As the X-ray changed the world – BBC

Exactly 120 years ago, the evening of November 8 1895, German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen worked in his laboratory. After graduating from the next series of experiments, the scientist turned off the lights and covered the Crookes tube – a device, which is filled with rarefied gas flask on both sides which are soldered positive and negative electrodes (anode and cathode) – a cover of black cardboard. The tube thus remains energized and

in the twilight of the room the scientist noticed luminescence was next screen covered with crystals of barium sinerodistogo.

X-ray was surprised by this phenomenon and began to conduct a variety of experiments with tubes and barium screens. Almost immediately, he was able to establish that the mysterious radiation has a penetrating effect – it permeates the paper, wood, metals, glass …

The physicist wrote: “It is easy to find all the bodies are permeable to the agent, but different degree. I will give a few examples. The paper has a high permeability: in a bound book of about 1000 pages, I still completely free discern surface fluorescent screen; Ink does not represent a significant obstacle. Such was the fluorescence of the double deck of playing cards. … Spruce boards with a thickness of 2 to 3 centimeters absorb very little. The aluminum plate is about 15 mm in thickness greatly weakened, but not yet completely destroyed the fluorescence ».

During the experiments, Roentgen noticed that if between the Crookes tube and the screen turns his hand, it is illuminated through, leaving a visible outline of the bones. In addition, it was found that the radiation illuminates the photographic plate, although it is not visible to the human eye.

December 22, 1895 the scientist made the first in the history of mankind a picture of a human hand, which later will be called X-ray. “Model” became the wife of physicist Bertha X-rays.

December 28, 1895 at a meeting of Wurzburg Physico-Mathematical Society Wilhelm Roentgen made a report “On a new kind of rays”, saying: “Black board, not Transparent or to visible and ultra-violet rays of the sun, nor for the rays of the electric arc, it is threaded by some agent of a vigorous fluorescence.

If you keep between the discharge tube and the screen’s hand, then see the dark shadows of bones in the faint outline of the shadow of the hand ».

A month later, on 23 January 1896, this phenomenon was demonstrated by the public: during a public lecture Roentgen took a picture of hands anatomist Albert von Kёllikera, thereby visually convincing listeners of the significance of his discovery.

The physicist thoroughly investigated he discovered the phenomenon and concluded that the mysterious rays that the scientist called the X-rays arise under the blows of the cathode ray fluorescent walls of the vacuum tube. X-rays do not carry a charge and is not deflected in a magnetic field. Roentgen was inclined to believe that he discovered the rays close to the ultraviolet radiation on the chemical and luminescent effect. Now science knows that X-rays – electromagnetic waves, the energy of photons of which lies on the scale of electromagnetic waves between ultraviolet and gamma radiation.

In 1901, for his outstanding discovery Wilhelm Röntgen was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics, thus becoming its first recipient.

The award scientist was awarded with the following wording: “In recognition of the extraordinary services he has rendered to science, the discovery of the remarkable rays subsequently named after him».

Studies have X-rays continued in laboratories around the world. In Russia, we work with them, in particular, Pyotr Lebedev and Alexander Popov – these scientists significantly improved experimental techniques and often demonstrated in public lectures radiographs of good quality.

Currently, X-rays are widely used in many areas: for example, they can be used to detect internal defects in products (rails or welds), defined as the structure of matter at the atomic level (this method is called X-ray diffraction), and its chemical composition (conduct X-ray fluorescence analysis).

X-rays are used in everyday life: with their help you can shine the luggage of people at airports, to take pictures of the human body, thus as revealing damage to the bones and give the three-dimensional images of internal organs (this used computer tomography).