Physics 102 Practice Final Exam Problems

Notes: This set of problems does not represent what may be on the final exam. You are responsible for all sections
covered from the course outline.
The will be 60 questions on the final exam. There are more than 60 questions here.

1. In simple harmonic motion, the restoring force must be proportional to the:

A) amplitude
B) frequency
C) velocity
D) displacement
E) displacement squared

2. In simple harmonic motion, the magnitude of the acceleration is:

A) constant
B) proportional to the displacement
C) inversely proportional to the displacement
D) greatest when the velocity is greatest
E) never greater than g

3. A particle is in simple harmonic motion with period T. At time t = 0 it is at the equilibrium point. At
which of the following times is it furthest from the equilibrium point?
A) 0.5T
B) 0.7T
C) T
D) 1.4T
E) 1.5T

4. A particle moves back and forth along the x axis from x = –xm to x = +xm, in simple harmonic motion with
period T. At time t = 0 it is at x = +xm. When t = 0.75T:
A) it is at x = 0 and is traveling toward x = +xm
B) it is at x = 0 and is traveling toward x = –xm
C) it is at x = +xm and is at rest
D) it is between x = 0 and x = +xm and is traveling toward x = –xm
E) it is between x = 0 and x = –xm and is traveling toward x = –xm

5. When a body executes simple harmonic motion, its acceleration at the ends of its path must be:
A) zero
B) less than g
C) more than g
D) suddenly changing in sign
E) none of these

6. An object attached to one end of a spring makes 20 vibrations in 10 seconds. Its angular frequency is:
A) 0.79 rad/s
B) 1.57 rad/s
C) 2.0 rad/s
D) 6.3 rad/s
E) 12.6 rad/s

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 7. A 0.20-kg object mass attached to a spring whose spring constant is 500 N/m executes simple harmonic
motion. If its maximum speed is 5.0 m/s, the amplitude of its oscillation is:
A) 0.0020 m
B) 0.10 m
C) 0.20 m
D) 25 m
E) 250 m

8. A particle moves in simple harmonic motion according to x = 2cos(50t), where x is in meters and t is in
seconds. Its maximum velocity in m/s is:
A) 100 sin(50t)
B) 100 cos(50t)
C) 100
D) 200
E) none of these

9. A 0.25-kg block oscillates on the end of the spring with a spring constant of 200 N/m. If the system has an
energy of 6.0 J, then the amplitude of the oscillation is:
A) 0.06 m
B) 0.17 m
C) 0.24 m
D) 4.9 m
E) 6.9 m

10. A 0.25-kg block oscillates on the end of the spring with a spring constant of 200 N/m. If the system has an
energy of 6.0 J, then the maximum speed of the block is:
A) 0.06 m/s
B) 0.17 m/s
C) 0.24 m/s
D) 4.9 m/s
E) 6.9 m/s

11. A 0.25-kg block oscillates on the end of the spring with a spring constant of 200 N/m. If the oscillation is
started by elongating the spring 0.15 m and giving the block a speed of 3.0 m/s, then the maximum speed
of the block is:
A) 0.13 m/s
B) 0.18 m/s
C) 3.7 m/s
D) 5.2 m/s
E) 13 m/s

12. A 0.25-kg block oscillates on the end of the spring with a spring constant of 200 N/m. If the oscillation is
started by elongating the spring 0.15 m and giving the block a speed of 3.0 m/s, then the amplitude of the
oscillation is:
A) 0.13 m
B) 0.18 m
C) 3.7 m
D) 5.2 m
E) 13 m

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13. A block attached to a spring undergoes simple harmonic motion on a horizontal frictionless surface. Its
total energy is 50 J. When the displacement is half the amplitude, the kinetic energy is:
A) zero
B) 12.5 J
C) 25 J
D) 37.5 J
E) 50 J

14. If the length of a simple pendulum is doubled, its period will:

A) halve
B) increase by a factor of 2
C) decrease by a factor of 2
D) double
E) remain the same

15. A string, clamped at its ends, vibrates in three segments. The string is 100 cm long. The wavelength is:
A) 33.3 cm
B) 66.7 cm
C) 150 cm
D) 300 cm
E) need to know the frequency

16. "Beats" in sound refer to:

A) interference of two waves of the same frequency
B) combination of two waves of slightly different frequency
C) reversal of phase of reflected wave relative to incident wave
D) two media having slightly different sound velocities
E) effect of relative motion of source and observer

17. The largest number of beats per second will be heard from which pair of tuning forks?
A) 200 and 201 Hz
B) 256 and 260 Hz
C) 534 and 540 Hz
D) 763 and 774 Hz
E) 8420 and 8422 Hz

18. A column of argon is open at one end and closed at the other. The shortest length of such a column that
will resonate with a 200 Hz tuning fork is 42.5 cm. The speed of sound in argon must be:
A) 85.0 m/s
B) 170 m/s
C) 340 m/s
D) 470 m/s
E) 940 m/s

19. Two identical strings, A and B, have nearly the same tension. When they both vibrate in their fundamental
resonant modes, there is a beat of 3 Hz. When string B is tightened slightly, to increase the tension, the
beat frequency becomes 6 Hz. This means:
A) that before tightening A had a higher frequency than B, but after tightening, B has a higher
frequency than A
B) that before tightening B had a higher frequency than A, but after tightening, A has a higher
frequency than B
C) that before and after tightening A has a higher frequency than B
D) that before and after tightening B has a higher frequency than A
E) none of the above

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20. If the speed of sound is 340 m/s, the shortest closed pipe which resonates at 218 Hz is:
A) 23 cm
B) 17 cm
C) 39 cm
D) 78 cm
E) 1.56 cm

21. An organ pipe with both ends open is 0.85 m long. Assuming that the speed of sound is 340 m/s, the
frequency of the third harmonic of this pipe is:
A) 200 Hz
B) 300 Hz
C) 400 Hz
D) 600 Hz
E) none of these

22. Two small identical speakers are connected (in phase) to the same source. The speakers are 3 m apart and
at ear level. An observer stands at X, 4 m in front of one speaker as shown. The sound she hears will be
most intense if the wavelength is:

A) 5m
B) 4m
C) 3m
D) 2m
E) 1m

23. A coulomb is the same as:

A) an ampere/second
B) half an ampere ⋅ second2
C) an ampere/meter2
D) an ampere ⋅second
E) a newton ⋅meter2

24. A kiloampere ⋅hour is a unit of:

A) current
B) charge per time
C) power
D) charge
E) energy

25. The magnitude of the charge on an electron is approximately:

A) 1023 C
B) 10–23 C
C) 1019 C
D) 10–19 C
E) 109 C

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26. Two small charged objects repel each other with a force F when separated by a distance d. If the charge
on each object is reduced to one-fourth of its original value and the distance between them is reduced to
d/2 the force becomes:
A) F/16
B) F/8
C) F/4
D) F/2
E) F

27. A 5.0-C charge is 10 m from a –2.0-C charge. The electrostatic force is on the positive charge is:
A) 9.0 × 108 N toward the negative charge
B) 9.0 × 108 N away from the negative charge
C) 9.0 × 109 N toward the negative charge
D) 9.0 × 109 N away from the negative charge
E) none of these

28. Two identical charges, 2.0 m apart, exert forces of magnitude 4.0 N on each other. The value of either
charge is:
A) 1.8 × 10–9 C
B) 2.1 × 10–5 C
C) 4.2 × 10–5 C
D) 1.9 × 105 C
E) 3.8 × 105 C

29. Two electrons (e1 and e2) and an protin (p) lie on a straight line, as shown. The directions of the force of
e2 on e1, the force of p on e1, and the total force on e1, respectively, are:

A) →, ←, →
B) ←, →, →
C) →, ←, ←
D) ←, →, ←
E) ←, ←, ←

30. Two particles, each with charge Q, and a third particle, with a charge q, are placed at the vertices of an
equilateral triangle as shown. The total force on the particle with charge q is:

A) Parrallel to the left side of the triangle

B) Parrallel to the right side of the triangle
C) Parrallel to the bottom side of the triangle
D) perpendicular to the bottom side of the triangle
E) perpendicular to the left side of the triangle

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31. A particle with a charge of 5 × 10–6 C and a mass of 20 g moves uniformly with a speed of 7 m/s in a
circular orbit around a stationary particle with a charge of –5 × 10–6 C. The radius of the orbit is:
A) 0
B) 0.23 m
C) 0.62 m
D) 1.6 m
E) 4.4 m

32. As used in the definition of electric field, a "test charge":

A) has zero charge
B) has charge of magnitude 1 C
C) has charge of magnitude 1.6 × 10–19 C
D) must be an electron
E) none of the above

33. The units of the electric field are:

A) N ⋅ C2
B) C/N
C) N
D) N/C
E) C/m2

34. Two point particles,with charges of q1 and q2, are placed a distance r apart. The electric field is zero at a
point P between the particles on the line segment connecting them. We conclude that:
A) q1 and q2 must have the same magnitude and sign
B) P must be midway between the particles
C) q1 and q2 must have the same sign but may have different magnitudes
D) q1 and q2 must have equal magnitudes and opposite signs
E) q1 and q2 must have opposite signs and may have different magnitudes

35. Two point particles, one with charge +8 × 10–9 C and the other with charge–2 × 10–9 C, are separated by 4
m. The electric field in N/C midway between them is:
A) 9 × 109
B) 13,500
C) 135,000
D) 36 × 10–9
E) 22.5

36. Two charged point particle are located at two vertices of an equilateral triangle and the electric field is
zero at the third vertex. We conclude:
A) the two particles have charges with opposite signs and the same magnitude
B) the two particles have charges with opposite signs and different magnitudes
C) the two particles have identical charges
D) the two particles have charges with the same sign but different magnitudes
E) at least one other charged prticle is present

37. A 200-N/C electric field is in the positive x direction. The force on an electron in this field is:
A) 200 N in the positive x direction
B) 200 N in the negative x direction
C) 3.2 × 10–17 m/s2, in the positive x direction
D) 3.2 × 10–17 m/s2, in the negative x direction
E) 0

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38. An electron traveling north enters a region where the electric field is uniform and points north. The
electron:
A) speeds up
B) slows down
C) veers east
D) veers west
E) continues with the same speed in the same direction

39. An electron traveling north enters a region where the electric field is uniform and points west. The
electron:
A) speeds up
B) slows down
C) veers east
D) veers west
E) continues with the same speed in the same direction

40. If 500 J of work are required to carry a 40-C charge from one point to another, the potential difference
between these two points is:
A) 12.5 V
B) 20,000 V
C) 0.08 V
D) depends on the path
E) none of these

41. An electron is accelerated from rest through a potential difference V. Its final speed is proportional to:
A) V
B) V2
C) V
D) 1/V
E) 1 V

42. An electron volt is:

A) the force acting on an electron in a field of 1 N/C
B) the force required to move an electron 1 meter
C) the energy gained by an electron in moving through a potential difference of 1 volt
D) the energy needed to move an electron through 1 meter in any electric field
E) the work done when 1 coulomb of charge is moved through a potential difference of 1 volt

43. An electron has charge –e and mass me. A proton has charge e and mass 1840me. A "proton volt" is equal
to:
A) 1eV
B) 1840eV
C) (1/1840)eV
D) 1840eV
E)
(1 )
1840 eV

44. The units of capacitance are equivalent to:

A) J/C
B) V/C
C) J2/C
D) C/J
E) C2/J

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45. A parallel-plate capacitor has a plate area of 0.2 m2 and a plate separation of 0.1 mm. To obtain an electric
field of 2.0 × 106 V/m between the plates, the magnitude of the charge on each plate should be:
A) 8.9 × 10¯7C
B) 1.8 × 10¯6C
C) 3.5 × 10¯6C
D) 7.1 × 10¯6C
E) 1.4 × 10¯5C

46. A 2-µF and a 1-µF capacitor are connected in parallel and a potential difference is applied across the
combination. The 2-µF capacitor has:
A) twice the charge of the 1-µF capacitor
B) half the charge of the 1-µF capacitor
C) twice the potential difference of the 1-µF capacitor
D) half the potential difference of the 1-µF capacitor
E) none of the above

47. Capacitors C1 and C2 are connected in series. The equivalent capacitance is given by:
A) C1C2/(C1 + C2)
B) (C1 + C2)/C1C2
C) 1/(C1 + C2)
D) C1/C2
E) C1 + C2

48. Each of the four capacitors shown is 500 µF. The voltmeter reads 1000V. The magnitude of the charge,
in coulombs, on each capacitor plate is:

A) 0.2
B) 0.5
C) 20
D) 50
E) none of these

49. A flat iron is marked "120 volt, 600 watt". In normal use, the current in it is:
A) 2 A
B) 4 A
C) 5 A
D) 7.2 A
E) 0.2 A

50. An ordinary light bulb is marked "60 watt, 120 volt". Its resistance is:
A) 60 Ω
B) 120 Ω
C) 180 Ω
D) 240 Ω
E) 15 Ω

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51. Each of the resistors in the diagram is 12 Ω. The resistance of the entire circuit is:

A) 5.76 Ω
B) 25 Ω
C) 48 Ω
D) 120 Ω
E) none of these

52. A battery of emf 24 V is connected to a 6-Ω resistor. As a result, current of 3 A exists in the resistor. The
terminal potential difference of the battery is:
A) 0
B) 6 V
C) 12 V
D) 18 V
E) 24 V

53. Two identical batteries, each with an emf of 18 V and an internal resistance of 1 Ω, are wired in parallel
by connecting their positive terminals together and connecting their negative terminals together. The
combination is then wired across a 4-Ω resistor. The current in the 4-Ω resistor is:
A) 1.0 A
B) 2.0 A
C) 4.0 A
D) 3.6 A
E) 7.2 A

54. Two 110-V light bulbs, one "25 W" and the other "100 W", are connected in series to a 110 V source.
Then:
A) the current in the 100-W bulb is greater than that in the 25-W bulb
B) the current in the 100-W bulb is less than that in the 25-W bulb
C) both bulbs will light with equal brightness
D) each bulb will have a potential difference of 55 V
E) none of the above

55. A galvanometer has an internal resistance of 12 Ω and requires 0.01 A for full scale deflection. To convert
it to a voltmeter reading 3 V full scale, one must use a series resistance of:
A) 102 Ω
B) 288 Ω
C) 300 Ω
D) 360 Ω
E) 412 Ω

56. A certain voltmeter has an internal resistance of 10,000 Ω and a range from 0 to 12 V. To extend its range
to 120 V, use a series resistance of:
A) 1,111 Ω
B) 90,000 Ω
C) 100,000 Ω
D) 108,000 Ω
E) 120,000 Ω

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57. An electron moves in the negative x direction, through a uniform magnetic field in the negative y
direction. The magnetic force on the electron is:

A) in the negative x direction

B) in the positive y direction
C) in the negative y direction
D) in the positive z direction
E) in the negative z direction

58. A hydrogen atom that has lost its electron is moving east in a region where the magnetic field is directed
from south to north. It will be deflected:
A) up
B) down
C) north
D) south
E) not at all

59. A uniform magnetic field is directed into the page. A charged particle, moving in the plane of the page,
follows a clockwise spiral of decreasing radius as shown. A reasonable explanation is:

A) the charge is positive and slowing down

B) the charge is negative and slowing down
C) the charge is positive and speeding up
D) the charge is negative and speeding up
E) none of the above

60. An ion with a charge of +3.25 × 10−19.C is in region where a uniform electric field of 5 × 104. V/m is
perpendicular to a uniform magnetic field of 0.8 T. If its acceleration is zero then its speed must be:
A) 0
B) 1.6 × 104 m/s
C) 4.0 × 105 m/s
D) 6.3 × 105 m/s
E) any value but 0

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61. A cyclotron operates with a given magnetic field and at a given frequency. If R denotes the radius of the
final orbit, the final particle energy is proportional to:
A) 1/R
B) R
C) R2
D) R3
E) R4

62. The magnetic field a distance 2 cm from a long straight current-carrying wire is 2.0 ×10−5 T. The current
wire is:
A) 0.16 A
B) 1.0 A
C) 2.0 A
D) 4.0 A
E) 25 A

63. Two long parallel straight wires carry equal currents in opposite directions. At a point midway between
the wires, the magnetic field they produce is:
A) zero
B) non-zero and along a line connecting the wires
C) non-zero and parallel to the wires
D) non-zero and perpendicular to the plane of the two wires
E) none of the above

64. Two parallel wires carrying equal currents of 10 A attract each other with a force of 1 mN. If both
currents are doubled, the force of attraction will be:
A) 1 mN
B) 4 mN
C) 0.5 mN
D) 0.25 mN
E) 2 mN

65. Two parallel wires, 4 cm apart, carry currents of 2 A and 4 A respectively, in the same direction. The
force per unit length in N/m of one wire on the other is:
A) 1 × 10–3, repulsive
B) 1 × 10–3, attractive
C) 4 × 10–5, repulsive
D) 4 × 10–5, attractive
E) none of these

66. The sun is about 1.5 × 1011 m away. The time for light to travel this distance is about:
A) 4.5 × 1018 s
B) 8 s
C) 8 min
D) 8 hr
E) 8 yr

67. A ball is held 50 cm in front of a plane mirror. The distance between the ball and its image is:
A) 100 cm
B) 150 cm
C) 200 cm
D) zero
E) 50 cm

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68. A 5.0-ft woman wishes to see a full length image of herself in a plane mirror. The minimum length mirror
required is:
A) 5 ft
B) 10 ft
C) 2.5 ft
D) 3.54 ft
E) no answer: the farther away she stands the smaller the required mirror length

69. A candle C sits between two parallel mirrors, a distance 0.2d from mirror 1. Here d is the distance
between the mirrors. Multiple images of the candle appear in both mirrors. How far behind mirror 1 are
the nearest three images of the candle in that mirror?

A) 0.2d, 1.8d, 2.2d

B) 0.2d, 2.2d, 4.2d
C) 0.2d, 1.8d, 3.8d
D) 0.2d, 0.8d, 1.4d
E) 0.2d, 1.8d, 3.4d

70. Real images formed by a spherical mirror are always:

A) on the side of the mirror opposite the source
B) on the same side of the mirror as the source but closer to the mirror than the source
C) on the same side of the mirror as the source but closer to the mirror than the focal point
D) on the same side of the mirror as the source but further from the mirror than the focal point
E) none of the above

71. An erect object is in front of a convex mirror a distance greater than the focal length. The image is:
A) real, inverted, and smaller than the object
B) virtual, inverted, and larger than the object
C) real, inverted, and larger than the object
D) virtual, erect, and smaller than the object
E) real, erect, and larger than the object

72. A concave spherical mirror has a focal length of 12 cm. If an object is placed 6 cm in front of it the image
position is:
A) 4 cm behind the mirror
B) 4 cm in front of the mirror
C) 12 cm behind the mirror
D) 12 cm in front of the mirror
E) at infinity

73. An object is 30 cm in front of a converging lens of focal length 10 cm. The image is:
A) real and larger than the object
B) real and the same size than the object
C) real and smaller than the object
D) virtual and the same size than the object
E) virtual and smaller than the object

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74. An erect object is 2f in front of a convex lens of focal length f. The image is:
A) real, inverted, magnified
B) real, erect, same size
C) real, inverted, same size
D) virtual, inverted, reduced
E) real, inverted, reduced

75. A 3-cm high object is in front of a thin lens. The object distance is 4 cm and the image distance is –8 cm.
The image height is:
A) 0.5 cm
B) 1 cm
C) 1.5 cm
D) 6 cm
E) 24 cm

76. In a two lens microscope, the intermediate image is:

A) virtual, erect and magnified
B) real, erect and magnified
C) real, inverted and magnified
D) virtual, inverted and reduced
E) virtual, inverted and magnified

77. The work function for a certain sample is 2.3 eV. The stopping potential for electrons ejected from the
sample by 7.0 × 1014-Hz electromagnetic radiation is:
A) 0
B) 0.60 V
C) 2.3 V
D) 2.9 V
E) 5.2 V

78. When a hydrogen atom makes the transition from the second excited state to the ground state (at –13.6
eV) the energy of the photon emitted is:
A) 0
B) 1.5 eV
C) 9.1 eV
D) 12.1 eV
E) 13.6 eV

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Answer Key

1. D
2. B
3. B
4. A
5. E
6. E
7. B
8. C
9. C
10. E
11. D
12. B
13. D
14. B
15. B
16. B
17. D
18. C
19. D
20. C
21. D
22. E
23. D
24. D
25. D
26. C
27. A
28. C
29. D
30. D
31. B
32. E
33. D
34. C
35. E
36. E
37. D
38. B
39. C
40. A
41. C
42. C
43. A
44. E
45. D
46. A
47. A
48. B
49. C
50. D
51. B
52. D
53. C
54. E

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55. B
56. B
57. E
58. A
59. B
60. D
61. C
62. C
63. D
64. B
65. D
66. C
67. A
68. C
69. A
70. E
71. D
72. C
73. C
74. C
75. D
76. C
77. B
78. D

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