Assignment 3 2020-21

Physics-I: PH1001
January 22, 2021

1. Find the de Broglie wavelength of a 1.0 MeV proton. Is a relativistic calculation

needed?

2. Show that the de Broglie wavelength of a particle of mass m and kinetic energy KE
is given by
hc
λ= p .
KE(KE + 2mc2 )

3. To observe small objects, one measures the diffraction of particles whose de Broglie
wavelength is approximately equal to the object’s size.

(a) Determine the kinetic energy (in electron volts) required for electrons to resolve
a large organic molecule of size 10 nm, an atomic features of size 100 pm and a
nucleus of size 10 fm.
(b) Repeat these calculations using alpha particles in place of electrons.

4. (a) Derive a relativistically correct formula that gives the de Broglie wavelength of
a charged particle in terms of the potential difference V through which it has been
accelerated. (b) What is the non-relativistic approximation of this formula, valid for
eV  mc2 ?

5. An electron and a proton have the same kinetic energy. Compare the wavelengths
and the phase and group velocities of their de Broglie waves.
p
6. The phase velocity of ripples an a liquid surface is 2πS/λρ. Where S is the surface
tension and ρ the density of the liquid. Find the group velocity of the ripples.

7. The dispersion relation for a free relativistic electron wave is

p
ω(k) = c k 2 + m2 c2 /~2

Obtain expressions for the phase speed vp and group speed vg for this wave and show
that their product is constant, independent of k.

8. (a) Show that the phase velocity of the de Broglie waves of a particle of mass m and
de Broglie wavelength λ is given by
s
mcλ 2
 
vp = c 1 +
h

(b) Compare the phase and group velocities of an electron whose de Broglie wave-
length is exactly 1013 m.

9. A beam of neutrons that emerges from a nuclear reactor contains neutrons with a
variety of energies. To obtain neutrons with an energy of 0.050 eV, the beam is
passed through a crystal whose atomic planes are 0.20 nm apart. At what angles
relative to the original beam will the desired neutrons be diffracted?

Enjoy the problem sheet

Assignment 3 2020-21

10. The lowest energy possible for a certain particle trapped in a certain box is 1.00 eV.
(a) What are the next two higher energies the particle can have? (b) If the particle is
an electron, how wide is the box?

11. (a) How much time is needed to measure the kinetic energy of an electron whose
speed is 10.0 m/s with an uncertainty of no more than 0.10 percent? How far
will the electron have traveled in this period of time?
(b) Make the same calculations for a 1.0 gram insect whose speed is the same. What
do these sets of figures indicate?

12. (a) Find the magnitude of the momentum of a particle in a box in its nth state.
(b) The minimum change in the particle’s momentum that a measurement can cause
corresponds to a change of ±1 in the quantum number n. If ∆x = L, show that
∆x∆p ≥ ~/2.

13. We wish to measure simultaneously the wavelength and position of a photon. Assume
the wavelength measurement gives λ = 500 nm to an accuracy to one part in a
million, that is, ∆λ/λ = 10−6 . Determine the minimum uncertainty in the position
of the photon.