Bremsstrahlung, or braking radiation, is the radiation emitted when a charged particle, such as an electron, is decelerated by another charged particle, typically an atomic nucleus. It produces a continuous spectrum of photon energies.
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Bremsstrahlung is significant in X-ray production and high-energy astrophysical processes.
The intensity of bremsstrahlung radiation increases with the charge of the decelerating particle and its velocity.
Bremsstrahlung contributes to background radiation in X-ray tubes and particle accelerators.
It occurs due to the conservation of energy when a charged particle loses kinetic energy during deceleration.
Quantum mechanically, bremsstrahlung can be described by the interaction of an electron with the Coulomb field of a nucleus.
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Related terms
Photon: A quantum of electromagnetic radiation that carries energy proportional to its frequency.
X-ray Tube: A device used to generate X-rays by accelerating electrons and colliding them with a metal target.
Coulomb Field: The electric field generated by a charged particle according to Coulomb's law.