Peak kilovoltage

Peak kilovoltage (kVp) is the maximum voltage applied across an X-ray tube. It determines the kinetic energy of the electrons accelerated in the X-ray tube and the peak energy of the X-ray spectrum. The actual voltage across the tube may fluctuate.

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Not only does kVp control the contrast of the X-ray, it affects the density in two ways. As kVp is the energy of the stream of electrons is also increased resulting in a higher part penetration. Increasing kVp also causes more radiation to be produced, which includes scattered radiation, which increases the density ("blackness") on the film.