Lesson Plan: X-rays in Medicine Physics
This lesson plan includes the objectives, prerequisites, and exclusions of the lesson teaching students how to describe the properties of X-rays and how they are used in medicine.
Objectives
Students will be able to
- recall how the wavelength, frequency, and/or energy of X-rays compare to other waves near it (gamma and ultraviolet rays),
- recall which tissues of the body absorb X-rays the most,
- recall how X-rays are used for imaging,
- recall what X-ray therapy is,
- recall the difference between the X-rays used for X-ray therapy and those used for X-ray imaging, and that the X-rays used in X-ray therapy have a higher frequency, higher energy, and shorter wavelength than those used in X-ray imaging.
Prerequisites
Students should already be familiar with
- the idea that X-rays are part of the electromagnetic spectrum,
- the idea that X-rays are photons.
Exclusions
Students will not cover
- attenuation/exponential absorption,
- absorption cross sections,
- how X-rays are produced.
