The Angular Distribution of Synchrotron Target Radiation: A Preliminary Experimental Study

The angular distribution of radiation from a synchrotron has been measured with an ionization chamber for a number of different target materials and thicknesses, and the results have been compared with a simple theory in which the radiation from a parallel beam of electrons striking a thin plate has been calculated. Detailed comparison with theory is not possible, because the precise way in which the electrons hit the target cannot be determined, nevertheless qualitative explanations have been found for most of the effects observed. The most important of these is the relative insensitivity of forward intensity and beam width to target size and material.