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Assignment 1

This document outlines 6 assignments related to probability distributions and statistics. Assignment 1 involves calculating the average number of defects for an electronic instrument and determining the most likely number. Assignment 2 deals with the probability distribution of gas molecules escaping a container. Assignment 3 is about the probability distribution of a man throwing darts. Assignment 4 involves determining average and root mean square energy deviations for an ideal gas. Assignment 5 considers probability distributions for dropping marbles into boxes. Assignment 6 compares uncertainties for Gaussian and exponential distributions. The assignments are due on September 3, 2019.

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Debopam Ray
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9 views

Assignment 1

This document outlines 6 assignments related to probability distributions and statistics. Assignment 1 involves calculating the average number of defects for an electronic instrument and determining the most likely number. Assignment 2 deals with the probability distribution of gas molecules escaping a container. Assignment 3 is about the probability distribution of a man throwing darts. Assignment 4 involves determining average and root mean square energy deviations for an ideal gas. Assignment 5 considers probability distributions for dropping marbles into boxes. Assignment 6 compares uncertainties for Gaussian and exponential distributions. The assignments are due on September 3, 2019.

Uploaded by

Debopam Ray
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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CHM 421/621 Assignment 1

September 2, 2019

Due on 3rd Sep., 2019.

1. In the manufacturing of an electronic instrument, it is found that the


probability P (n) that an instrument has n defects within six months is
:
P (0) = 0.1, P (1) = 0.4, P (2) = 0.25),
P (3) = 0.15, P (4) = 0.08, P (5) = 0.02

(a) What is the average number of defects of all the instruments in


the first 6 months?
(b) If you bought an instrument, what is the most likely number of
defects it would have in the first six months?
(c) If the manufacturer must repair the instrument, which of the num-
bers - (a) or (b) - is significant in determining his expense?

2. Gas molecules are allowed to escape a container through a circular slit


made on one of the walls on to a screen placed some distance away from
the wall. The probability that a molecule would land on the screen in
region of area dxdy around (x, y) is given by

1 L2
f (x, y)dxdy =
π (L2 + x2 + y 2 )

where L is a constant. The origin is assumed to be a point on the


screen directly below the slit.

1
(a) Determine the probability distribution F (r, θ) for a molecule to
reach a region of extent drdθ on the screen located at (r, θ), where
r and θ are polar coordinates on the screen.
(b) Determine the radial probability distribution of the molecules on
the screen R(r).
(c) On an average, how far away from the screen do the molecules
hit?
(d) What is the most probable distance of detection on the screen?
(e) Compute r2 .

3. A man who enjoys throwing darts at a vertical pole placed against a


wall finds from long experience that the probaility of a dart’s hitting
the wall at a distance x from the center of the pole (where x = 0) is
well represented by the distribution function
λ 2 2
f (x) = √ e−λ (x−x0 ) (−∞ ≤ x ≤ ∞)
π

where λ and x0 are constants.

(a) What is the average distance x̄ by which he misses the target in


terms of λ and x0 ?
(b) If he throws 200 darts, what is the probable number of darts that
hit between x1 and x1 + dx?

4. Consider a system of N molecules of a mono-atomic ideal gas contained


in a volume V and in thermal contact with a reservoir at temperature
T . Given that the possible microstates (r, p of the system follow the
probability distribution
1
ρ(E(r, p)) = exp(−βE)
Q(N, V, T )
V N h

where Q(N, V, T ) = Λ3 , Λ = √2πmk BT
, E is the energy of the
microstate and β = 1/kB T . Determine the average energy as well as
the root mean square deviation from the average energy of the system.
Show that the latter is related to the specific heat at constant volume
of the gas.

2
5. A black and a white marble are each dropped into one of four boxes.
Determine the possible number events. Using a reasonable assumption,
determine the uncertainty in the resulting distribution. What is the
uncertainty if the marbles must be in separate boxes? Explain the
reason for the difference in uncertainties in the two cases.

6. (a) Determine the uncertainty H for the Gaussian distribution func-


tion
λ 2 2
f (x) = √ e−λ (x−x0 ) (−∞ ≤ x ≤ ∞)
π
showing how it is related to var(x). Note that H is independent
of x0 . Why does this make sense?
(b) Determine H if

f (x) = ce−cx (0 ≤ x ≤ ∞)

showing how it is related to x̄. Prove that, if we make the var(x)


the same for the two distributions in parts (a) and (b) (by relat-
ing c and λ), then the uncertainty is greatest in the case of the
Gaussian distribution function.

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