How does an x-ray work? X-rays are electromagnetic waves similar to light. They can penetrate materials with masses at different levels. When x-rays hit the film, it creates an image that shows it as a light would. Because bones, fat, muscles, tumors, and other structures all absorb X-rays to varying degrees, the image on the film allows you to see several distinct structures within the body. This is due to the varying exposure levels of the film. What is radioactivity? What is radiation? Unstable atomic nuclei will suddenly begin to decompose to form nuclei with greater stability. This decomposition process is called radioactivity. The energy and particles that are released during the decomposition process are called radiation. When an unstable nucleus decays in nature, the process is called natural radioactivity. When an unstable nucleus is prepared in the laboratory, the decomposition is called induced radioactivity. How does film capture the image? The X-ray machine consists of 3 main components. The components are a vacuum tube that has a cathode and an anode which are often made of the element tungsten. The cathode is a heated filament. When electric current passes through the filament, the temperature increases dramatically. When it reaches a very high temperature, the filament begins to release negatively charged electrons from the surface. Then the positively charged tungsten anode component of the X-rays attracts these electrons with great force, pulling them through the vacuum tube at high speed. When an electron collides with a tungsten atom, an electron in one of the atom's lower orbitals is repelled. So, after an electron from a higher orbital takes the place of the removed electron... in the middle of the paper... the contaminants remain on the skin for a long period of time and can cause skin lesions. The third type of radiation is gamma radiation. Gamma radiation and X-rays are part of electromagnetic radiation like visible light, radio waves and ultraviolet light. These electromagnetic radiations differ in the amount of energy they possess. Gamma radiation can penetrate through most materials, including skin, and can travel very deep even into human tissue. Gamma radiation has absolutely no mass and is capable of traveling at the speed of light. He is very fast and very strong. When radioactive materials release gamma radiation, they can pose both external and internal dangers to humans. That's why many pregnant women don't get many X-rays. It can be harmful to the fetus inside. The radiation from these rays can cause abnormalities and other defects later in life.