APPLIED PHYSICS

SELF TEST MCQs AND TRUE/FALSE QUIZ WITH ANSWERS

1. Introduction to Electronics
SELF TEST MCQs

1. Every known element has

(a) the same type of atoms (b) the same number of atoms
(c) a unique type of atom (d) several different types of atoms
2. An atom consists of
(a) one nucleus and only one electron (b) one nucleus and one or more electrons
(c) protons, electrons, and neutrons (d) answers (b) and (c)
3. The nucleus of an atom is made up of
(a) protons and neutrons (b) electrons
(c) electrons and protons (d) electrons and neutrons
4. Valence electrons are
(a) in the closest orbit to the nucleus (b) in the most distant orbit from the nucleus
(c) in various orbits around the nucleus (d) not associated with a particular atom
5. A positive ion is formed when
(a) a valence electron breaks away from the atom
(b) there are more holes than electrons in the outer orbit
(c) two atoms bond together
(d) an atom gains an extra valence electron
6. The most widely used semi-conductive material in electronic devices is
(a) germanium (b) carbon (c) copper (d) silicon
7. The difference between an insulator and a semiconductor is
(a) a wider energy gap between the valence band and the conduction band
(b) the number of free electrons
(c) the atomic structure
(d) answers (a), (b), and (c)
8. The energy band in which free electrons exist is the
(a) first band (b) second band (c) conduction band (d) valence band

9. In a semiconductor crystal, the atoms are held together by

(a) the interaction of valence electrons (b) forces of attraction
(c) covalent bonds (d) answers (a), (b), and (c)
10. The atomic number of silicon is
(a) 8 (b) 2 (c) 4 (d) 14
11. The atomic number of germanium is
(a) 8 (b) 2 (c) 4 (d) 32
12. The valence shell in a silicon atom has the number designation of
(a) 0 (b) 1 (c) 2 (d) 3
13. Each atom in a silicon crystal has
(a) four valence electrons
(b) four conduction electrons
(c) eight valence electrons, four of its own and four shared
(d) no valence electrons because all are shared with other atoms
14. Electron-hole pairs are produced by
(a) recombination (b) thermal energy (c) ionization (d) doping

15. Recombination is when

(a) an electron falls into a hole
(b) a positive and a negative ion bond together
 (c) a valence electron becomes a conduction electron
(d) a crystal is formed
16. The current in a semiconductor is produced by
(a) electrons only (b) holes only (c) negative ions (d) both electrons and holes
17. In an intrinsic semiconductor,
(a) there are no free electrons
(b) the free electrons are thermally produced
(c) there are only holes
(d) there are as many electrons as there are holes
(e) answers (b) and (d)
18. The process of adding an impurity to an intrinsic semiconductor is called
(a) doping (b) recombination (c) atomic modification (d) ionization
19. A trivalent impurity is added to silicon to create
(a) germanium (b) a p-type semiconductor
(c) an n-type semiconductor (d) a depletion region
20. The purpose of a pentavalent impurity is to
(a) reduce the conductivity of silicon (b) increase the number of holes
(c) increase the number of free electrons (d) create minority carriers
21. The majority carriers in an n-type semiconductor are
(a) holes (b) valence electrons (c) conduction electrons (d) protons
22. Holes in an n-type semiconductor are
(a) minority carriers that are thermally produced
(b) minority carriers that are produced by doping
(c) majority carriers that are thermally produced
(d) majority carriers that are produced by doping
23. A pn junction is formed by
(a) the recombination of electrons and holes
(b) ionization (c) the boundary of a p-type and an n-type material
(d) the collision of a proton and a neutron
24. The depletion region is created by
(a) ionization (b) diffusion (c) recombination (d) answers (a), (b), and (c)
25. The depletion region consists of
(a) nothing but minority carriers (b) positive and negative ions
(c) no majority carriers (d) answers (b) and (c)

TRUE/FALSE QUIZ

1. An atom is the smallest particle in an element. false

2. An electron is a negatively charged particle. true
3. An atom is made up of electrons, protons, and neutrons. true
4. Electrons are part of the nucleus of an atom. false
5. Valence electrons exist in the outer shell of an atom. true
6. Crystals are formed by the bonding of atoms. true
7. Silicon is a conductive material. false
8. Silicon doped with p and n impurities has one pn junction. true
9. The p and n regions are formed by a process called ionization. false
2. Diodes and Applications
SELF TEST MCQs

1. The term bias means

(a) the ratio of majority carriers to minority carriers
(b) the amount of current across a diode
(c) a dc voltage is applied to control the operation of a device
(d) neither (a), (b), nor (c)
2. To forward-bias a diode,
(a) an external voltage is applied that is positive at the anode and negative at the cathode
(b) an external voltage is applied that is negative at the anode and positive at the cathode
(c) an external voltage is applied that is positive at the p region and negative at the n region
(d) answers (a) and (c)
3. When a diode is forward-biased,
(a) the only current is hole current
(b) the only current is electron current
(c) the only current is produced by majority carriers
(d) the current is produced by both holes and electrons
4. Although current is blocked in reverse bias,
(a) there is some current due to majority carriers
(b) there is a very small current due to minority carriers
(c) there is an avalanche current
5. For a silicon diode, the value of the forward-bias voltage typically
(a) must be greater than 0.3 V
(b) must be greater than 0.7 V
(c) depends on the width of the depletion region
(d) depends on the concentration of majority carriers
6. When forward-biased, a diode
(a) blocks current (b) conducts current
(c) has a high resistance (d) drops a large voltage
7. A diode is normally operated in
(a) reverse breakdown (b) the forward-bias region
(c) the reverse-bias region (d) either (b) or (c)
8. The dynamic resistance can be important when a diode is
(a) reverse-biased (b) forward-biased
(c) in reverse breakdown (d) unbiased
9. The V-I curve for a diode shows
(a) the voltage across the diode for a given current
(b) the amount of current for a given bias voltage
(c) the power dissipation
(d) none of these
10. Ideally, a diode can be represented by a
(a) voltage source (b) resistance (c) switch (d) all of these
11. In the practical diode model,
(a) the barrier potential is taken into account
(b) the forward dynamic resistance is taken into account
(c) none of these
(d) both (a) and (b)
12. In the complete diode model,
(a) the barrier potential is taken into account
(b) the forward dynamic resistance is taken into account
(c) the reverse resistance is taken into account
(d) all of these
13. The average value of a half-wave rectified voltage with a peak value of 200 V is
(a) 63.7 V (b) 127.2 V (c) 141 V (d) 0 V
14. When a 60 Hz sinusoidal voltage is applied to the input of a half-wave rectifier, the output frequency
is
(a) 120 Hz (b) 30 Hz (c) 60 Hz (d) 0 Hz
15. The peak value of the input to a half-wave rectifier is 10 V. The approximate peak value of the
output is
(a) 10 V (b) 3.18 V (c) 10.7 V (d) 9.3 V
16. For the circuit in Question 15, the diode must be able to withstand a reverse voltage of
(a) 10 V (b) 5 V (c) 20 V (d) 3.18 V
17. The average value of a full-wave rectified voltage with a peak value of 75 V is
(a) 53 V (b) 47.8 V (c) 37.5 V (d) 23.9 V
18. When a 60 Hz sinusoidal voltage is applied to the input of a full-wave rectifier, the output frequency
is
(a) 120 Hz (b) 60 Hz (c) 240 Hz (d) 0 Hz
19. The total secondary voltage in a center-tapped full-wave rectifier is 125 V rms. Neglecting the
diode drop, the rms output voltage is
(a) 125 V (b) 177 V (c) 100 V (d) 62.5 V
20. When the peak output voltage is 100 V, the PIV for each diode in a center-tapped full-wave
rectifier is (neglecting the diode drop)
(a) 100 V (b) 200 V (c) 141 V (d) 50 V
21. When the rms output voltage of a bridge full-wave rectifier is 20 V, the peak inverse voltage
across the diodes is (neglecting the diode drop)
(a) 20 V (b) 40 V (c) 28.3 V (d) 56.6 V
22. The ideal dc output voltage of a capacitor-input filter is equal to
(a) the peak value of the rectified voltage
(b) the average value of the rectified voltage
(c) the rms value of the rectified voltage
23. A certain power-supply filter produces an output with a ripple of 100 mV peak-to-peak and a
dc value of 20 V. The ripple factor is
(a) 0.05 (b) 0.005 (c) 0.00005 (d) 0.02
24. A 60 V peak full-wave rectified voltage is applied to a capacitor-input filter. If f = 120 Hz,
RL = 10 k , and C = 10 F, the ripple voltage is
(a) 0.6 V (b) 6 mV (c) 5.0 V (d) 2.88 V
25. If the load resistance of a capacitor-filtered full-wave rectifier is reduced, the ripple voltage
(a) increases (b) decreases (c) is not affected (d) has a different frequency
26. Line regulation is determined by
(a) load current
(b) zener current and load current (c) changes in load resistance and output voltage
(d) changes in output voltage and input voltage
27. Load regulation is determined by
(a) changes in load current and input voltage
(b) changes in load current and output voltage
(c) changes in load resistance and input voltage
(d) changes in zener current and load current
28. A 10 V peak-to-peak sinusoidal voltage is applied across a silicon diode and series resistor.
The maximum voltage across the diode is
(a) 9.3 V (b) 5 V (c) 0.7 V (d) 10 V (e) 4.3 V
29. In a certain biased limiter, the bias voltage is 5 V and the input is a 10 V peak sine wave. If the
positive terminal of the bias voltage is connected to the cathode of the diode, the maximum
voltage at the anode is
(a) 10 V (b) 5 V (c) 5.7 V (d) 0.7 V
30. In a certain positive clamper circuit, a 120 V rms sine wave is applied to the input. The dc
value of the output is
(a) 119.3 V (b) 169 V (c) 60 V (d) 75.6 V
31. The input of a voltage doubler is 120 V rms. The peak-to-peak output is approximately
(a) 240 V (b) 60 V (c) 167 V (d) 339 V
32. If the input voltage to a voltage tripler has an rms value of 12 V, the dc output voltage is
approximately
(a) 36 V (b) 50.9 V (c) 33.9 V (d) 32.4 V
 33. When a silicon diode is working properly in forward bias, a DMM in the diode test position
will indicate
(a) 0 V (b) OL (c) approximately 0.7 V (d) approximately 0.3 V
34. When a silicon diode is open, a DMM will generally indicate
(a) 0 V (b) OL (c) approximately 0.7 V (d) approximately 0.3 V
35. In a rectifier circuit, if the secondary winding in the transformer opens, the output is
(a) 0 V (b) 120 V (c) less than it should be (d) unaffected
36. If one of the diodes in a bridge full-wave rectifier opens, the output is
(a) 0 V (b) one-fourth the amplitude of the input voltage
(c) a half-wave rectified voltage (d) a 120 Hz voltage
37. If you are checking a 60 Hz full-wave bridge rectifier and observe that the output has a 60 Hz
ripple,
(a) the circuit is working properly (b) there is an open diode
(c) the transformer secondary is shorted (d) the filter capacitor is leaky

TRUE/FALSE QUIZ

1. The two regions of a diode are the anode and the collector. false
2. A diode can conduct current in two directions with equal ease. false
3. A diode conducts current when forward-biased. true
4. When reverse-biased, a diode ideally appears as a short. false
5. Two types of current in a diode are electron and hole. true
6. A basic half-wave rectifier consists of one diode. true
7. The output frequency of a half-wave rectifier is twice the input frequency. false
8. The diode in a half-wave rectifier conducts for half the input cycle. true
9. PIV stands for positive inverse voltage. false
10. Each diode in a full-wave rectifier conducts for the entire input cycle. false
11. The output frequency of a full-wave rectifier is twice the input frequency. true
12. A bridge rectifier uses four diodes. true
13. In a bridge rectifier, two diodes conduct during each half cycle of the input. true
14. The purpose of the capacitor filter in a rectifier is to convert ac to dc. false
15. The output voltage of a filtered rectifier always has some ripple voltage. true
16. A smaller filter capacitor reduces the ripple. false
17. Line and load regulation are the same. false
18. A diode limiter is also known as a clipper. true
19. The purpose of a clamper is to remove a dc level from a waveform. false
20. Voltage multipliers use diodes and capacitors. true
3. Special-Purpose Diodes
SELF TEST MCQs

1. The cathode of a zener diode in a voltage regulator is normally

(a) more positive than the anode (b) more negative than the anode
(c) at +0.7 V (d) grounded
2. If a certain zener diode has a zener voltage of 3.6 V, it operates in
(a) regulated breakdown (b) zener breakdown
(c) forward conduction (d) avalanche breakdown
3. For a certain 12 V zener diode, a 10 mA change in zener current produces a 0.1 V change in
zener voltage. The zener impedance for this current range is
(a) 1 Ὼ (b) 100 Ὼ (c) 10 Ὼ (d) 0.1 Ὼ
4. The datasheet for a particular zener gives VZ 10 V at IZ 500 mA. ZZ for these conditions is
(a) 50 Ὼ (b) 20 Ὼ (c) 30 Ὼ (d) unknown
5. A no-load condition means that
(a) the load has infinite resistance (b) the load has zero resistance
(c) the output terminals are open (d) answers(a) and (c)

6. A varactor diode exhibits

(a) a variable capacitance that depends on reverse voltage
(b) a variable resistance that depends on reverse voltage
(c) a variable capacitance that depends on forward current
(d) a constant capacitance over a range of reverse voltages
7. An LED
(a) emits light when reverse-biased (b) senses light when reverse-biased
(c) emits light when forward-biased (d) acts as a variable resistance
8. Compared to a visible red LED, an infrared LED
(a) produces light with shorter wavelengths (b) produces light of all wavelengths
(c) produces only one color of light (d) produces light with longer wavelengths
9. Compared to incandescent bulbs, high-intensity LEDs
(a) are brighter (b) have a much longer life
(c) use less power (d) all of the above
10. An OLED differs from a conventional LED in that it
(a) requires no bias voltage
(b) has layers of organic material in the place of a pn junction
(c) can be implemented using an inkjet printing process
(d) both (b) and (c)
11. An infrared LED is optically coupled to a photodiode. When the LED is turned off, the reading
on an ammeter in series with the reverse-biased photodiode will
(a) not change (b) decrease
(c) increase (d) fluctuate

12. The internal resistance of a photodiode

(a) increases with light intensity when reverse-biased
(b) decreases with light intensity when reverse-biased
(c) increases with light intensity when forward-biased
(d) decreases with light intensity when forward-biased
13. A laser diode produces
(a) incoherent light (b) coherent light
(c) monochromatic light (d) both (b) and (c)
14. A diode that has a negative resistance characteristic is the
(a) Schottky diode (b) tunnel diode (c) laser diode (d) hot-carrier diode
15. In order for a system to function properly, the various types of circuits that
make up the system must be
(a) properly biased (b) properly connected (c) properly interfaced
 (d) all of the above (e) answers(a) and (b)

TRUE/FALSE QUIZ

1. The zener diode normally operates in reverse breakdown. true

2. A zener diode can be used as a voltage regulator. true
3. There is no current when a zener is in reverse breakdown. false
4. The varactor diode normally operates in forward bias. false
5. The varactor diode is used as a variable capacitor. true
6. The capacitance of a varactor varies directly with reverse voltage. false
7. The LED is based on the process of electroluminescence. true
8. The LED is normally operated in forward bias. true
9. OLED stands for operational light-emitting diode. false
10. The photodiode operates in reverse bias. true
11. The reverse current of a photodiode increases as the incident light increases. true
12. The light emitted by a laser diode is monochromatic. true