PHYS 1120 Exam 2 NAME:______________________________

Student ID #__________________________________________________

Section number and TA Name:___________________________________

Exam Version 0002

Please do not open the exam until you are asked to.
• Your exam should have 7 pages, numbered E2.1 thru E2.7.
• This exam consists of 15 multiple choice questions, worth 5 points each, and a long-answer section
worth 25 points, for a total of 100 points.
• Write your answers in the space provided on each page for the written question. Use the back of
the page if needed. Circle the correct letter for the multiple choice questions. SHOW YOUR
WORK ON THE WRITTEN QUESTIONS. Full credit will be given only for the correct answer
accompanied by your reasoning.

PLEASE!!
1. Print your name on each page in the space provided.
2. Print your student Identification Number on the page above.
3. Bubble your name, ID, and exam version number on the bubble sheet provided.
4. Write the name of your TA neatly in the big blank space at the bottom of the bubble sheet.
TA's names are Charles Bailey, Jeremy Brown, Craig Hogle, Daniel McKinnon, and Youngwoo Yi

I recommend:
Don’t waste time erasing on the written problems. Just put a line through defective reasoning. Ask for
more paper if needed.
At the end of the exam, check that you have completed all the questions.

By handing in this exam, you agree to the following statement: "On my honor, as a University
of Colorado Student, I have neither given nor received unauthorized assistance on this work"

Signature______________________________________________

Possibly useful information:

k = 9.0x109 N.m2/C2, basic charge unit 1.6x10-19 C, ε0 = 8.85x10-12 C2/(N.m2)
Electrostatic potential of a point charge (chosen to be zero at infinite distance).

Electric field magnitude from a surface charge density.

Good luck!

Spring 2008 E2.1 Second Midterm V2

PHYS 1120 Exam 2 NAME:______________________________
Circle the closest answer and Bubble in questions 1-15 ON YOUR BUBBLE SHEET!

1. A total current, I, is flowing through a copper bar that has been machined as shown in the
following figure. In which region is the drift velocity largest?

A) A B) B C) C D) Drift velocity is the same in all three regions.

The following two questions refer to this situation: Two C1 2V

capacitors, one of capacitance C1=0.5 microfarads and the
other, C2= 2 microfarads, are both charged by attaching them
across batteries. C1 is attached across a 2 volt battery. C2 is
attached across a 1 volt battery..

2. The ratio of the energies stored in the two capacitors C2 1V

is:
A) 2 B) 1/2 C) 4 D) 1 e) None of these.

3. The two capacitors shown above have identical dimensions

(same plate separation d and same plate area, A) but one of the two capacitors has an air gap and
the other has a plastic dielectric between the plates. Which capacitor has the dielectric?
A) Capacitor 1 B) Capacitor 2 C) impossible to tell without further information

4. Two parallel metal plates of area 1 m2 are separated by a distance of 1 millimeter, and have no
dielectric between them. The plates are charged by applying 1000 volts between them. The
magnitude of the electric field between the plates is:
A) 106 V/m B) 1000 V/m C) 8.85x10-15 V/m D) 8.85x10-9 V/m E) None of these.

Spring 2008 E2.2 Second Midterm V2

PHYS 1120 Exam 2 NAME:______________________________
The following two questions refer to this situation: Consider two identical positively charged particles,
each has charge +Q. The two particles are placed a distance R apart in empty space. Assume that the
potential is defined to be zero at infinity.

+Q +Q

5. The electric potential at the point exactly half way between the particles is:
A) B) C) D) E) zero

6. The potential energy of the system is ... (assume voltage = 0 and PE = 0 at infinity.)
A) B) C) D) E) zero

As is shown in the figure to the right charge of -Q is located a

distance, r, from the origin and at 45 degrees above the x-axis.
Similarly, a charge of +Q is located the same distance, r, from the
origin, but at 45 degrees below the x-axis. Assume that the
potential is zero at infinity.

7. The voltage at the origin is:

A) B) C) D) zero E) none of these

8. A positive charge of 1 Coulomb is placed at rest, near another

positive point charge +Q. The voltage is 375 V at the initial location of the 1 C charge. The 1 C
charge is released from rest and is repelled from the charge +Q and after some time, it is very far
away and in a region of space where the voltage is very close to zero. At that later time, the kinetic
energy of the 1 C charge is nearly:
A) -375 J B) +375 J C) +187 J D) -187 J E) zero

Spring 2008 E2.3 Second Midterm V2

PHYS 1120 Exam 2 NAME:______________________________

9. A capacitor of C=4 microFarads is charged

by placing it across a 5 volt battery (switch
at position ‘a’ in the figure). The capacitor
is then connected across an R= 20 Ohm
resistor and is allowed to discharge (switch
at position ‘b’ in the figure). Immediately
after connecting the resistor across the
capacitor, the current through the resistor is:

A) zero B) 250 milliAmp C) 100 Amp D) 8x10-5 Amp E) None of these

10. For the loop labeled, “L”, in the

figure, which of the following is a
correct Kirchoff potential equation?
A)
B)
C)
D)
E) None of the above. L

Spring 2008 E2.4 Second Midterm V2

PHYS 1120 Exam 2 NAME:______________________________

11. An electron current of I = 15.0 amps flows for exactly 180 seconds. How many electrons flow
through the wire in that 180 second interval?
A) 2.8x1020 B) 1.60x10-19 C) 1.69x1022 D) 2700 E) None of these.

12. A resistor is made from copper wire with a resistivity of 1.57x10-8 Ohm-meter. The wire is
2 meters long and has a circular cross section of radius 0.1 millimeter. What is the resistance?
A) 0.25 Ohm B) 1E-4 Ohm C) 1.0 Ohm D) 3.14 Ohm E) None of these.

The following three questions refer to the circuit shown to

the right:.
B

13. In the circuit, all the resistors have the same A

resistance. Which statement is correct?: C
A) The same current flows through each resistor.
B) Each resistor has the same voltage drop.
C) Each resistor has the same power dissipation. V
D) None of the above.
E) All of the above.

14. If each resistor in the circuit above is 10 Ohms, then the total circuit resistance is:
A) 30 Ohms B) 20 Ohms C) 15 Ohms D) 3.33 Ohms E) None of these.

15. The ratio of the power dissipated by resistor A to the power dissipated by resistor B, PA/PB , is:
A) 1/4 B) 1/2 C) 1 D) 2 E) 4

Spring 2008 E2.5 Second Midterm V2

PHYS 1120 Exam 2 NAME:______________________________
FIRST Long Answer Problem:
You are interested in designing the electrical system for a small cabin. Electrical power will be
provided by a stack of ten 12 Volt batteries, for a total of 120 Volts. You will run four identical 100 W
light bulbs in the cabin. You might have wanted to wire your cabin with the bulbs in parallel.

A) You hire a contractor who makes a different

choice and wires your cabin light bulbs as
shown in the figure. We have shown the light B
bulbs as resistors. There is a switch in series
with light bulb, B, and it is closed. A C D

(i) Which bulb is the brightest? If two or

more are the brightest, state so V
explicitly and say which bulbs.
Explain.

(ii) Which bulb is the dimmest? If two or more are the dimmest, state so explicitly and say
which bulbs. Explain.

B) Your contractor has included a convenient switch. What happens to the brightness of the bulbs
compared to their initial brightness when you open the switch?

Bulb A: Brightness increases, decreases, or remains the same.

Bulb B: Brightness increases, decreases, or remains the same.

Bulb C: Brightness increases, decreases, or remains the same.

Bulb D: Brightness increases, decreases, or remains the same.

Spring 2008 E2.6 Second Midterm V2

PHYS 1120 Exam 2 NAME:______________________________
SECOND long answer problem

Two large conducting plates of total area, A, are placed parallel to each other a distance, D, apart. The
plates are connected by wires and a switch to a battery of voltage, VSTART, as shown. You can assume
that the plates are close enough to be described as a parallel plate capacitor, with total charge that
resides entirely on the inner surfaces of the plates. The switch has been closed for a very long time,
causing the plates to charge up to some total charge.

VSTART

A) When the top plate is moved closer to the bottom plate, does the magnitude of the electric field
(circle one) increase, decrease, or remain the same? Explain.

B) At the new, closer, position, is the magnitude of the surface charge density on the upper plate
(circle one) larger than, equal to, or less than the original surface charge density? Explain.

C) Now, the switch is opened. With the switch still opened, the top plate is moved back to the original
position. Once it has returned to the original position, is the potential difference between the plates,
VEND,(circle one) larger than, equal to, or less than the original voltage, VSTART? Explain.

Spring 2008 E2.7 Second Midterm V2