Roentgen (unit) Roentgen (unit) The roentgen or röntgen () (symbol R) is a legacy unit of measurement for the exposure of X-rays and gamma rays. It is defined as the electric charge freed by such radiation in a specified volume of air divided by the mass of that air. In 1928 it was the first international measurement quantity for ionising radiation to be defined for radiation protection, and was an easily replicated method of measuring air ionization directly by using an ion chamber. It is named after the German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen, who discovered X-rays. Although relatively easy to measure, it had
Jaffe reaction medical school at the University of Berlin, he studied under Ludwig Traube and Wilhelm Kühne. Afterward, he worked as an assistant in a medical clinic in Königsberg. There, he co-authored a paper on putrid sputum with Ernst Viktor von Leyden that led to the discovery of certain characteristic putrid processes in the lungs. After earning his degree in internal medicine, he served in the Franco-Prussian War and was decorated with the Iron Cross Second Class. The title of "Extraordinary Professor of Medicinal Chemistry" was awarded to him in 1872 and the following year he became the first "Ordinary Professor of