PHY121 : Example Problems

Week 11: Modern Physics

Q1. Use the Stefan-Boltzamann law to calculate the temperature of the sun, given that the
sun has a radius of 0.7 1011 m from the earth, and the rate at which the total solar
radiation falls on the earth is 1.36 103 J/m2 s.
Q2. The power rating of a light bulb tells how much electrical power is supplied. An
incandescent bulb of power rating P = 100 W has a tungsten filament of diameter
d = 0.40 mm and length l = 30 cm. The emissivity e of tungsten is 0.26. At what
temperature does the filament operate?
Q3. Light of frequency 0.85 1015 Hz falls on a metal surface. If the maximum kinetic
energy of the photoelectron is 1.7 eV, what is the work function of the metal?
Q4. The threshold wavelength for the photoelectric effect in tungsten is 270 nm.
Calculate the work function of tungsten, and calculate the maximum kinetic energy that a
photoelectron can have when radiation of 120 nm falls on tungsten.
Q5. Incident photons strike a sodium surface having a work function = 2.2 eV causing
photoelectric emission. When a stopping potential V0 = 5.0 V is imposed, there is no
photocurrent. What is the wavelength of the incident photons?
Q6. (a) If the work function for a metal is 1.8 eV, what would be the stopping potential
for light having a wavelength of 4.0 10-7 m?
(b) What would be the maximum velocity of the emitted photoelectrons at the metals
surfaces?