X rays are a beam of rays that pass through solid objects, enabling pictures to be taken of the inner organs and cavities of the body, without any invasive procedures. This is known as radiography. It is a common procedure used in the field of medicine and has had a great impact in the medical field.
X ray radiography offers completely unobtrusive and non destructive testing and is used in many different fields besides medicine. Today, the testing method is used for food inspection, security purposes and also in archeological surveys and digs.
To obtain a result, a homogeneous beam of x rays is passed through an object. This beam of rays is produced by an x ray generator and is focused on an object. Depending on the density of the object and the density of the object within those objects, an x ray image is received and then sent to a film. A two dimensional image is formed in which the object with the lesser density appearing to be almost invisible. In another variation of the x rays, known as tomography, different images are captured from different angles in order to make a 3D picture which is then analyzed.
Radiography was discovered in the year 1895 by Wihelm Conrad Röntgen. He was the first one to study the properties of the X rays in great detail. Soon after, radiography began to be used extensively in a number of different tasks. Almost as soon as they were discovered, x rays were put to use in medical tasks. Using this newly discovered technology, medical science also grew around it, using it to enhance diagnoses. In World War I, radiography was used extensively for treating wounded soldiers.
There was a time when all medical staff were allowed to conduct radiography in hospitals, owing to the lack of widespread training and specific expertise. However, the need to have the right kind of expertise was then recognized and new radiographers were trained to adopt new and improved methods of radiography. Today, radiographers are also trained to do other diagnostic procedures like fluoroscopy, nuclear medicine, mammography, ultrasound, computed tomography and many of the other diagnostic procedures.
Though even today, radiography is generically known as the process of taking X ray images, radiographers and radiologists are trained professionals who perform a specialized task. Radiography itself is a highly specialized task. The process of radiography has evolved from 1895 to what it is today, after a lot of study and research. Today, it is considered most vital to the field of medicine and security.