Physics 200
Physics 200
Physics 200
What is wrong with the statement: “Given any two bodies, the one
with the higher temperature contains more heat”?
Heat is energy in the process of being trensferred, not a form of
energy that is held or contained. Correct statement would be: (1)
“Given any two objects in thermal contact, the one with the higher
temperature will transfer heat to the other.” or (2) “Given any two
objects of equal mass, the one with the higher products of
absolute temperature and specific heat contains more internal
energy.”
A thermodinamic process occurs in which the entropy of a system
changes by –10 J/K. According to the second law of
thermodynamics, what can you conclude about the entropy
change of the environment?
The environment must have an entropy change of +10 J/K or
more.
8
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Electric Charges .
1
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Electric Charges ..
We now know that origin of charge is atom. Nature’s basis carrier of positive
electricity is the proton located in the nucleus of an atom, and protons never
moved from one material to another. Thus, when an object becomes
charged, it does so because it has either gained or lost nature’s basic carrier
of negative electricity, the electron.
An important characteristic of charge is that
electric charge is always conserved.
One object gains some amount of negative
charge while the other loses an equal
amount of negative charge and hence is
left with a positive charge. For example,
when a glass rod is rubbed with silk, the
silk obtains a negative charge that is equal
in magnitude to the positive charge on the
glass rod as negatively charged electrons
are transferred from the glass to the silk in the rubbing process. Likewise,
when rubber is rubbed with fur, electrons are transferred from the fur to the
rubber.
In 1909 Robert Millikan discovered that the charge is quantizied. This means
that charge occurs as discrete bundles in nature. Thus, an object may
have a charge of ±e, ±2e, and so on. An electron has a charge of –e. The
value of e is now known to be 1.6 10 19 C
2
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Coulomb’s Law
3
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Electric Field Lines
A convinient aid for visualizing electric field patterns is to draw lines pointing in
the direction of the electric field vector at any point. These lines, called
electric field lines, are related to the electric field in any region of space in
the following manner:
The electric field vector is tangent to the electric field lines at each point.
The number of lines per unt area through a surface perpendicular to the lines is
proportional to the strength of the electric field in a given region.
Thus the magnitude of electric field is large when the field lines are close
together and small when they are far apart.
4
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Electric Flux and Gauss’s Law
5
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Electric Potential
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Electric Potential Due to Point Charge
6
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Capacitance
A capacitor is a device used in a variety of electric circuits. For
example, to tune the frequency of radio receivers, eliminate
sparking in automobile ignition systems, or store short-term
energy in electronic flash units.
It consists of two parallel metal plates separated by a distance
of d. When used in an electric circuit, the plates are
connected to the positive and negative terminals of some
voltage source. When this connection is made, electrons are
pulled of one of the plates, leaving it with a charge of +Q,
and other plates with –Q .
The capacitance,C, of a capacitor is defined as the ratio of the magnitude of the
charge on either conductor to the magnitude of the potential difference between the
conductors Q
C
ΔV
Large capacitence is needed to store a large amount of charge for a given applied
voltage. Capacitence has SI units coulombs per volt, called farads 1F=1C/V. The
farad is a very large unit of capacitance. In practice, most typical capacitors have
capacitance ranging from microfarads to picofarads.
For example, the capacitance of a parallel-plate capacitor whose plates are separated
by air is
A
C ε0 , (ε 0 8.85 10 12
C 2 /Nm 2 is permitivity of free space)
d
where A is the area of one of the plates and d is the distance of the plates.
7
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Energy Stored in a Charged Capacitor
8
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Exercises .
9
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Exercises ...
If a suspended object A is attracted to object B, which is charged, can we conclude
that object A is charged?
No. Object A might have a charge opposite in sign to that of
B, but it also might be a neutral conductor. In the later case,
object B causes object A to be polarized, pulling charge of
one sign to the near face of A and pushing an equal amount
of charge of the opposite sign to the far face. Then the force
of attraction exerted on B by the induced charge on the near
side of A is slightly larger than the force of repulsion exerted
on B by the induced charge on the far side of A. Therefore,
the net force on A is toward B.
If a metal object receives a positive charge, does its mass increase, decrease, or
stay the same? What happens to its mass if the object receives a negative charge?
An object’s mass decreases very slightly (immeasurably) when it is given a positive
charge, because it loses electrons. When the object is given a negative charge, its
mass increases slightly because it gains electrons.
In fair weatherm there is an electric field at the surface of the Earth, pointing down
into the ground. What is the electric charge on the ground in this situations?
Electric field lines start on positive charges and end on negative charges. Thus, if the
fair weather field is directed into the ground, the ground must have a negative
charge.
10
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 12) Exercises .....
11
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 13) Electric Current
1
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 13) Resistivity
2
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 13) Combinations of Resistors
Electrical devices are often rated with a voltage and a current (for
example, 120 V, 5 A). Batteries, however, are only rated with a
voltage (for example, 1.5 V). Why?
An electrical appliance has a given resistance. Thus, when it is
attached to a power source with a known potential difference, a
definite current will be drawn. The device can be labeled with both the
voltage and the current. Batteries, however, can be applied to a
number of devices. Each device will have a different resistance, so the
current from the battery will vary with the device. As a result, only the
voltage of the battery can be specified.
Why is it possible for a bird to sit on a high-voltage wire without being
electrocuted?
The bird is resting on a wire of a fixed potential. In order to be
electrocuted, a potential difference is required. There is no potential
(very low) difference between the bird’s feet.
3
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 13) Exercises ..
4
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 13) Magnets
Most people have had experience with some form of magnet. Iron objects are
most strongly attracted to the ends of magnet, called its poles. One end is
called the north pole and the other the south pole. The names come from
the behaviour of a magnet in the presence of the Earth’s magnetic field
(north pole points to the north of the Earth).
Magnetic poles also exert attractive or repulsive forces on each other similar to
the electrical forces between charged objects. Like poles repel each other
and unlike poles attract each other.
Electric charges can be isolated, but magnetic poles cannot. Magnetic poles
always occur in pairs.
Magnetism can be induced in some materials. For example, if a piece of
unmagnetized iron is placed near a strong permanent magnet, the piece of
iron eventually becomes magnetized. Iron is easily magnetized but also tend
to lose their magnetism easily. In contrast, cobalt and nickel are difficult to
magnetize but tend to retain their magnetism.
Recall that an electric field surrounds any electric charge. The region of space
surrounding a moving charge also includes a magnetic field.
5
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 13) Magnetic Fields
Stationary charged particle does not interact with a static magnetic field.
However, when moving through a magnetic field a charged particle
experiences a magnetic force. This force has its maximum value
when the charge moves perpendicularly to the magnetic field lines. It
becomes zero when the particle moves along the field lines.
The SI unit if magnetic field is the tesla (T). For example, the Earth’s
magnetic field near its surface is abut 0.00005 T.
From a simple experiment it is possible to
demonstrates that a current-carrying
conductor produces a magnetic field
(first found by Oersted, 1820).
If a long straight wire is bent into a coil of several closely spaced loops, the
resulting device is a solenoid. This device is important in many applications
because it acts as a magnet only when it carries a current. The magnitude
of the magnetic field B inside a solenoid increases with the current I and is
proportional to the number of coils per unit length N/l
N
B μ0 I, μ0 4π 10 7 Tm/A (permeability of free space)
l
6
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 13) Exercises
7
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 14) Maxwell’s Predictions
1
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 14) Production of Electromagnetic Waves .
Because the oscillating charges create a current in the rods, a magnetic field is
also generated. The magnetic field lines circle the antenna and are
perpendicular to the electric field at all points. Both fields are perpendicular
to the direction of motion of the wave. Hence, we see that an
electromagnetic wave is a transverse wave.
At great distance from the antenna, the strengths of he electric and magnetic
fields become very weak.
2
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 14) The Spectrum of Electromagnetic Waves .
c λf
3
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 14) The Spectrum of Electromagnetic Waves ...
Visible light, the most familiar form of electromagnetic waves, may be defined
as the part of the spectrum that is detected by a human eye. Light is produced
by the rearrangement of electrons in atoms and molecules. The wavelength of
visible light are classified as colors ranging from violed, 400 nm, to red, 700 nm.
The eye’s sensitivity is
a function of wavelength
and is greatest at
a wavelength of about
560 nm (yellow-green).
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 14) The Spectrum of Electromagnetic Waves ....
Ultraviolet light (UV) covers wavelengths ranging from about 400 nm to 0.6
nm. The Sun is an important source of ultraviolet light (which is the main cause
of suntans). Most of the ultraviolet light from the Sun is absorbed by atoms in
the upper atmosphere, or stratosphere. This is fortunate, because UV light in
large quantities has harmful effects on humans. One important constituent of the
stratosphere is ozone from reactions of oxygen with ultraviolet radiation. This
ozone shield converts lethal high-energy ultraviolet radiation to heat, which
warms the stratosphere.
X-rays are electromagnetic waves with wavelengths from about 10 nm to 0.1
pm. The most common source of x-rays is the acceleration of high-energy
electrons bombarding a metal target. X-rays are used as a diagnostic tool in
medicine and as a treatment for certain forms of cancer. Because x-rays damage
or destroy living tissues and organisms, care must be taken to avoid unnecessary
exposure and overexposure.
Gamma rays are emitted by radioactive nuclei. They are highly penetrating and
cause serious damage when absorbed by living tissues. Those working near such
radiation must be protected by garments containing heavily absorbing materials,
such as layers of lead.
4
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 14) Exercises .
5
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 15) The Nature of Light
Until the beginning of the 19th century, light was considered to be a stream of
particles, emitted by a light source, that stimulated the sence of sight on entering
the eye. That was proposed by Newton.
During Newton’s lifetime Christian Huygens proposed another theory – wave theory of
light. The wave theory did not receive immediate acceptance because there were
not clear experimental evidence and also due to Newton’s great reputation as a
scientist. The first clear demonstration of the wave nature of light was provided in
1801 by Thomas Young, who showed that light exhibits interference behavior.
That is, for example, at certain points in the vicinity of two sources, light waves can
combine and cancel each other by destructive interference.
The most important development concerning the theory of light was the work of
Maxwell, who in 1865 predicted that light was a form of electromagnetic wave.
Althought his theory explained most known properties of light, some subsequent
experiments could not be explained by the assumption that light was a wave. The
most striking of these was the photoelectric effect (clean metal surfaces emit
charges when exposed to ultraviolet light).
In 1905 Einstein formulated theory of light quanta and explained the photoelectric
effect. He conclused that light is composed of corpuscles (photons) with energy
proportional to the frequency of the electromagnetic wave, E=hf, where h is
Planck’s constant.
Thus, light must have a dual nature. That is, in some cases light acts as a wave
and in others as a particle, but never acts as both in the same experiments.
1
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 15) Geometric Optics
Firstly, our discussion of light will be concerned with what happens when light
passes through some optic materials or reflects from them (lenses, mirrors,
etc). Explanations of such phenomena can be done by geometrical analysis
of light rays. That part of optics is often called geometric optics.
First property of light, inside geometric optics, can be understood based on
common experience: light travels in a straight line path until it
encounters a boundary between
two different materials. When
light strikes a boundary it either is
reflected from the boundary,
passes into the material on the
other side of the boundary, or
partially does both.
We use the ray approximation to
represent beams of light.
θ1' θ1
2
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 15) Refraction of Light
3
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 15) Dispersion of Light
4
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 15) Total Internal Reflection
5
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 15) Exercises ..
6
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 16) Flat Mirrors
A distance, p, of a point light source (called object)
in front of a flat mirror is called the object
distance. Light rays leave the source and are
reflected from the mirror. After reflection, the reys
diverge (spread apart), but they appear to the
viewer to come from a point behind the mirror,
called the image of the object. Images are
formed at the point at which rays of light actuylly
intersect or at which they appear to originate.
A distance, q, of the image is called image distance.
Images are classified as real or virtual. A real image is one in which light
actually intersects, or passes through, the image point; a virtual image is
one in which the light does not pass through the image point but appears to
come (diverge) from that point. The image formed by the flat miror in the
figure is a virtual image. Real images can
be displayed on a screan, but virtual
images cannot.
The image formed by an object placed in
front of a flat mirror is as far behind
the mirror as the object is in front of
the mirror, p=q.
1
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 16) Refracting Surfaces
2
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 16) Thin Lenses
A typical thin lens consists of a piece of glass or plastic, ground so that each of
its two refracting surfaces is a segment of either a sphere or a plane. Lenses
are commonly used to form images by refraction in optical instruments,
such as cameras, microscopes, and telescopes. The equation that relates
object and images distances for a lens
1 1 1
p q f
is virtually identical to the mirror equation.
Lenses can be placed in two groups. The lenses that are
thicker at the center than at the tim are called
converging lenses, and those that are thinner
at the center than at the rim are diverging lenses.
1 1 1
( n 1)
f R1 R2
3
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 16) Lens Aberrations
One of the basic problems of lenses is the imperfect quality of the images. The
departures of real (imperfect) images from the ideal predicted by the simple
theory are called aberrations. Two common types of abrreations are
spherical and chromatic aberrations.
Spherical aberration results from the fact that the focal points of light rays far
from the principal axis of a spherical lens (or mirror) are different from the
focal points of rays passing near the axis. In the case of mirrors one can
minimize spherical aberration by employing a parabolic rather than spherical
surface (but they are very expensive).
The fact that different wavelenghts of light refracted by a lens focus at
different points rise to chromatic aberration. When light passes through a
lens, for example, voilet light rays are
refracted more than red light rays.
Chromatic aberration can be greatly
reduced by the use of a combination
of converging and diverging lenses
made from two different types of glases.
4
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 16) Exercises ..
5
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 16) Exercises ....
6
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 16) Exercises ,.
7
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 17) Interference
Our discussion of light has been concerned with what happens when light
passes through a lens or reflects from a mirror. Explanations of such
phenomena rely on a geometric analysis of light rays. That part of optics is
called geometric optics. Interference, diffraction, and polarization are
phenomena that cannot be adequatly explained with ray optics, but the
wave theory leads us to satisfying description. That part of optics we call
wave optics.
In our discussion of interference of mechanical waves (Part 7), we found that
two waves could add together either constructively or descructively. In
conscructive interference, the amplitude of the resultant wave is greater
than that of either of the individual waves, whereas in descructive
interference, the resultant amplitude is less than that of either individual
wave. Electromagnetic waves also undergo interference. Furthermore, all
interference associated with electromagnetic waves arises from the
combining of the electric and magnetic fields that constitute the individual
waves.
Interference effects in light waves are not easy to observe because of the short
wavelengths involved (about 400-750 nm). For sustained interference
between two sources of light to be observed, the sources must contain a
constant phase with respect to each other (must be coherent), and must
have identical wavelengths.
If the light truly traveled in straight-line paths after passing through the slits,
the waves would not overlap and no interference pattern would be seen.
But, the light deviates from a straight-line path and enters the region that
would otherwise be shadowed. This divergence of light from its initial line of
travel is called diffraction.
In general, diffraction occurs when waves pass through small opening, around
obstacles, or by sharp edges.
This phenomena cannot be
explained within the
framework of geometric
optics, which says that light
rays traveling in straight lines.
1
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 17) Polarization
The most common technique for polarizing light is to use a material that
transmits waves whose electric field vectors are in a plane parallel to a
certain direction and absorbs those waves whose electric field vectors are in
directions perpendicular to that direction.
In 1932, Land discovered a material, called
polaroid, that polarizes light through
selective absorption by oriented molecules.
This material is fabricated in thin sheets of
long-chain hydrocarbons. The molecules
absorb light whose electric field vector is
perpendicular to their lengths.
2
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 17) Polarization by Reflection .
When an unpolarized light beam is reflected
from a surface, the reflected light is
completely polarized, partially polarized,
or unpolarized, depending on the angle
of incidence. If the angle of incidence is
either 0° or 90°, the reflected beam is
unpolarized. However, for angles of
incidence between 0° or 90°, the
reflected light is polarized to some
extent. For one particular angle of
incidence, the reflected beam is
completely polarized. This angle is called
the polarizing angle (or Brewster’s
angle), and it is valid
tan θ p n
where n is relative index of refraction.
This occurs when the angle between the
reflected and refracted beams is
90°.
3
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 17) Polarization by Scattering
4
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 17) The Eye .
Like the camera, the eye gathers light and produces a sharp image. The front
of the eye is covered by a transparent membrane called the cornea. Inward
from the cornea are a clear liquid region (the aqueous humur), a variable
aperture (the iris surrounding the pupil), and the crystalline lens. Most of
the refraction occurs in the cornea, because the liquid medium surrounding
the lens has an average
index of refraction close
to that of the lens. The
iris, the colored portion
of the eye, is a muscular
diaphragm that
regulates the amount of
light entering the eye by
dilating the pupil
(increasing its diameter)
in light of low intensity
and contracting the pupil
in high-intensity light.
Light entering the eye is focused by the cornea-lens system onto the back
surface of the eye, called the retina. The surface of the retina consists of
millions of sensitive receptors called rods and cones. When stimulated by
light, these structures send impulses via the optic nerve to the brain, where
a distinct image of an object is perceived.
The eye focuses on a given object by varying the shape of the pliable
crystalline lens through an amazing process called accommodation. An
important component in accommodation is the ciliary muscle, which is
attached to the lens. It is evident that there is a limit to accomodation,
because objects that are very close to the eye produce blurred images. The
near point is the smallest distance for which the lens will produce a sharp
image on the retina. This distance usually increases with age.
5
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 17) Defects of the Eye
An eye can have several abnormalities that keep it from functioning properly.
When the relaxed eye produces an image of a nearby object behind the
retina, the abnormality is known as hyperopia, and the person is said to be
farsighted. With this defect, distant object are seen clearly but near object
are blurred. Either the hyperopic eye is too short or the ciliary muscle
cannot change the shape of the lens enough to focus the image properly.
The condition can be corrected with a converging lens.
Another condition, known as myopia, or nearsightedness, occurs when a
distant object is focused in front of the retina. This can be corrected with a
diverging lens.
A common eye defect is astigmatism, in which light from a point source
produces a line image on the retina. This occurs when the cornea or the
lens are not perfectly spherical. A cylindrical lens is used to correct this.
The power, P, of a lens in diopters equals the inverse of the focal length in
meters. That is, P=1/f.
For example, a converging lens whose focal length is +20 cm has a power of
1/(+0.2 m)=+5 diopters, and a diverging lens whose focal length is –40 cm
has a power of 1/(-0.4 m)=-2.5 diopters.
6
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 17) Exercises .
7
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 18) Relativity
Most of our everyday experiences and observations deal with objects that
move at speeds much lower than the speed of light. Newtonian
mechanics and the early ideas on space and time were formulated to
describe the motion of such objects. Although Newtonian mechanics
works very well at low speeds, it fails when applied to particles whose
speeds approach that of light.
In 1905, Einstein published his special theory of relativity which covers
such phenomena. This theory is based on two postulates:
The laws of physics are the same in all inertial reference systems.
The speed of light in a vacuum is always measured to
be 300 000 km/s, and the measured value is
independent of the motion of the observer or of the
motion of the source of light.
E=mc²
called the rest energy, where m is mass of the object and c is speed of the
light. This famous mass-energy equivalence equation shows that mass is
one possible manifestation of energy. It shows that a small mass
corresponds to an enormous amount of energy.
1
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 19) Blackbody Radiation
λmaxT 2.898 10 3 mK
34
E hf (h 6.626 10 Js is Planck' s constant)
1
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 19) The Photoelectric Effect
Ek hf W
where W is called the work function of the metal. The work function
represents the minimum energy with which an electron is bound in the
metal.
Many practical devices in our everyday lives depend on the photoelectric effect.
For example, a use familiar to everyday is that of turning street lights on at
night and off in the morning. A photoelectric control unit in the base of the
light activates a switch to turn off the streetlight when ambient light of the
correct frequency falls on it.
h
λ
p
2
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 19) The Electron Microscope
3
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 19) The Uncertainty Principle ..
Suppose that Δx and Δpx represent the uncertainty in the measured values of
the particle’s position and momentum along the x axis at some instant. The
uncertainty principle says that the product Δx Δpx, is never less than a
number of the order of Planck’s constant h
h
ΔxΔp x
2π
That is, it is physically impossible to measure simultaneously the exact
position and exact momentum of a particle.
4
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 19) Exercises ..
5
CONTENTS M. Dželalija, Physics (Part 20) Early Models of the Atom
The model of the atom in the days of Newton was a tiny, hard,
indestrucible sphere.
Thomson suggested a model of the atom as a volume of positive charge
with electrons embedded throughout the volume.
Rutherford assumed that the positive charge in an atom was concentrated
in a region that was small relative to the size of the atom, called the
nucleus. Any electrons belonging to the atom were assumed to be in
the volume outside the nucleus, moving in the same manner as the
planets orbit the Sun.
Using the simplest atom, hydrogen, Bohr proposed a model of the
hydrogen atom based on a clever combination of classical and early
quantum concepts. His basic assumption – that atoms exist in discrete
quantum states of well-defined energy – was a bold break with classical
ideas. In spite of its successes, Bohr’s specific model of the hydrogen
atom was inconsistent with the uncertainty principle and was replaced
by the probability density model derived fom Schrödinger’s work.
If a voltage applied between metal electrodes in the tube (filled with some
gas), the tube emits light whose color is characteristic of the gas in the
tube. When the emitted light is analyzed with a spectrometer, a series of
lines is observed. Such a series of spectral
lines is commonly referred to as an
emission spectrum. The wavelengths
contained in a given line spectrum are
characteristic of the element emitting the
light. Because no two elements emit the
same line spectrum, this phenomenon
represents a marvelous and reliable
technique for identifying elements in a
substance.
An element can also absorb light at specific wavelengths, known as
absorption spectrum. The absorption spectrum consists of a series of
dark lines superimposed on the otherwise continuous spectrum. Each line in
the absorption spectrum of a given element coincides with a line in the
emission spectrum of the element.