University of the Philippines

College of Science

PHYSICS 72
SET A

First Semester 2007-2008

First Long Examination

Name: _____________________________________________
National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

INSTRUCTIONS: Choose the BEST answer and shade the corresponding circle
on your answer sheet. To change your answer, cross-out and sign your original
answer and then shade your new answer. Computational devices (e.g. calculators,
mobile phones) are NOT allowed.

1. Consider a small metallic bead suspended from a thread. When a

positively-charged rod is brought near but not in contact with the bead,
the bead is attracted towards the rod. Which of the following statements
BEST describes the nature of the bead?

A. The bead is uncharged.

B. The bead is negatively-charged.
C. The bead is positively-charged.
D. A and B
E. None of the above

2. The magnitude of the repulsive force between two charges is F. If the

distance separating the charges is doubled, the ratio of the original electric
force with the new electric force (FORIGINAL/FNEW) is ___________.

A. 4
B. 2
C. 1
D. 1/2
E. 1/4

3. Consider two infinite planes of charge with surface charge densities !

and -2! as shown. At which point (A,B,C,D) will an electron have
the greatest magnitude of acceleration?
! !
+" -2"

A B C D

! !

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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

4. Consider two point charges +q fixed on the y-axis at y = +a and y = –a. A

very small gummy bear of mass m carrying a negative charge –q is initially
placed on a frictionless plane at the –x axis very close to the origin. Which of
the following statements BEST describes the subsequent motion of the
gummy bear?

+q y = +a
A. It will move to the left.
B. It will move to the right. Frictionless
C. It will move to the right and stop. Gummy plane
D. It will oscillate along the x-axis. Bear
E. It will go to TriNoMa.
x
–q

+q y = –a

5. Consider two identical charged half-rings lying in the xy and yz planes

respectively. What is the direction of the electric field at the origin?

+–
+ – z z
+ +
+–
+ +–
+ +– y y

+ – y

+ – x x
+ – +
– – – + A B
+
x + + +
z z z

y y y

x x x

C D E
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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

6. The electric field lines around a static electric dipole are best represented
by which of the following diagrams?

A B C D

E. None of the above

7. Consider an electric dipole immersed in a uniform electric field. If the dipole

experiences a net torque as shown, what is the direction of the external
electric field?

!
p
A B C D E

8. A point charge q1 = +4.00 nC is located on the x-axis at x = +2.00 m. A

second point charge q2 = !6.00 nC is on the y-axis at y = +1.00 m. What is
the total electric flux due to these two point charges through a spherical
surface centered at the origin and with radius 2.50 m?
A. +4.00 nC/!0
B. !6.00 nC/!0
C. !2.00 nC/!0
D. +10.00 nC/!0
E. zero

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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

9. A uniformly charged solid sphere of radius 1.00 cm generates an electric

field of magnitude 1.0 N/C at a distance of 2.00 cm away from its center.
What is the magnitude of the field 4.00 cm from the center?
A. 0.50 N/C
B. 0.30 N/C
C. 1.0 N/C
D. 0.25 N/C
E. 0.10 N/C
ur
10. The electric field E
is uniform throughout a certain region of space. A small
conducting sphere of radius R that carries a net charge Q is then placed in
this region. At electrostatic equilibrium, what is the net electric field
inside the sphere? Let r̂ be the unit vector pointing away from the sphere’s
center.
r
A. E
r
B. 2E
ur kQ
C. E + rˆ
r2
kQ
D. rˆ
r2
E. zero

11. Consider two identical spheres, each with radius R and charge +Q
uniformly distributed throughout each volume. One sphere of charge is
centered at the origin and the other at x = 2R, as sketched below. What is
the net electric field at the origin?
2kQ ˆ
A. i
R2
B. Zero
2kQ
C. ! 2 ˆ i
R
kQ ˆ
D. i
4R2
kQ ˆ
E. ! i
4R2

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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

12. Consider the three concentric conducting

spheres as shown. The innermost sphere is
solid, while the next two outer spheres are
hollow. The surfaces of the adjacent spheres
are separated from each other. The
innermost sphere has net charge +10 nC,
the next adjacent sphere has net charge
!15 nC, and the outermost sphere is
uncharged. At electrostatic equilibrium,
what is the net charge on the outer
surface of the outermost sphere?
A. +5 nC
B. !5 nC
C. +10 nC
D. !10 nC
E. +25 nC

13. Which of the following expressions correctly describes the electric field
magnitude outside a uniformly charged infinitely long cylindrical shell? Let
" be the linear charge density, R the radius of the cylindrical shell, and r the
perpendicular distance from the cylindrical shell’s axis.
!
A.
2"#0r
!
B.
"#0r
!
C.
2"#0R
!R
D.
2"#0r 2
E. Zero

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For problems 14 and 15, consider a hollow thin spherical shell of radius R and
total charge +q. A point charge –q is located a distance 2R away from the center
of shell.

R
+q
2R #q

14. If the shell is insulating and the charge +q is uniformly distributed, what is
the magnitude of the net electric field at the center of the shell?
A. Zero
B. kq/4R2
C. kq/R2
D. 2kq/R2
E. 5kq/4R2

15. If the shell is conducting and equilibrium has been established, what is the
magnitude of the electric field at its center?
A. Zero
B. kq/4R2
C. kq/R2
D. 2kq/R2
E. 5kq/4R2

16. An electron is immersed in a region with uniform electric field (solid arrow)
shown in the figure below. Which of the following paths (broken arrow) will
give the maximum work done by the electric field?

B D

A #e E

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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

17. Shown below are the cross sections of the equipotential surfaces between
two charged conductors. What is the direction of the electric field at point
P?

!15 V

10V 4V !10 V
1V

A B C D E

18. The electric potential in a region is given by

V (x, y ) = 20V + (10 V m ) x + (5 V m ) y
What is the corresponding electric field in the region?
r
A. E = (20 V m )ˆi
r
B. E = ! (35 V m )ˆi
r
C. E = 20 V m ! (10 V m )ˆ i ! (5 V m) ˆj
r
D. E = (10 V m )ˆi + (5 V m) ˆj
r
E. E = ! (10 V m )ˆi ! (5 V m) ˆj

19. Which of the following statements is/are TRUE?

A. Electric potential is a scalar quantity, normally measured in ‘volts’.

B. The term ‘voltage’ is equivalent to electric potential energy difference.
C. The electric potential at the vicinity of an isolated positive charge is
always positive.
D. A and C only
E. A, B and C

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20. Three point charges of equal magnitude Q are arranged at the vertices of an
equilateral triangle as shown below. What is the electric potential at the
center point P, a distance r from any of its vertices?
+Q

A. 2kQ/r
B. kQ2/r
C. kQ2/r
D. kQ/r P
E. zero
r
+Q !Q

21. A wire connects two charged metal spheres. The radius of Sphere B is twice
as that of Sphere A. What can be said about the electric potentials VA and
VB of spheres A and B, respectively, at electrostatic equilibrium?
A. VA = 2VB
B. VA = VB/2
C. VA = VB/4
D. VA = 4VB
E. VA = VB

22. A hydrogen atom contains one electron and one proton. To remove the
electron from the atom requires _________________.
A. negative work done by an external force
B. positive work done by an external force
C. positive work done by the electric field
D. zero work done on the atom
E. zero work done by the electric field

23. Two charges of equal magnitude but opposite charge are separated by a
distance r and has an electric potential energy Uo. What will be the electric
potential energy if the separation distance is doubled?
A. Uo
B. Uo/2
C. Uo/4
D. 2Uo
E. Zero

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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

24. Which of the following diagrams correctly describes the electric potential in
regions I, II, and III of a thick, positively charged, conducting wall of
infinite extent? Assume electrostatic condition.

I II III

V V V

A B C
V V

D E
25. Inside a Nokia 1110i charger is a cylindrical capacitor of capacitance C. This
capacitor accumulates charge Q when placed in a potential difference V.
When the potential difference across is quadrupled, which of the following
is TRUE regarding the new capacitance C’?
A. C’=4C
B. C’=2C
C. C’=C
D. C’=C/2
E. C’=C/4

26. Consider a parallel plate capacitor whose plates (P1 & P2) are of unequal
areas such that A1=2A2. When this capacitor is connected to a battery,
which of the following is TRUE regarding the charge magnitudes Q1 & Q2 on
each of its plates?
A. Q1=4Q2
B. Q1=2Q2
C. Q1=Q2
D. Q1=Q2/2
E. Q1=Q2/4
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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

27. A parallel plate capacitor is connected to a battery. After some time, the
battery is disconnected. The plate separation of the capacitor is then
halved. What is the new energy stored in the capacitor U’ in terms of its
previous value U?
A. U’=4U
B. U’=2U
C. U’=U
D. U’=U/2
E. U’=U/4

For problems 28, 29, & 30 consider the capacitor network consisiting of C1, C2
and C3 connected to an ideal battery with terminal voltage Vab= 12 V.

28. What is the equivalent capacitance of the capacitor network shown?

A. 16 µF
B. 7 µF
C. 3 µF
D. 12/7 µF
E. 1 µF

29. What is the charge stored on C1?

A. 72 µC
B. 36 µC
C. 24 µC
D. 18 µC
E. 6 µC

30. What is the potential difference Vcd?

A. 12 V
B. 9V
C. 6V
D. 3V
E. 1V

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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

31. Two isolated parallel plates have equal and opposite charges. When the
two plates are separated by air, the electric field in the region between the
two plates is E=4 x 104 V/m. When Jazz (reincarnated into a dielectric slab)
completely fills the space between the plates, the new electric field
E’=2 x 104 V/m. What is the dielectric constant of Jazz?
A. 4
B. 2
C. 1
D. "
E. #

32. The space between the plates of an isolated parallel plate capacitor is filled
with a dielectric slab. Thinking that it is an enemy, Optimus Prime then
takes the dielectric slab out. Which of the following statements is TRUE
regarding the potential energy stored by the capacitor before (U) and after
(U’) the dielectric slab was pulled out?
A. U’>U
B. U’<U
C. U’=U
D. U’=U/2
E. U’=0
r
33. The current density in a thin straight conducting wire is J = 1.6 A m2ˆ
i .
What is the drift velocity of the electrons in the wire if there are
1.0$1019electrons/m3. (Note: e = 1.6 $ 10-19C)
A. Zero
B. !0.10 m s ˆ
i
C. !1.0 m s ˆ
i
D. 1.0 m s ˆ
i
E. 10 m s ˆ
i

34. An ideal 10-V emf source is connected to a network of resistors with an

effective resistance of 10 %. What is the work done by the battery in one
second?
A. 1 J
B. 2 J
C. 8 J
D. 10 J
E. 20 J

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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

35. Two thin cylindrical metal wires, both made of the same material are at the
same temperature. Metal wire A has twice the length of metal wire B, but of
the same cross sectional area. The resistance in wire A is _______ that in
wire B.
A. One third
B. half
C. same as
D. twice
E. thrice

36. An ideal battery with an emf of 8.0 V is connected to a 4.0-% resistor. What
is the power dissipated by the resistor?
8.0
A. zero V
B. 0.5 W
C. 4.0 W
D. 8.0 W
E. 16 W

4.0 %
37. Kirchhoff’s loop or voltage rule follows directly from the conservation of
__________.
A. energy
B. charge
C. momentum
D. A and B
E. A and C

38. Consider an RC circuit connected to a battery with an initially uncharged

capacitor. Which of the following is TRUE?
A. Current linearly decreases.
B. Resistance of the resistor decreases linearly.
C. Emf supplied by the battery linearly decreases.
D. Charge on the capacitor exponentially increases.
E. Capacitance of the capacitor sinusoidally varies.

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National Institute of Physics 1st Semester AY 2007-2008 Physics 72

For problems 39 and 40: Four identical resistors, each of resistance R, are
connected to an ideal battery of emf V as shown.

R1

R4 R2

R3

39. What is the effective resistance in the circuit?

A. R
B. R/4
C. 3R/4
D. 4R/3
E. 4R

40. What is the current passing through R1?

A. V/R
B. V/4R
C. 3V/4R
D. 4V/3R
E. 4V/R

! END OF EXAM "

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