Which are the main exposure factors used to determine receptor exposure?

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Receptor exposure is determined by the beam quantity reaching the image receptor and its energy. The tube current and exposure time (mA and exposure time) combine to produce a certain number of photons, so increasing this product (mAs) increases receptor exposure. The kilovoltage peak sets the energy of the photons; higher kVp makes photons more penetrating, so more of them reach the receptor and the beam quality changes, which also affects image appearance. The distance from the source to the image receptor follows the inverse square law, so increasing the distance reduces beam intensity at the receptor and lowers exposure unless you compensate with higher technique. Filtration and grids modify the beam as well: filtration removes low-energy photons, changing beam quality and typically reducing the number of photons reaching the receptor unless compensated, while grids absorb some photons to reduce scatter, which can also necessitate higher exposure to maintain receptor exposure but improves image quality. All of these factors together determine how much exposure the receptor actually receives.