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Lecturer: Recit section:

Physics 72 Problem Set

Instructions: Encircle the letter of the best answer for multiple choice questions. For other types of questions,
write your answer inside the box provided.
1. selp indak. A coil with a self-inductance of 6.5 H carries a current that is uniformly changing at a rate of
50 mA/s. What is the magnitude of the induced EMF in the coil?

A. 7.7 mV B. 32.5 mV C. 65 mV D. 325 mV

Solution: 6.5 50m = 325mV

For the next two items, consider a series L-R-C circuit with inductance L = 100 mH, capacitance C = 400 F
and an unknown resistance R.
2. Rrrrrr. What should R be so that the circuit would undergo underdamped oscillation with an angular fre-
quency of 150 rad/s?

A. 10 B. 50 C. 140 D. 150

q
1


Solution: R = 2L LC
2 = 10

3. Oh-see-lation. If R = 40 , which of the following correctly describes the magnitude of the charge in the
capacitor?

A. It oscillates but with decreasing amplitude. C. It is always zero.

B. It decreases over time. D. It is constant and greater than zero.

p
Solution: If R = 40, the system is greater than the the R = 4L/C = 31.62 which is the value of
R for a critically damped circuit so the circuit is overdamped. Therefore, the charge decreases over time.

4. Solenoid Heussaff. A tightly wound solenoid with N turns and length l carries current I. What is the
magnetic energy density inside the solenoid?

0 N 2 I 2 N 2I 2 20 N 2 I 2 2N 2 I 2
A. B. C. D.
2l2 20 l2 l 0 l
 Solution:
1
U = LI 2
2
1 0 N 2 A

= I2
2 l

5. induc-THOR. A flat spiral air-core inductor coil has self-inductance L = 40 H. The current i in this inductor
decreases uniformly from 8.0 A to 4.0 A in 2.0 s. What is the magnitude and direction of the self-induced
emf?
A. 20 V, along the direction of i
B. 40 V, opposite to direction of i
C. 80 V, along the direction of i
D. 240 V, opposite to direction of i

di
Solution: |E| = L| dt |, deccreasing current: direction of emf same with direction of current

6. Q(t)p2t. Consider the following figure for an underdamped LRC circuit. What functions best describe the
dashed lines? Take a > 0.

a B. eat C. e+at a
A. D.
t t2

Solution: envelope of underdamped RLC is exponential

7. Too much! Consider an LRC circuit with a 1.0- resistor. Which of the following values of inductance and
capacitance will result to overdamping?

A. L = 4.0 H, C = 1.0 F C. L = 0.5 H, C = 4.0 F

B. L = 1.0 H, C = 0.5 F D. L = 0.25 H, C = 0.25 F

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 4L
Solution: Find R2 > C

8. Mutually Assured. Two identical coils situated near each other have a mutual inductance of 3 H. A steady
current of 5 A linearly decreases to zero in a span of 1 second. What is the average induced EMF in the second
coil during the whole duration?

A. +15 V B. 15 V C. +18 V D. 18 V

Solution: Only the duration when the current was changing matters i.e.

E = M i/t = (3.0 V s/A)(5.0 A)/(1 s) = 15 V

For the next two items, consider the circuit shown. The capacitor is
initially charged to Q0 . The switch is then flipped from 1 to 2 to form
an LC circuit. The angular frequency is taken to be .

9. Charge. If the stored charge in the capacitor decreases to half its initial value, what is the magnitude of the
current passing through the inductor at that instant?

1 2 3 D. Q0
A. Q0 B. Q 0 C. Q 0
2 2 2

Q20 Q20
Solution:

For q= Q0 /2, we have 2C
= 8C
+ 12 Li2 by energy conservation. Solving for i gives i =
3
Q or i = 23 Q0 .
2 LC 0

10. Time. What time will the magnitude of the current through the inductor reach half its maximum value at the
first instance?

A. B. C. D.
6 4 3 2

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 Solution: One may use the expressions for q(t) and i(t), or construct the reference circle, which comes

from energy conservation.

11. Omega. Consider a fully-charged 10-F capacitor after being connected to a 3.0-V battery. The capacitor
is then disconnected from the battery and connected in series to an inductor with L = 400 mH. What is the
angular frequency of the electrical oscillations?

A. 2.5 102 rad/s C. 2.5 105 rad/s

B. 5.0 102 rad/s D. 5.0 105 rad/s

1
Solution: =
LC
1
=p
(10F )(400mH)
= 500 rad/s

12. MagnItic. If the current through an inductor is doubled while the inductance is kept constant, how would the
energy stored in the inductor change ?

A. doubled B. quadrupled C. halved D. quartered

Solution: 1/2LI 2

Anything you want to tell your lecturer?

Anything you want to tell your recit teacher?

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