A New Kind of Ray: Early x-ray machines

German, c1920
German, c1920

A New Kind of Ray: Roentgen and the Development of the X-ray” tells the fascinating story of the fortuitous discovery of the x-ray by German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen in 1895. Few people know, however, that Roentgen could not have discovered the x-ray without the work of several predecessors, such as Sir Isaac Newton, Robert Boyle, Michael Faraday, and William Crookes. These individuals made discoveries and advancements in the fields of electricity, magnetism, and the vacuum, which made Roentgen’s discovery possible. These scientists and their work are also explored in the exhibit, which contains several types of x-ray machines from the 1920s through the 1950s including a German-made x-ray machine, a dental x-ray machine, a flouroscope, and a portable unit.

fluroscope
fluoroscope, 1933
upright x-ray, 1932
upright x-ray, 1932

2 thoughts on “A New Kind of Ray: Early x-ray machines

    1. Ericka,
      Thanks for your question. “A New Kind of Ray” is not an article but the title of our exhibit on x-rays. Some of the text from that exhibit is on this blog.

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