Do x-ray photons travel at the speed of light?

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Multiple Choice

Do x-ray photons travel at the speed of light?

Photons move at the speed of light in vacuum. That is their fundamental property as quanta of electromagnetic radiation. When x-rays pass through matter, they interact with atoms, which causes attenuation and scattering, but these interactions don’t meaningfully slow the photon down; the speed remains essentially the same as light traveling through air or vacuum. In practice, for x-ray imaging the speed is still extremely close to c, so saying x-ray photons travel at the speed of light is correct.

Photons move at the speed of light in vacuum. That is their fundamental property as quanta of electromagnetic radiation. When x-rays pass through matter, they interact with atoms, which causes attenuation and scattering, but these interactions don’t meaningfully slow the photon down; the speed remains essentially the same as light traveling through air or vacuum. In practice, for x-ray imaging the speed is still extremely close to c, so saying x-ray photons travel at the speed of light is correct.

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