Major Contributors Responsible for the Discovery of X-Rays: The Collective Strand of Science

This article invites readers to go through the analysis of the original documents published by William Crookes (1832–1919), Heinrich Rudolf Hertz (1857–1894) and Philipp Lenard (1862–1947), as well as Röntgen’s first communication on the new type of radiation obtained by means of Crookes tubes to, through clippings of these documents, investigate whether it is legitimate to state that the discovery of X-rays by Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1845–1923) can or should be considered “accidental”, as we see in the basic Chemistry and Physics books. The end of the 19th century was marked by a great interest by the scientific community in the study of the properties of radiation and the identification of X-rays. The latter immediately demonstrated its importance and usefulness in research under development. Applications such as obtaining images of the body constitution of men and animals, and the structural identification of crystals and different types of molecules were described in the works of countless scholars. Thus, based on a historiographical perspective that takes into account the construction of science as a collective knowledge, we present information that supports the evolution of ideas, minimizing or discarding the influence of chance and strengthening Röntgen’s research method. We believe that we are also reaffirming the importance of the History of Science in the context of building school knowledge.

Keywords:
X-rays; History of Science; Science Teaching; Crookes Tube; Wilhelm Röntgen