When photons, particularly X-ray photons, interact with matter, the outcomes are fundamental to how diagnostic imaging works. These interactions determine the quality of the images produced and the dose absorbed by the patient. In this three-part blog series, we’ll explore how photons behave when encountering human tissue, starting with the three primary photon interactions relevant in the diagnostic energy range: photoelectric effect, Compton scatter, and coherent scatter.

A. Photoelectric Effect: T...

Understanding the nature of the x-ray beam is essential for any radiologic technologist aiming to master both the science and the art of imaging. In this second installment on radiation physics, we go beyond the tube and into the beam itself—unpacking how it behaves, what defines its characteristics, and why its properties matter in clinical practice.

Let’s start with two fundamental descriptors of electromagnetic energy: frequency and wavelength.

Frequency and Wavelength: The Invisible Architects of ...

To Master the Console, Understand the Beam

If you want to become a radiologic technologist who operates with confidence and calm, you must first understand the world that exists inside the x-ray tube. Not just the buttons on the console, not merely the motions of positioning—but the invisible process that creates the very thing you work with every day: the x-ray beam.

Most students see physics as something distant, abstract, or overly technical. But physics is not distant. It is the foundation beneath...

There are moments in radiologic technology when time seems to slow down.

You’ve prepared the patient. You’ve checked the history. You’ve verified the order. You’ve followed every one of the Six Rights. And still—within seconds of contrast entering the bloodstream—everything can change.

A warmth spreading across the patient’s chest.
A flushed expression.
A sudden cough.
A look that says, Something isn’t right.

The seasoned technologist understands: this is the thin line between routine and crisis. It’...

There comes a point in every radiography student’s journey when the science of medical imaging stops feeling abstract and starts feeling alive. Contrast media is one of those crossroads. It’s not just a topic on the ARRT exam—it’s a tool that changes the way you see anatomy, pathology, and the responsibilities placed in your hands as a future Radiologic Technologist.

Before long, you’ll be face-to-face with decisions that require quick judgment: Do I use barium or a water-soluble agent? Ionic or non-io...

There’s a quiet threshold every radiologic technologist crosses in training—a moment when you realize that contrast administration is not just a procedural task. It is a legal responsibility, an ethical commitment, and a test of your skill under pressure.

Pharmacology in radiologic technology is not abstract theory. It is the art of knowing who your patient is, what is safe for them, and how the contrast agent you’re about to administer will behave inside their body. And in that space, your preparation...

Walk into any radiology department and you’ll notice something: the noise isn’t where the real danger lives. The hum of equipment, the rhythm of positioning, the routine of patient care—those are obvious. Predictable. Manageable.

The true threat is quieter.

It sits on shelves and in drawers, tucked into supply closets and contrast rooms. It doesn’t warn you. It doesn’t announce itself. And yet it waits for the moment when someone—rushed, distracted, complacent—handles it carelessly.

Hazardous materia...

Step into any imaging department, and you’ll notice something curious: the most powerful dangers are not the ones you can see. They are the unseen particulates suspended in air, the microorganisms clinging to surfaces, the pathogens transferred in a single unguarded moment.

In radiologic technology, we work in the very spaces where infectious agents thrive — crowded emergency rooms, narrow inpatient hallways, isolation rooms humming with negative pressure, and operating suites where the vulnerable lie ...

In any imaging suite, the equipment is easy to recognize—collimators, detectors, tubes, and control panels. What remains unseen is the steady presence of microorganisms on surfaces, in the air, and throughout every patient interaction. In radiologic technology, real protection does not come from positioning technique or exposure settings. It comes from a consistent commitment to CDC Standard Precautions, the core of effective infection control.

Standard Precautions rarely receive attention, yet they...

Asepsis is the quiet craft of cleanliness — the discipline that separates safe practice from silent catastrophe. In radiologic technology, where hands meet patients and machines meet microbes, asepsis is not just a precaution. It’s a professional mindset.

The ARRT® Standards of Ethics emphasize patient safety and infection control because these are not optional technicalities — they’re the essence of responsible imaging. Every technologist stands at the intersection of precision and protection. Every b...

Step into any imaging department, and you’ll find precision everywhere — calibrated machines, sterile instruments, and protocols etched into daily routine. But beneath that precision flows an invisible reality: the constant motion of microorganisms. Some harmless. Some vital. And some — if left unchecked — capable of crippling a patient’s recovery or derailing a technologist’s career.

For students of radiologic technology, mastering infection control isn’t just about passing the ARRT® exam; it’s about ...

The x-ray room is a controlled environment — calibrated exposure settings, precise positioning, and predictable physics. Yet within that calm lies the potential for the unpredictable: a patient who suddenly can’t breathe, a reaction to contrast media, a seizure mid-procedure.

For the Radiologic Technologist, the ability to respond effectively to medical emergencies is as vital as any imaging skill. These moments do not wait for specialists. They demand composure, competence, and the unshakable understa...