Sultan Qaboos University

PHYS2108 Midterm Exam FL22

Monday, 7th November, 2022
Time: 75 minutes (06:10 – 07:25) PM

Name: ________________________________

ID #: _________________________________

Circle your section #: 10 20 30 40

DO NOT WRITE IN THE BOX BELOW

MCQ / 12 P1 / 12 P2 / 10 P3 / 14 P4 / 12 Total / 60

Instructions:

1. Part A: Answer ALL MCQs. Answers to MCQs must be written in the boxes below

2. Part B: Answer All Problems. Justify your Answers. Please show ALL STEPS of
problem-solving.

3. The answer must be with a reasonable number of significant figures and proper units

4. Answers to multiple choice questions MUST be written in the boxes below

5. Relax! Good luck

MCQ 1 MCQ 2 MCQ 3 MCQ 4 MCQ 5 MCQ 6 MCQ 7 MCQ 8

1
PART A: MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS (1.5 marks each)

Circle the correct answer:

MCQ 1. +5.0 C of charge are placed on a spherical conducting shell. A -2.0 C point charge is
placed at the centre of the cavity. The net charge on the inner surface of the shell is:

a) -3.0 C b) -2.0 C c) 0 C d) +2.0 C e) +3.0 C

MCQ 2. Object A has a charge of +2.0 C and object B has a charge of +4.0 C. Which is
true?

a) 𝐹 𝐵 𝑜𝑛 𝐴 = 2𝐹 𝐴 𝑜𝑛 𝐵 b) 𝐹𝐵 𝑜𝑛 𝐴 = −𝐹𝐴 𝑜𝑛 𝐵

c) 𝐹𝐵 𝑜𝑛 𝐴 = −2𝐹 𝐴 𝑜𝑛𝐵 d) 𝐹𝐵 𝑜𝑛 𝐴 = ½𝐹𝐴 𝑜𝑛 B

MCQ 3. The total electric flux through a closed surface in which a certain amount of charge
is placed depends on the

a) Shape of the surface b) Size of the surface

c) Both shape and size of the surface d) None of these

MCQ 4. A charge Q in μC is placed at the centre of a cube. The flux (N.m2/C) coming out
from any surface will be

𝑄 −6 𝑄 −3
a) 𝛷 = × 10 b) 𝛷 = × 10
6𝛆0 6𝛆0
𝑄 𝑄
c) 𝛷 = d) 𝛷 =
4𝛆0 8𝛆0

MCQ 5. The figures below show the equipotential surfaces. Three equal charges are placed
at the corners of an equilateral triangle. Which of the graphs below correctly shows the
equally-spaced equipotential surfaces in the plane of the triangle? (All graphs have the same
scale.)

a) A b) B c) C d) D e) E

2
MCQ 6. A point charge Q is held fixed in a place and another point charge q is brought
closer to it moving at constant velocity. Which of the following statement(s) is (are) true?

I. The electrostatic potential energy of q increases as it is brought closer to Q if q and Q

are of the same sign.
II. The work done by the electrostatic force is positive if q and Q are of the same sign.
III. The work done by an external force to bring q closer to Q is positive if q and Q are of
the opposite sign.
IV. The work done by an external force to bring q closer to Q is negative if q and Q are of
the opposite sign.

a) I only. b) II only. c) I and II only. d) I and IV only. e) II and III only.

MCQ 7. A parallel plate capacitor is connected to a battery of electric potential difference V.

If the plate separation is decreased what happens to the energy stored by the capacitor:

a) Increases.
b) Decreases
c) Stays the same
d) Decreases by half
e) Decreases by quarter

MC 8. A conductor A and B are made of the same material. A has diameter D. B has the
same length as A but its diameter is 4D. The same potential difference is applied across A
and B. Compare the current in A (I a) with that in B (Ib).

a) Ia = Ib b) Ia = Ib/4 c) Ia = 4Ib
d) Ia = Ib/16 e) Ia = 16Ib

3
PART B: PROBLEMS:

P1. Consider the four charges shown in the figure. The value of each charge and its position
are labelled. [12 marks]

a) What is the electric field vector, E, at the origin?

i) What would be the force vector, F, if a charge -Q is placed at the origin?

State your answer in unit vector notations, i , j and k

Answer:
a)

b)

4
P2. A very long and thin cylindrical shell of radius 4𝑅 has a uniform surface charge density
𝜎. It is concentric with a line of charge with uniform charge density 𝜆.

a) Find the magnitude of the electric field for :

I. 0 < 𝑟 < 4𝑅
II. r > 4𝑅 , where 𝑟 is the perpendicular distance from the line charge.
b) Find the potential differences 𝑉(5𝑅) − 𝑉(𝑅).
[10 marks]

Answer:

b)

5
P3. For the given circuit:

a) Find the capacitance value of the third capacitor (C3) if the distance between plates is
8.85 mm and the area of each plate is 25x10-4 m2.
b) Find the equivalent capacitance value between points ‘“a” and “b”.
c) Find the potential energy stored in the second charged capacitor (C2).

[14 marks]

Ans:

1. a) b)

c)

6
P4. The figure below shows a coaxial cable of length l with an inner radius a, and an outer
radius b. Assuming the total charge carried by the inner surface is +Q and that of the outer
surface is -Q: [12 marks]

a) What is the electric field E in terms of radius r given that a < r < b?
b) What is the potential difference between the two radii (between points a and b)?
c) What is the capacitance per unit length in this configuration?