Comparison of Output and Radiation Quality of X-rays according to the Full-Wave Rectification Method and Dual-Voltage Rectification Method of an X-ray Generator

X-ray systems for medical treatment use noninvasive procedures. Being capable of locally inspecting the inside of the body, X-ray systems are routinely used for basic diagnosis. X-ray systems to be used for medical purposes were originally made with a gas filled tube inside an induction coil in the initial stages of development but with this approach it becomes difficult to take a satisfactory picture through thick body sections, non invasively. However continued development made it possible to take non-invasive pictures of breasts, blood vessels and other body parts through thick body sections. Recently, high-voltage X-ray generators of more compact size, increased generation efficiency, and sophisticated output control have become possible. All of these features are made possible by the use of a high-frequency output from an inverter and a fast switching semiconductor device. In this paper, we describe a new X-ray generator operating with a resonant inverter in order to reduce switching loss and high frequency noise. In addition, in order to identify the differences amongst types of rectification, we have compared output and the quality of X-ray pictures obtained with full-wave rectification and dual-voltage rectification methods.