Then, they placed a small plastic window in the vacuum chamber, which is sensitive to high energy electrons, and allowed them to obtain X-ray images of their fingers. The phenomenon got an explanation: as the tape gets peeled, electrons are ejected, and as they reach the other side of the tape, they generate X-rays.
“Of the total electron discharges, only one in ten thousand makes X-rays,” Escobar explained. Although the discovery is truly remarkable, the scientists are still puzzled about one aspect: how come the scotch tape is so heavily charged.
The scientists said they will continue to conduct experiments on several other types of scotch tape, and at the same time, highlighted the importance of the discovery for countries where classically-generated X-ray technology is not an alternative due to extremely high costs.
