Patent ID: 8054944

Claim:
A method for operating an x-ray tube, comprising the steps of: from each of a plurality of different emitters, emitting an electron beam that strikes a surface of an anode, each electron beam, upon striking said surface of said anode, causing an x-ray beam to be generated from the surface of the anode, each x-ray beam having an intensity distribution and said x-ray beams, in combination, having a superimposed intensity distribution that is a superimposition of the respective intensity distributions of the x-ray beams; with a detector, measuring said superimposed intensity distribution; supplying the measured superimposed intensity distribution to a processor and, in said processor, optimizing emission of said x-rays from said surface of said anode dependent on said superimposed intensity distribution; focusing said x-ray beams using respective deflection units that respectively interact with the respective electron beams emitted by said different emitters; and controlling each of said deflection units with a common control unit dependent on said superimposed intensity distribution.