In the production of characteristic radiation at the tungsten target, the incoming electron:

In the production of characteristic radiation at the tungsten target, the incoming electron:

• A. Ejects an inner-shell tungsten electron
• B. Is elastically scattered
• C. Emits bremsstrahlung in the target
• D. Passes through without interaction

Answer: (A)

When tungsten is bombarded by high-energy electrons, characteristic radiation is produced specifically when the incoming electron ejects an inner-shell electron from the atom. That creates a vacancy in the inner shell, and an electron from a higher shell drops into that vacancy. The energy difference between those shells is emitted as a photon with a discrete, element-specific energy, giving the characteristic X-ray for tungsten. Other interactions don’t produce these sharp lines: elastic scattering simply deflects the electron without removing a bound electron; bremsstrahlung results from deceleration in the nucleus’s field and appears as a broad, continuous spectrum rather than a line tied to a particular shell; and if the electron passes through without interaction, no characteristic radiation is produced.

When tungsten is bombarded by high-energy electrons, characteristic radiation is produced specifically when the incoming electron ejects an inner-shell electron from the atom. That creates a vacancy in the inner shell, and an electron from a higher shell drops into that vacancy. The energy difference between those shells is emitted as a photon with a discrete, element-specific energy, giving the characteristic X-ray for tungsten.

Other interactions don’t produce these sharp lines: elastic scattering simply deflects the electron without removing a bound electron; bremsstrahlung results from deceleration in the nucleus’s field and appears as a broad, continuous spectrum rather than a line tied to a particular shell; and if the electron passes through without interaction, no characteristic radiation is produced.