ATP STEM

12 CBSE - CURRENT ELECTRICITY WORKSHEET

Class 12 - Physics
Time Allowed: 3 hours Maximum Marks: 262

1. Two cells of emfs 1.5 V and 2.0 V having internal resistances 0.2Ω and 0.3Ω respectively are connected in parallel.
Calculate the emf and internal resistance of the equivalent cell.
2. In the circuit shown in Figure, R1 = 4Ω , R2 = R3 = 5Ω , R4 = 10Ω and ε = 6 V. Work out the equivalent resistance of

the circuit and the current in each resistor.

3. 100 W, 220 V bulb is connected to 110 V source. Calculate the power consumed by the bulb.
4. One kilowatt electric heater is to be used with 220 V d.c. supply,
i. What is the current in the heater?
ii. What is its resistance?
iii. What is the power dissipated in the heater?
iv. How much heat in calories is produced per second?
v. How many grams of water at 100° C will be converted per minute into steam at 100° C, with the heater? Assume that
the heat losses due to radiation are negligible. Latent heat of steam = 540 cal per gram
5. A battery of emf 12.0 V and internal resistance 0.5 Ω is to be charged by a battery charger which supplies 110 V d.c.
How much resistance must be connected in series with the battery to limit the charging current to 5.0 A? What will be
the p.d. across the terminals of the battery during charging?

6. An electron beam has an aperture of 1.0 mm2. A total of 6 × 1016 electrons flow through any perpendicular cross-
section per second. Calculate
i. the current and
ii. the current density in the electron beam.
7. Current flows through a constricted conductor, as shown in Figure. The diameter D1 = 2.0 mm and the current density to

the left of the constriction is j = 1.27 × 106 Am-2.

i. What current flows into the constriction?
ii. If the current density is doubled as it emerges from the right side of the constriction, what is diameter D2?

8. The resistance of the rheostat shown in Figure is 30 Ω . Neglecting the meter resistance, find the minimum and maximum
current through the ammeter as the resistance of the rheostat is varied.

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 9. An accumulator of emf ε and internal resistance r is first connected to an external resistance R1 and then to an external
resistance R2 for the same time. For what value of r the heat dissipated in R1 and R2 will be the same?

10. A standard coil marked 2 Ω is found to have a resistance of 2.118 Ω at 30 ∘

C . Calculate the temperature at which the

marking is correct. The temperature coefficient of the resistance of the material of the coil is 0.0042∘ C-1.
11. A generator is supplying power to a factory by cables of resistance 20 Ω . If the generator is generating 50 kW power at
5000 V, what is the power received by the factory?

12. Given that resistivity of copper is 1.68 × 10-8 Ω m. Calculate the amount of copper required to draw a wire 10 km long

having resistance of 10 Ω . The density of copper is 8.9 × 103 kgm-3.

13. In Figure, ε and ε are respectively 2.0 V and 4.0 V and the resistances r1, r2 and R are respectively 1.0 Ω , 2.0 Ω and
1 2

5.0 Ω . Calculate the current in the circuit. Also, calculate:

i. potential difference between the points b and a,
ii. potential difference between a and c.

14. A potential difference of 200 V is applied to a temperature of 15°C and the current is 10 A. What will be the mean

temperature of the coil when the current has fallen to 5A, the applied voltage being same as before? Given α = °C-1
1

234

at 0°C.
15. Find the potential difference across each cell and the rate of energy dissipation in R.

16. Write the condition of balance in Wheatstone bridge. In the given Wheatstone bridge, the current in the resistor 3 R, is
zero. Find the value of R, if the carbon resistor, connected in one arm of the bridge, has the colour sequence of red, red
and orange [Figure].
The resistances, of BC and CD arms, are now interchanged and another carbon resistance X is connected in place of R so
that the current through the arm BD is again zero. Write the sequence of colour bands of this carbon resistor. Also, find

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 the value of the current through it.

17. R cells, each of emf e and internal resistance Y are connected in a closed circuit so that the positive terminal of a cell is
joined to the negative terminal of the next, as shown in Figure. Any two points of the circuit are connected by an external
resistance R. Find the current in R.

18. A series battery of 6 lead accumulators each of emf 2.0 V and internal resistance 0.50 Ω is charged by a 100 V d.c.
supply. What series resistance should be used in the charging circuit in order to limit the current to 8.0 A? Using the
required resistor, obtain:
i. the power supplied by the d.c. source
ii. the power supplied by the d.c. energy stored in the battery in 15 min.
19. The network PQRS, shown in the circuit diagram, has the batteries of 4 V and 5 V and negligible internal resistance. A
milliammeter of 20Ω resistance is connected between P and R. Calculate the reading in the milliammeter.

20. Two cells of emfs 1.5 V and 2.0 V and internal resistances 1 Ω and 2Ω respectively are connected in parallel so as to
send current in the same direction through an external resistance of 5 Ω .
i. Draw the circuit diagram.
ii. Using Kirchhoff's laws, calculate :
a. current through each branch of the circuit.
b. p.d. across the 5 Ω resistance.
21. A homogeneous poorly conducting medium of resistivity ρ fills up the space between two thin coaxial ideally
conducting cylinders. The radii of the cylinders are equal to a and b with a < b, the length of each cylinder is l.
Neglecting the edge effects, find the resistance of the medium between the cylinders.

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22. A network of resistors is connected to a 16 V battery with internal resistance of 1Ω as shown in figure

a. Compute the equivalent resistance of the network.

b. Obtain the current in each resistor
c. Also obtain the voltage drops VAB, VBC and VCD.

23. A current of 30 amperes is flowing through a wire of cross-sectional area 2 mm2. Calculate the drift velocity of
electrons. Assuming the temperature of the wire to be 27°C, also calculate the rms velocity at this temperature. Which

velocity is larger? Given that Boltzman's constant = 1.38 × 10-23JK-1, density of copper 8.9 g cm-3, the atomic mass of
copper = 63.
24. Using Kirchhoff ’s rules, calculate the current (Ig) that flows through the galvanometer of resistance 15 Ω in the circuit

diagram shown in the figure.

25. The 2.0 Ω resistor shown in (Figure) is dipped into a calorimeter containing water. The heat capacity of the calorimeter

together with water is 2000 JK-1.

i. If the circuit is active for 30 minutes, what would be the rise in the temperature of the water?
ii. Suppose the 6.00 resistor gets burnt. What would be the rise in the temperature of the water in the next 30 minutes?

26. a. Three resistors 2Ω, 4Ω and 5Ω are combined in parallel. What is the total resistance of the combination?
b. If the combination is connected to a battery of emf 20 V and negligible internal resistance, determine the current
through each resistor, and the total current drawn from the battery?
27. A metal wire of diameter 2 mm and length 100 m has a resistance of 0.5475 Ω at 20°C and 0.805 Ω at 150°C. Find:
i. the temperature coefficient of resistance
ii. resistance at 0°C

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 iii. resistivities at 0° and 20°C
28. Determine the current in each branch of the network shown in Fig.

29. A storage battery of emf 8.0 V and internal resistance 0.5 Ω is being charged by a 120 V dc supply using a series resistor
of 15.5 Ω . What is the terminal voltage of the battery during charging? What is the purpose of having a series resistor in
the charging circuit?
30. Two points A and B are maintained at a constant potential difference of 110 V. A third point is connected to A by two
resistances of 100 and 200 Ω in parallel, and to B by a single resistance of 300 Ω . Find the current in each resistance and
the potential difference between A and C and between C and B.
31. A galvanometer has a resistance of 30 ohm and a current of 2mA gives full-scale deflection. How much resistance in
what way must be connected to convert into
i. an ammeter of range 0.3 A?
ii. a voltmeter of range 0.2 V?
32. Find the current flowing through each cell in the circuit shown in the figure. Also, calculate the potential difference
across the terminals of each cell.

33. i. Use Kirchhoffs rules to obtain the balance condition in a Wheatstone bridge.

ii. Calculate the value of R in the balance condition of the Wheatstone bridge, if the carbon resistor connected across the
arm CD has the colour sequence red, red and orange, as shown in the figure.
iii. If now the resistance of the arms BC and CD are interchanged, to obtain the balance condition, another carbon
resistor is connected in place or R. What would now be sequence of colour bands of the carbon resistor?
34. A heating coil is connected in series with a resistance R. The coil is dipped in a liquid of mass 2 kg and specific heat 0.5
cal g-1oC-1. A potential difference of 200 V is applied and the temperature of the liquid is found to increase by 60°C in
20 minutes. If R is removed, the same rise in temperature is reached in 15 minutes. Find the value of R.
35. i. Define the term drift velocity of charge carriers in a conductor. Obtain the expression for the current density in terms
of relaxation time.

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 ii. A 100 V battery is connected to the electric network as shown. If the power consumed in the 2 Ω resistor is 200 W,
determine the power dissipated in the 5 Ω resistor.
36. Two cells of emfs 1.5 V and 2 V and internal resistances 2 Ω and 1 Ω respectively have their negative terminals joined
by a wire of 6 Ω and positive terminals by a wire of 4 Ω resistance. A third resistance wire of 8 Ω connects the middle
points of these wires. Draw the circuit diagram. Using Kirchhoff laws, find the potential difference at the end of this
third wire.
37. i. State Kirchhoffs rules.
ii. A battery of 10 V and negligible internal resistance is connected across the diagonally opposite corners of a cubical
network consisting of 12 resistors each of 1Ω resistance.

Use Kirchhoffs rules to determine

a. the total current in the network.
b. the equivalent resistance of the network
38. i. Define electrical conductivity of a wire. Give its SI unit.
ii. High current is to be drawn safely from (1) a low-voltage battery, and (2) a high-voltage battery. What can you say
about the internal resistance of the two batteries?
iii. Calculate the total energy supplied by the batteries to the circuit shown in the figure, in one minute.

39. A cell of emf ε and internal resistance r is connected to two external resistances R1 and R2 (R2 > R1) and a perfect
ammeter. The current in the circuit is measured in four different situations:
i. Without any external resistance in the circuit
ii. With resistance R1 only
iii. With resistance R2 only
iv. With both R1 and R2 used in series combination, and

v. With R1 and R2, used in parallel combination.

The currents measured in the four cases are 0.42 A, 0.6 A, 1.05 A, 1.4 A, and 4.2 A but not necessarily in that order.
Identify the currents corresponding to the four cases mentioned above.
40. i. State the two Kirchhoff's laws. Explain briefly, how these rules are justified?
ii. The current is drawn from a cell of emf E and internal resistance r connected to the network of resistors each of
resistance r as shown in the figure.
Obtain the expression for
a. the current draws from the cell and

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 b. the power consumed in the network

41. a. Consider circuit in Fig. How much energy is absorbed by electrons from the initial state of no current (ignore thermal
motion) to the state of drift velocity?

b. Electrons give up energy at the rate of RI2 per second to the thermal energy. What time scale would one associate
with energy in problem (a)?
n = no. of electron/volume = 1029/m3, length of circuit = 10 cm, cross-section = A = (1mm)2

42. i. The potential difference applied across a given resistor is altered, so that the heat produced per second increases by a
factor of 9. By what factor does the applied potential difference change?
ii. In the figure shown, an ammeter A and a resistor of 4Ω are connected to the terminals of the source. The emf of the
source is 12 V having an internal resistance of 2Ω . Calculate the voltmeter and ammeter readings.

43. a. Two cells of different emfs and internal resistances are connected in parallel with one another. Derive the expression
for the equivalent emf and equivalent internal resistance of the combination.
b. Two identical cells of emf 1.5 V and internal resistance r are each connected in parallel providing a supply to an
external circuit consisting of two resistances of 17 Ω each joined in parallel. A very high resistance voltmeter reads
the terminal voltage of the cell to be 1.4 V. Calculate the internal resistance of each cell.
44. i. Use Kirchhoff's rules, calculate the current in the arm AC of the given circuit.
ii. On what principle does the metre bridgework? Why are the metal strips used in the bridge?

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45. a. Derive a relation between the internal resistance, emf and terminal potential difference of a cell from which current I
is drawn. Draw V vs I graph for a cell and explain its significance.
b. A voltmeter of resistance 998 Ω is connected across a cell of emf 2 V and internal resistance 2 Ω . Find the potential
difference across the voltmeter and also across the terminals of the cell. Estimate the percentage error in the reading
of the voltmeter.
46. Find the emf (ε ) and internal resistance (r0) of a battery which is equivalent to a parallel combination of two batteries of
0

emfs ε and ε and internal resistances r1 and r2 respectively, with polarities as shown in the figure.
1 2

47. i. Find the emf E1 and E2 in the circuit of the following diagram and the potential difference between the points A and
B.

ii. If in the circuit, the polarity of the battery E1, be reversed, what will be the potential difference between A and B?

48. i. A cell emf of (E) and internal resistance (r) is connected across a variable load resistance (R). Draw plots showing
the variation of terminal voltage V with (I) R and (II) the current (I) in the load.
ii. Three cells, each of emf E but internal resistances 2r, 3r and 6r are connected in parallel across a resistor R.
Obtain expressions for (i) current flowing in the circuit, and (ii) the terminal potential difference across the equivalent
cell.
49. Determine the currents through the resistors R1, R2 and R3 shown in Figure.

50. Eight identical resistors 'r', each are connected along the edges of a pyramid having square base ABCD as shown in
figure below. Calculate equivalent resistance between A and B. Solve the problem:
i. Without using Kirchhoff's laws

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 ii. By using Kirchhoff's laws.

51. i. Obtain the condition under which the current flowing, in the current detecting device, used in the circuit shown in the
figure, becomes zero.

ii. Describe briefly the device, based on the above question. Draw a circuit diagram for this device and discuss, in brief,
how it is used for finding an unknown resistance.
52. A room has AC run for 5 hours a day at a voltage of 220V. The wiring of the room consists of Cu of 1 mm radius and a
length of 10 m. Power consumption per day is 10 commercial units. What fraction of it goes in the joule heating in
wires? What would happen if the wiring is made of aluminium of the same dimensions?
−8 −8
[ρcu = 1.7 × 10 , ρAl = 2.7 × 10 Ωm]
Ωm

53. A cell of emf ε and internal resistance r is connected across a variable load resistor R. Draw the plots of the terminal
voltage V versus
i. R and
ii. the current I.
54. An electric power station (100 MW) transmits power to a distant load through long and thin cables. Which of the two
modes of transmission would result in lesser power wastage: power transmission of:
i. 20,000 V or
ii. 200 V?
55. Two wires of equal length, one of copper and the other of manganin have the same resistance. Which wire is thicker?
56. Define the term resistance. Give physical explanation of the opposition offered by a conductor to the flow of current
through it.
57. State, with the help of a suitable diagram, the principle on which the working, of a metre bridge is based. Under what
conditions is the error in determining the unknown resistance minimized?
58. A student connects a cell, of emf ε and internal resistance r2 with a cell of emf ε and internal resistance r1, such that
2 1

their combination has a net internal resistance less than r1. This combination is then connected across a resistance R.

Draw a diagram of the 'set-up' and obtain an expression for the current flowing through the resistance.
59. Two conductors are made of the same material and have the same length. Conductor A is a solid wire of diameter 1mm.
Conductor B is a hollow tube of outer diameter 2mm and inner diameter 1mm. Find the ratio of resistance RA to RB.
60. Define the conductivity of a conductor and state its SI unit. State and explain the variation of conductivity of

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 i. good conductor
ii. ionic conductor with temperature.
61. What does the ammeter A read in the circuit shown in Figure? What if the positions of the cell and the ammeter are
interchanged?

62. i. Differentiate between the random velocity and the drift velocity of electrons in an electrical conductor. Give their
order of magnitudes.
ii. A conductor of uniform cross-sectional area is connected across a dc source of variable voltage. Draw a graph
showing variation of drift velocity of electrons (vd) as a function of current density (J) in it.

63. a. A cell of emf E and internal resistance r is connected to two external resistances R1 and R2 and a perfect ammeter.

The current in the circuit is measured in four different situations:

i. without any external resistance in the circuit.
ii. with resistance R1 only
iii. with R1 and R2 in series combination.

iv. with R1 and R2 in parallel combination.

The currents measured in the four cases are 0.42 A, 1.05 A, 1.4 A and 4.2 A, but not necessarily in that order.
Identify the currents corresponding to the four cases mentioned above.
b. A variable resistor R is connected across a cell of emf E and internal resistance r as shown in the figure.
Plot a graph showing the variation of
i. Terminal voltage V and
ii. The current I, as a function of R
64. a. You are required to select a carbon resistor of resistance of 470Ω± 5% from a shopkeeper. What would be the
sequence of colour bands required to code the desired resistor?
b. Explain briefly why electric power from power stations to homes/factories is delivered via transmission cables at
high voltages.
65. i. Why do the free electrons, in a metal wire, flowing by themselves, not cause any current flow in the wire?
Define drift velocity and obtain an expression for the current flowing in a wire, in terms of the drift velocity of the
free electrons.
ii. Use the above expression to show that the resistivity, of the material of a wire, is inversely proportional to the
relaxation time for the free electrons in the metal.
66. i. Define the term of drift velocity.
ii. On the basis of electron drift, derive an expression for resistivity of a conductor in terms of number density of free
electrons and relaxation time. On what factors does resistivity of a conductor depend?
iii. Why alloys like Constantan and Manganin are used for making standard resistors?

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67. i. State Kirchhoff's rules. Use them to obtain the condition of balance for a Wheatstone Bridge.
ii. Use Kirchhoff's rule to determine the currents flowing through the branches MN, TO and SP in the circuit shown in
the figure.

68. Two cells of emf E1 and E2 have internal resistance r1 and r2. Deduce an expression for equivalent emf of their parallel
combination.
69. Derive an expression for drift velocity of free electrons.
70. When a battery of emf ε and internal resistance r is connected to a resistance R a current I flows through it. Derive the
relation between ε , I, r and R.
71. Define relaxation time of the free electrons drifting in a conductor. How it is related to the drift velocity of free
electrons? Use this relation to deduce the expression for the electrical resistivity of the material.
72. Use Kirchhoff's rules to obtain conditions for the balance conditions in a Wheatstone bridge.
73. i. Deduce the relation between current I flowing through a conductor and drift velocity vd of the electrons.

ii. Figure shows a plot of current I flowing through the cross-section of a wire versus the time t. Use the plot to find the
charge flowing in 10 through the wire.

74. i. Derive the relation between current density J and potential difference V across a current carrying conductor of length
l, area of cross-section A and the number density n of free electrons.

ii. Estimate the average drift speed of conduction electrons in a copper wire of cross-sectional area 1.0 × 10-7 m2

carrying a current of 1.5 A. [Assume that the number density of conduction electrons is 9 × 1028 m-3]
75. i. Define the term conductivity of a metallic wire. Write its SI unit.
ii. Using the concept of free electrons in a conductor, derive the expression for the conductivity of wire in terms of
number density and relaxation time. Hence obtain the relation between current density and the applied electric field
E.

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