x rays are produced by the discharging. The x-ray tube is a demountable triode with a trigger electrode, and the turbomolecular pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. Target evaporation leads to the formation of weakly ionized linear plasma, consisting of molybdenum ions and electrons, around the fine target, and intense characteristic x rays are produced. At a charging voltage of 50 kV, the maximum tube voltage was almost equal to the charging voltage of the main condenser, and the peak current was about 16 kA. When the charging voltage was increased, the linear plasma formed, and the K-series characteristic x-ray intensities increased. The K lines were quite sharp and intense. The x-ray pulse widths were approximately 600 ns, and the time-integrated x-ray intensity had a value of approximately 65 μC/kg at 1.0 m from the x-ray source with a charging voltage of 50 kV.

In the flash x-ray generator, a 150 nF condenser is charged up to 80 kV by a power supply, and flash x rays are produced by the discharging. The x-ray tube is a demountable diode, and the turbomolecular pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. Since the electric circuit of the high-voltage pulse generator employs a cable transmission line, the high-voltage pulse generator produces twice the potential of the condenser charging voltage. At a charging voltage of 80 kV, the estimated maximum tube voltage and current were approximately 160 kV and 40 kA, respectively. When the charging voltage was increased, the K-series characteristic x-ray intensities of molybdenum increased. The K lines were clean and intense, and hardly any bremsstrahlung rays were detected at all. The x-ray pulse widths were approximately 100 ns, and the time-integrated x-ray intensity had a value of approximately 15 μC/kg at 1.0 m from the x-ray source with a charging voltage of 80 kV.

The high-voltage condensers in a polarity-inversion two-stage Marx surge generator are charged from Š 50 to Š 70 kV by a power supply, and the electric charges in the condensers are discharged to an x-ray tube after closing gap switches in the surge generator with a trigger device. The x-ray tube is a demountable diode, and the turbomolecular pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. Tungsten characteristic x rays can be produced, since the tube utilizes a disk cathode and a rod target, and bremsstrahlung rays are not emitted in the opposite direction to that of electron acceleration. At a charging voltage of Š 70 kV, the instantaneous tube voltage and current were 140 kV and 1.0 kA, respectively. The x-ray pulse widths were approximately 90 ns, and the estimated number of K photons was approximately 5 210 8 photons/cm per pulse at 0.5 m from the source of 3.0 mm in diameter. Keywords: angiography, gadolinium-based contrast media, characteristic x rays, quasi-monochromatic x rays, tungsten K lines

The cerium target plasma flash x-ray generator is useful in order to perform high-speed enhanced K-edge angiography using cone beams because K-series characteristic x rays from the cerium target are absorbed effectively by iodine-based contrast mediums. In the flash x-ray generator, a 150 nF condenser is charged up to 80 kV by a power supply, and flash x rays are produced by the discharging. The x-ray tube is a demountable diode, and the turbomolecular pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. Since the electric circuit of the high-voltage pulse generator employs a cable transmission line, the high-voltage pulse generator produces twice the potential of the condenser charging voltage. At a charging voltage of 80 kV, the estimated maximum tube voltage and current were approximately 160 kV and 40 kA, respectively. When the charging voltage was increased, the K-series characteristic x-ray intensities of cerium increased. The K lines were clean and intense, and hardly any bremsstrahlung rays were detected at all. The x-ray pulse widths were approximately 100 ns, and the time-integrated x-ray intensity had a value of approximately 10 μC/kg at 1.0 m from the x-ray source with a charging voltage of 80 kV. In the angiography, we employed a film-less computed radiography (CR) system and iodine-based microspheres.

High-voltage condensers in a polarity-inversion two-stage Marx surge generator are charged from -50 to -70 kV using a power supply, and the electric charges in the condensers are discharged to an x-ray tube after closing the gap switches in the surge generator using a trigger device. The x-ray tube is a demountable diode, and the turbomolecular pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. Clean copper Kα lines are produced using a 10-μm-thick nickel filter, since the tube utilizes a disk cathode and a rod target, and bremsstrahlung rays are not emitted in the opposite direction to that of electron acceleration. The peak tube voltage increased with increasing charging voltage. At a charging voltage of -70 kV, the peak tube voltage and current were 140 kV and 0.8 kA, respectively. The pulse widths were approximately 30 ns, and the maximum dimension of the x-ray source was 3.0 mm in diameter. The number of generator-produced Kα photons was approximately 2.5x106 photons/cm2 at 0.5 m per pulse.

Energy-selective high-speed radiography utilizing a kilohertz-range stroboscopic x-ray generator and its application to high-speed angiography are described. This generator consists of the following major components: a main controller, a condenser unit with a Cockcroft-Walton circuit, and an x-ray tube unit in conjunction with a grid controller. The main condenser of about 500 nF in the unit is charged up to 100 kV by the circuit, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the triode by the grid control circuit. Although the tube voltage decreased during the discharging for generating x rays, the maximum value was equal to the initial charging voltage of the main condenser. The maximum tube current and the repetition rate were approximately 0.5 A and 32 kHz, respectively. The x-ray pulse width ranged from 0.01 to 1.0 ms, and the maximum shot number had a value of 32. At a charging voltage of 80 kV and a width of 1.0 ms, the x-ray intensities obtained without filtering, using an aluminum filter, and using a barium sulfate filter were 14.8, 5.48 and 5.05 μGy per pulse, respectively, at 1.0 m, and the dimensions of the focal spot had values of 3.5×3.5 mm. Angiography was performed using both the aluminum and the barium sulfate filters at a charging voltage of 60 kV.

In the plasma flash x-ray generator, a 200 nF condenser is charged up to 50 kV by a power supply, and flash x rays are produced by the discharging. The x-ray tube is a demountable triode with a double target consisting of a copper and a molybdenum rods, and the turbomolecular pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. Target evaporation leads to the formation of weakly ionized linear plasma, consisting of metal ions and electrons, around the fine target, and intense characteristic x rays are produced. At a charging voltage of 50 kV, the maximum tube voltage was almost equal to the charging voltage of the main condenser, and the peak current was about 11 kA. When the charging voltage was increased, the linear plasma formed, and the molybdenum K-series characteristic x-ray intensities increased substantially. Although the intensities of copper Kα lines increased with increases in the charging voltage, hardly any clean Kα lines were detected. The x-ray pulse widths were approximately 1.2 μs, and the time-integrated x-ray intensity was approximately 30 μC/kg at 1.0 m from the x-ray source with a charging voltage of 50 kV.

The fundamental experiments for measuring soft x-ray characteristics from the vacuum capillary are described. These experiments are primarily performed in order to generate intense soft x rays. The generator consists of a high-voltage power supply, a polarity-inversion ignitron pulse generator, a turbomolecular pump, and a radiation tube with a capillary. A high-voltage condenser of 200 nF in the pulse generator is charged up to 20 kV by the power supply, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the capillary in the tube after closing the ignitron. During the discharge, weakly ionized plasma forms on the inner and outer sides of a capillary. In the present work, the pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of about 1 mPa, and a demountable capillary was developed in order to measure x-ray spectra according to changes in the capillary length. In this capillary, the anode (target) and cathode elements can be changed corresponding to the objectives. The capillary diameter is 2.0 mm, and the length is adjusted from 1 to 50 mm. When a capillary with aluminum anode and cathode electrodes was employed, both the cathode voltage and the discharge current almost displayed damped oscillations. The peak values of the voltage and current increased when the charging voltage was increased, and their maximum values were -11.5 kV and 4.7 kA, respectively. The x-ray durations observed by a 1.6 μm aluminum filter were less than 30 μs. In the spectrum measurement, we observed orderly multi-line spectra. The line photon energies seldom varied according to changes in the condenser charging voltage and to changes in the electrode element. The line number decreased with corresponding decreases in the capillary length.

The high-voltage condensers in a polarity-inversion two-stage Marx surge generator are charged from -50 to -70 kV by a power supply, and the electric charges in the condensers are discharged to an x-ray tube after closing gap switches in the surge generator with a trigger device. The x-ray tube is a demountable diode, and the turbomolecular pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. Clean silver Kα lines are produced using a 30 μm-thick palladium filter, since the tube utilizes a disk cathode and a rod target, and bremsstrahlung rays are not emitted in the opposite direction to that of electron acceleration. At a charging voltage of -70 kV, the instantaneous tube voltage and current were 90 kV and 0.8 kA, respectively. The x-ray pulse widths were approximately 80 ns, and the instantaneous number of generator-produced Kα photons was approximately 40 M photons/cm 2 per pulse at 0.3 m from the source of 3.0 mm in diameter.

The development of an extremely soft x-ray generator with a tungsten-target tube and its applications to radiography and disinfection are described. This generator consists of a high-voltage power supply, a filament power supply, and an x-ray tube. Negative high voltages are applied to the cathode electrode in the x-ray tube, and the tube voltage and current are regulated by the input of a transformer and the filament voltage, respectively. The x-ray tube is a glass-enclosed double-focus diode with a tungsten target and a 0.2 mm-thick beryllium window. The maximum tube voltage and electric power were 60 kV and 400 W, respectively. The focal-spot sizes were 4×4 (large) and 1×1 mm (small), respectively. Extremely soft radiography was performed with a computed radiography system, and we observed fine blood vessels of about 100 μm with high contrasts. Using this generator, we performed the disinfection achieved with extremely soft x rays.

The cerium-target x-ray tube is useful in order to perform cone beam K-edge angiography because K-series characteristic x rays from the cerium target are absorbed effectively by iodine-based contrast mediums. The x-ray generator consists of a main controller and a unit with a high-voltage circuit and a fixed anode x-ray tube. The tube is a glass-enclosed diode with a cerium target and a 0.5 mm-thick beryllium window. The maximum tube voltage and current were 65 kV and 0.4 mA, respectively, and the focal-spot sizes were 1.3×0.9 mm. Cerium K-series characteristic x rays were left using a 3.0 mm-thick aluminum filter, and the x-ray intensity was 0.59 μC/kg at 1.0 m from the source with a tube voltage of 60 kV, a current of 0.40 mA, and an exposure time of 1.0 s. Angiography was performed with a computed radiography system using iodine-based microspheres 15 μm in diameter. In angiography of non-living animals, we observed fine blood vessels of approximately 100 μm with high contrasts.

In the plasma flash x-ray generator, high-voltage main condenser of about 200 nF is charged up to 55 kV by a power supply, and electric charges in the condenser are discharged to an x-ray 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 a turbo molecular pump with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. As electron flows from the cathode electrode are roughly converged to a rod cerium target of 3.0 mm in diameter by electric field in the x-ray tube, the weakly ionized linear plasma, which consists of cerium ions and electrons, forms by target evaporating. At a charging voltage of 55 kV, the maximum tube voltage was almost equal to the charging voltage of the main condenser, and the peak current was about 20 kA. When the charging voltage was increased, weakly ionized cerium plasma formed, and the K-series characteristic x-ray intensities increased. The x-ray pulse widths were about 500 ns, and the time-integrated x-ray intensity had a value of about 40 μC/kg at 1.0 m from x-ray source with a charging voltage of 55 kV. In the angiography, we employed a film-less computed radiography (CR) system and iodine-based microspheres. Because K-series characteristic x-rays are absorbed easily by the microspheres, high-contrast angiography has been performed.

A fundamental study on quasi-monochromatic parallel radiography using a polycapillary plate and a copper-target x-ray tube is described. The x-ray generator consists of a negative high-voltage power supply, a filament (hot cathode) power supply, and an x-ray tube. The negative high-voltage is applied to the cathode electrode, and the anode electrode is connected to the ground. In this experiment, the tube voltage was regulated from 12 to 22 kV, and the tube current was regulated within 3.0 mA by the filament temperature. The exposure time was controlled in order to obtain optimum x-ray intensity, and the maximum focal spot dimensions were approximately 2.0 x 1.5 mm. The polycapillary plate was J5022-16 (Hamamatsu Photonics Inc.), and the plate thickness was 1.0 mm. The outer, effective, and hole diameters were 33 mm, 27 mm, and 10 μm, respectively. Quasi-monochromatic x-rays were produced using a 10 μm-thick copper filter with a tube voltage of 17 kV, and these rays were formed into parallel beams by the polycapillary. The radiogram was taken using a computed radiography system utilizing imaging plates. In the measurement of image resolution, the resolution hadly varied according to increases in the distance between the chart and imaging plate using a polycapillary. We could observe a 50 μm tungsten wire clearly, and fine blood vessels of approximately 100 μm were visible in angiography.

In the plasma flash x-ray generator, a high-voltage main condenser of approximately 200 nF is charged up to 50 kV by a power supply, and electric charges in the condenser are discharged to an x-ray tube after triggering the cathode electrode. The flash x-rays are then produced. The x-ray tube is a demountable triode that is connected to a turbo molecular pump with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. As electron flows from the cathode electrode are roughly converged to a rod copper target of 3.0 mm in diameter by the electric field in the x-ray tube, weakly ionized linear plasma, which consists of copper ions and electrons, forms by target evaporation. At a charging voltage of 50 kV, the maximum tube voltage was almost equal to the charging voltage of the main condenser, and the peak current was about 15 kA. When the charging voltage was increased, the linear plasma formed, and the K-series characteristic x-ray intensities increased. The K-series lines were quite sharp and intense, and hardly any bremsstrahlung rays were detected. The x-ray pulse widths were approximately 700 ns, and the time-integrated x-ray intensity had a value of approximately 30 μC/kg at 1.0 m from the x-ray source with a charging voltage of 50 kV.

Aiming to realization of compact flash x-ray facilities, flash x-ray generator with two-stage Marx generator and a krytron pulse generator was constructed and its characteristics were verified in present study. Target and cathode of the x-ray tube was tungsten rod and graphite disk plate, respectively. Two-stage Marx generator applied high voltage to the target and discharge between electrodes produced plasma and x-ray. Experiments revealed the relationship between tube voltage, tube current and applied voltage to x-ray tube. Effect of distance from target to cathode was also made clear. Measurement of radiation output with plastic scintillator indicated the shorter pulse duration than 100 ns and the effect on application of present experimental configuration to high-speed photography. Radiographs were taken with computed radiography (CR) system. The photographs displayed enough resolution to perform fine photography and existence of soft x-ray for wide purposes. Present study implies application of present simple x-ray system to realization of compact and general-purpose x-ray generator.

In the plasma flash x-ray generator, high-voltage main condenser of about 200 nF is charged up to 50 kV by a power supply, and electric charges in the condenser are discharged to an x-ray 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 a turbo molecular pump with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. As electron flows from the cathode electrode are roughly converged to a rod iron target of 3.0 mm in diameter by electric field in the x-ray tube, the weakly ionized linear plasma, which consists of iron ions and electrons, forms by target evaporating. At a charging voltage of 50 kV, the maximum tube voltage was almost equal to the charging voltage of the main condenser, and the peak current was about 20 kA. When the charging voltage was increased, the linear plasma formed, and the K-series characteristic x-ray intensities increased. The x-ray pulse widths were about 800 ns, and the time-integrated x-ray intensity had a value of about 10 μC/kg at 1.0 m from x-ray source with a charging voltage of 50 kV. The plasma x-rays were diffused after passing through two lead slits.

The fundamental study on a high-intensity flash light generator and its applications are described. This generator is composed of a high-voltage power supply, high-voltage main condensers of 8 and 4 μF, a thyristor pulse generator as a trigger device, and a high-intensity xenon tube. The main condenser is charged up to 2.5 kV by the high-voltage power supply, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the xenon tube by the thyristor pulse generator. The flashlights are then produced. The tube voltage and discharge current displayed almost the dumped oscillations. The maximum voltage was equal to the initial charging voltage, and the maximum current increased according to increases in the charging voltage and the capacity. The current was 4.1 kA with a charging voltage of 2.5 kV and a capacity of 8 μF. The pulse widths of flashlights were almost constant at a constant condenser capacity and increased with increases in the capacity. The widths were about 8 μs with a capacity of 8 μF. The shadowgraphy was performed using this generator and a trigger delay device. Finally, we performed tentative studies on parallel and point light sources.

In this study, we have made a low photon energy flash x-ray generator with a titanium target and have measured the radiographic characteristics. The flash x-ray generator consists of a high-voltage power supply, a high-voltage condenser, a turbo molecular pump and a flash x-ray tube. The condenser is charged up to about 30 kV, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the tube after triggering the cathode. The linear plasma x-ray source forms from the target evaporation, and then the flash x-rays are generated from the plasma in the axial direction. K-series emission of titanium has been confirmed in experiments qualitatively and characteristics of the generator have been measured. K-series x-ray of titanium had a high resolution and enable us to take radiographs of a thin rabbit's ear clearly using the CR (Computed Radiography) system. The effect of titanium on the target of the soft flash x-ray tube has been indicated accordingly.

Fundamental study on quasi-monochromatic parallel radiography using a polycapillary plate and a plane-focus x-ray tube is described. The x-ray generator consists of a negative high-voltage power supply, a filament (hot cathode) power supply, and an x-ray tube. The negative high-voltage is applied to the cathode electrode, and the transmission type target (anode) is connected to the ground potential. The maximum voltage and current of the power supply were -100 kV (peak value) and 3.0 mA, respectively. In this experiment, the tube voltage was regulated from 20 to 25 kV, and the tube current was regulated by the filament temperature and ranged from 1.0 to 3.0 mA. The exposure time is controlled in order to obtain optimum film density, and the focal spot diameter was about 10 mm. The polycapillary plate is J5022-21 made by Hamamatsu Photonics Inc., and the outside and effective diameters are 87 and 77 mm, respectively. The thickness and the hole diameter of the polycapillary are 1.0 m and 25 μm, respectively. The x-rays from the t ube are formed into parallel beam by the polycapillary, and the radiogram is taken using an industrial x-ray film of Fuji IX 100 without using a screen. In the measurement of image resolution, we employed three brass spacers of 2, 30, and 60 mm in height. By the test chart, the resolution fell according to increases in the spacer height without using a polycapillary. In contrast, the resolution slightly fell with corresponding increases in the height by the polycapillary. In angiography, fine blood vessels of about 100 μm are clearly visible.

The fundamental experiments for measuring soft x-ray characteristics from the vacuum capillary are described. These experiments are primarily performed in order to generate line spectra such as x-ray lasers. The generator consists of a high-voltage power supply, a polarity-inversion ignitron pulse generator, a turbo-molecular pump, and a radiation tube with a capillary. A high-voltage condenser of 0.2 μF in the pulse generator is charged up to 20 kV by the power supply, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the capillary in the tube after closing the ignitron. During the discharge, weakly ionized plasma forms on the inner and outer sides of a capillary. In the present work, the pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of about 1 mPa, and a demountable capillary was developed in order to measure x-ray spectra according to changes in the capillary length. In this capillary, the anode (target) and cathode elements can be changed corresponding to the objectives. The capillary diameter is 2.0 mm, and the length is adjusted from 1 to 50 mm. When a capillary with aluminum anode and cathode electrodes was employed, both the cathode voltage and the discharge current almost displayed damp oscillations. The peak values of the voltage and current increased when the charging voltage was increased and their maximum values were -10.8 kV and 4.7 kV, respectively. The x-ray durations observed by a 1.6 μm aluminum filter were less than 30 μs, and we detected the aluminum characteristic x-ray intensity using a 6.8 μm aluminum filter. In the spectrum measurement, two sets of aluminum and titanium electrodes were employed, and we observed multi-line spectra. The line photon energies seldom varied according to changes in teh condenser charging voltage and to changes in the electrode element. In the case where the titanium electrode was employed, the line number decreased with corresponding decreases in the capillary length. Compared with incoherent visible light, these rays from the capillary were diffracted greatly after pass through two slits.

Fundamental study on parallel beam radiography using a polycapillary plate is described. The x-ray generator used in this experiment is NST-1005 made by Sofron Inc. with maximum tube voltage and current of 100kV and 5.0 mA, respectively. In this experiment, the tube voltage was regulated from 20 to 30 kV, and the tube current had a constant value of 4.0 mA. The exposure time is regulated in order to control optimum film density. The polycapillary plate is J5022-21 made by Hamamatsu Photonics, and the outside and effective diameters are 87 and 77 mm, respectively. The thickness and the whole diameter of the polycapillary are 1.0 mm and 25 micrometers , respectively. The x- rays from the tube are formed to parallel beam by the polycapillary, and the radiogram is taken using an industrial x-ray film of Fuji IX 100 without using a screen. In the measurement of image resolution, we employed three brass spacers of 2, 30, and 60 mm in height. By the test chart, the resolution decreased according to increases in the spacer height without using the polycapillary. In contrast, the resolution seldom varied when the polycapillary was employed. In the polycapillary radiography of four tungsten wires, higher-contrast images of 50 micrometers wire were observed, and the line width seldom varied according to increases in the spacer height.

The tentative experiment for production low photon energy characteristic x-rays using a capillary is described. The capillary of this flash x-ray tube was improved in order to increase the x-ray intensity and to generate high-intensity characteristic x-rays by forming the linear plasma x-ray source. The generator consists of a high-voltage power supply, a polarity-inversion ignitron pulse generator, a turbo-molecular pump, and a radiation tube with a capillary. A high-voltage condenser of 0.2(mu) F in the pulse generator is charged up to 20 kV by the power supply, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the capillary in the tube after closing the ignitron. In the present work, the pump evacuates air from the tube with a pressure of about 1 mPa, and the aluminum anode and cathode electrodes are employed to produce characteristic x-rays. The diameter and the length of the capillary are 2.0 and 29 mm, respectively, and both the cathode voltage and the discharge current displayed almost the damped oscillations. The peak values of the voltage and current increased when the charging voltage was increase, and their maximum values were -9.2 kV and 4.6 kA, respectively. The x-ray durations detected by a 1.6 micrometers aluminum filter were less than 10microsecond(s) , and we observe the intensity of aluminum characteristic x-rays.© (2001) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

The characteristics of a new quasi-x-ray laser generator and its application to polycapillary radiography are described. The generator employs a high-voltage power supply, a low- impedance coaxial transmission line, a high-voltage condenser with a capacity of about 200 nF, a turbo-molecular pump, a thyristor pulse generator as a trigger device, and a new plasma 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 copper 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 increase in the charging voltage. In the present work, the peak tube voltage was almost equal to 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 linear plasma x-ray source formed, and the characteristic x-ray intensities of K-series lines increased. In the radiogrpahy achieved with a computed radiography system, we employed a polycapilary plate with a hole diameter of 20 micrometers and a thickness of 1 mm. The image resolution was primarily determined by the resolution of the CR system and had a value of about 100micrometers .

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, thyristor pulse generator as a trigger device, and a flash x-ray tube. The high-voltage main condenser is charge dup 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 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 60kV. 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 bremsstrauhlung rays at the region of less than the K-absorption edge, because the tube current maximized at a low tube voltage.

The fundamental study on a high-intensity flash water-window x-ray generator is describe. This flash x-ray generator was improved in order to increase the x-ray intensity and to produce high-intensity characteristic x-rays by forming the linear plasma x-ray source. The generator consists of a high-voltage power supply, a polarity-inversion ignitron pulse generator, an oil-diffusion pump, and a radiation tube with a capillary. High-voltage condenser of 0.2 (mu) F in the pulse generator is charged up to 20 kV by the power supply, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the capillary in the tube after closing the ignitron. In the present work, the chamber is evacuated by the pump with a pressure of about 1 mPa, and the titanium anode and cathode electrodes are employed to produce L-series characteristic x-rays in the water-window range. The diameter and the length of the ferrite capillary are 2.0 and 30 mm, respectively, and both the cathode voltage and the discharge current displayed damped oscillations. The peak values of the voltage and current increased when the charging voltage was increased, and their maximum values were -11.2 kV and 4.4 kA, respectively. The pulse durations of the water- windows x-rays were nearly equivalent to those of the damped oscillations in the voltage and current, and their values were less than 15 microsecond(s) . In the spectrum measurement, we observed water-window x-rays.

The radiographic characteristics of a high-intensity kilohertz-range stroboscopic x-ray generator (SX-C98) are described. This generator consists of the following major components: a controller, a condenser unit having a Cockcroft circuit, and an x-ray tube unit in conjunction with a grid controller. The main condenser of about 500 nF in the unit is charged up to 100 kV by the circuit, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the triode by the grid controller. Although the tube voltage slightly decreased during the discharging for generating x-rays, the maximum value was equivalent to the initial charging voltage of the main condenser. The maximum values of the tube current and the repetition rate were about 0.5 A and 32 kHz, respectively. The pulse width of the x-rays ranged from approximately 0.01 to 1.0 ms, and the maximum shot number had a value of 32. At a constant filament (cathode) temperature, the x-ray intensity increased according to increases in the charging voltage and to increases in the duration, and the intensity with a duration of about Ims and a charging voltage of 70 kV was 140 nC/kg at 1.0 m per pulse. When the charging voltage was increased, the dimension of the focal spot slightly increased, and the maximum values were about 3.5 X 3.5 mm.

Various characteristics of a plasma flash x-ray generator having a cold-cathode radiation tube and its application to high-speed soft radiography are described. The x-ray generator employs a high-voltage power supply, a low-impedance coaxial transmission line with a gap switch, a high-voltage condenser with a capacity of about 200 nF, a turbo-molecular pump, a thyristor pulser 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 which 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 target by the electric field in the tube, the plasma x-ray source which consists of metal ions and electrons is produced 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 almost equivalent to the initial charging voltage of the main condenser, and the peak current was less than 30 kA. In this experiment, we employed four types of plasma targets as follows: (1) single target, (2) coaxial double target, (3) alloy target, and (4) plate target. When the single target in conjunction with the monochromatic filter was employed, high-intensity quasi- monochromatic x-rays were obtained. Next, the characteristic x-ray intensities from the outer target increased in the case where the double target was used. By using the alloy (copper tungsten) target, the x-ray intensities of the copper K-series lines increased. Finally, when the linear plasma x-ray source was formed by using the plate target, the bremsstrahlung x- rays were absorbed and were converted into florescent rays, and high-intensity characteristic x-rays were produced.

The constructions and the characteristics of a transformer- driven stroboscopic x-ray generator (SX-T98) are described. This generator is primarily designed in order to increase the maximum photon energy of the pulsed x-rays and is composed of the following essential components: a thyratron pulser, a high-voltage transformer having a ferrite core with a maximum output voltage of 300 kV, a sequence controller, a DC power supply for the hot cathode (filament), and an x-ray tube. The main condenser of 24 nF in the pulser is charged up to 14 kV, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged repetitively to the primary coil of the transformer. Because the high-voltage pulses from the secondary coil are then applied to the x-ray tube, repetitive harder x-rays are produced. The x-ray tube is of a triode having a hot-cathode which is primarily driven at the temperature-limited current region In this triode, because the grid is connected to the cathode, this tube is driven as a diode. The tube voltage roughly increased in proportion to the charging voltage, and the maximum value was about 300 kV. Thus, the maximum photon energy had a value of about 300 keV. The tube current was primarily determined by the filament temperature and had values of less than 2 A. The x-ray output displayed plural pulses, and the pulse width of the first pulse was about 300 ns. The maximum repetition rate was about 1 kHz, and the dimension of the x-ray source had values of 3.5 X 3.5 mm.

The fundamental study on a flash water-window x-ray generator (WFX-98) is described. This generator is composed of a high- voltage power supply, a polarity-inversion ignitron pulser, an oil-diffusion pump, and a radiation tube with a capillary. The high-voltage condenser of about 0.2 (mu) F in the pulser is charged up to 20 kV by the power supply, and the electric charges in the condenser are discharged to the capillary in the tube after closing the ignitron. In the present work, the chamber is evacuated by the pump with a pressure of about 1 mPa, and the titanium anode and cathode electrodes are employed to produce L-series characteristic x-rays in the water-window range. The diameter and the length of the ferrite capillary are 2.0 and 29 mm, respectively. Both the cathode voltage and the discharge current displayed damped oscillations. The peak values of the voltage and current increased when the charging voltage was increased, and their maximum values were -11 kV and 3.8 kA, respectively.

The constructions of a plasma flash x-ray generator having a cold-cathode radiation tube and its application to soft radiography are described. The x-ray generator employs a high- voltage power supply, a low-impedance coaxial transmission line with a gap switch, a high-voltage condenser with a capacity of 0.2 (mu) F, a turbo-molecular pump, a thyristor pulser 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 a demountable triode which is connected to the turbo molecular pump with a pressure of approximately 1 mPa. This tube consists of a rod-shaped carbon cathode, a trigger electrode made from a copper wire, a stainless-steel vacuum chamber, insulators, a polyethylene terephthalate x-ray window, and two anode electrodes (targets) of molybdenum and silver. The space between the anode and cathode electrodes had a constant value of approximately 20 mm, and the trigger electrode is set in the center of the cathode electrode. As the electron flows from the cathode electrode are roughly converged to the target by the electric field in the tube, the plasma x-ray source which consists of metal ions and electrons is produced by the target evaporating. Because the bremsstrahlung spectra are absorbed by the monochromatic filter, K-series characteristic x-rays are obtained. 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 almost equivalent to the initial charging voltage of the main condenser, and the peak current had a value of about 25 kA with a charging voltage of 60 kV. When the charging voltage was increased, the intensities of the K-series characteristic x-rays increased. Next, the intensities decreased as the monochromatic filter was inserted. Using this quasi-monochromatic plasma flash x- ray generator, we performed high-speed soft radiography with x-ray durations of about 1 microsecond.