PHYSICS

Class -XII
POINTS TO PONDER

Electric Charges and Fields

1. You might wonder why the protons, all carrying positive charges, are compactly residing
inside the nucleus. Why do they not fly away? You will learn that there is a third kind of a
fundamental force, called the strong force which holds them together. The range of distance
where this force is effective is, however, very small ~10-14 m. This is precisely the size of the
nucleus. Also the electrons are not allowed to sit on top of the protons, i.e. inside the
nucleus, due to the laws of quantum mechanics. This gives the atoms their structure as they
exist in nature.
2. Coulomb force and gravitational force follow the same inverse-square law. But gravitational
force has only one sign (always attractive), while Coulomb force can be of both signs
(attractive and repulsive), allowing possibility of cancellation of electric forces. This is how
gravity, despite being a much weaker force, can be a dominating and more pervasive force
in nature.

3. The constant of proportionality k in Coulomb’s law is a matter of choice if the unit of charge is
to be defined using Coulomb’s law. In SI units, however, what is defined is the unit of current
(A) via its magnetic effect (Ampere’s law) and the unit of charge (coulomb) is simply defined
by (1C = 1 A s). In this case, the value of k is no longer arbitrary; it is approximately 9 × 109
N m2 C–2.
4. The rather large value of k, i.e., the large size of the unit of charge (1C) from the point of view
of electric effects arises because (as mentioned in point 3 already) the unit of charge is
defined in terms of magnetic forces (forces on current–carrying wires) which are generally
much weaker than the electric forces. Thus while 1 ampere is a unit of reasonable size for
magnetic effects, 1 C = 1 A s, is too big a unit for electric effects.
5. The additive property of charge is not an ‘obvious’ property. It is related to the fact that
electric charge has no direction associated with it; charge is a scalar.
6. Charge is not only a scalar (or invariant) under rotation; it is also invariant for frames of
reference in relative motion. This is not always true for every scalar. For example, kinetic
energy is a scalar under rotation, but is not invariant for frames of reference in relative
motion.
7. Conservation of total charge of an isolated system is a property independent of the scalar
nature of charge noted in point 6.
Conservation refers to invariance in time in a given frame of reference. A quantity may be
scalar but not conserved (like kinetic energy in an inelastic collision). On the other hand, one
can have conserved vector quantity (e.g., angular momentum of an isolated system).
8. Quantisation of electric charge is a basic (unexplained) law of nature; interestingly, there is
no analogous law on quantisation of mass.
9. Superposition principle should not be regarded as ‘obvious’, or equated with the law of
addition of vectors. It says two things: force on one charge due to another charge is
unaffected by the presence of other charges, and there are no additional three-body, four-
body, etc., forces which arise only when there are more than two charges.
10. The electric field due to a discrete charge configuration is not defined at the locations of the
discrete charges. For continuous volume charge distribution, it is defined at any point in the
distribution. For a surface charge distribution, electric field is discontinuous across the
surface.
11. The electric field due to a charge configuration with total charge zero is not zero; but for
distances large compared to the size of the configuration, its field falls off faster than 1/r 2,
typical of field due to a single charge. An electric dipole is the simplest example of this fact.

Electrostatic Potential and Capacitance

1. Electrostatics deals with forces between charges at rest. But if there is a force on a charge,
how can it be at rest? Thus, when we are talking of electrostatic force between charges, it
should be understood that each charge is being kept at rest by some unspecified force that
opposes the net Coulomb force on the charge.
2. A capacitor is so configured that it confines the electric field lines within a small region of
space. Thus, even though field may have considerable strength, the potential difference
between the two conductors of a capacitor is small.
3. Electric field is discontinuous across the surface of a spherical charged shell. It is zero inside
and outside. Electric potential is, however continuous across the surface, equal to q/4π ε0R
at the surface.
4. The torque p × E on a dipole causes it to oscillate about E. Only if there is a dissipative
mechanism, the oscillations are damped and the dipole eventually aligns with E.
5. Potential due to a charge q at its own location is not defined – it is infinite.
6. In the expression qV (r) for potential energy of a charge q, V(r) is the potential due to external
charges and not the potential due to q. As seen in point 5, this expression will be ill-defined
if V(r) includes potential due to a charge q itself.
7. A cavity inside a conductor is shielded from outside electrical influences. It is worth noting
that electrostatic shielding does not work the other way round; that is, if you put charges
inside the cavity, the exterior of the conductor is not shielded from the fields by the inside
charges.
Current Electricity
1. Current is a scalar although we represent current with an arrow. Currents do not obey the law
of vector addition. That current is a scalar also follows from it’s definition. The current I
through an area of cross-section is given by the scalar product of two vectors:
I  j.S
where j and ΔS are vectors.
2. Refer to V-I curves of a resistor and a diode as drawn in the text. A resistor obeys Ohm’s
law while a diode does not. The assertion that V = IR is a statement of Ohm’s law is not true.
This equation defines resistance and it may be applied to all conducting devices whether
they obey Ohm’s law or not. The Ohm’s law asserts that the plot of I versus V is linear i.e., R
is independent of V. Equation E = r j leads to another statement of Ohm’s law, i.e., a
conducting material obeys Ohm’s law when the resistivity of the Mat erial does not depend
on the magnitude and direction of applied electric field.
3. Homogeneous conductors like silver or semiconductors like pure germanium or germanium
containing impurities obey Ohm’s law within some range of electric field values. If the field
becomes too strong, there are departures from Ohm’s law in all cases.
4. Motion of conduction electrons in electric field E is the sum of (i) motion due to random
collisions and (ii) that due to E. The motion due to random collisions averages to zero and
does not contribute to vd (Chapter 11, Textbook of Class XI). vd , thus is only due to applied
electric field on the electron.
5. The relation j = r v should be applied to each type of charge carriers separately. In a
conducting wire, the total current and charge density arises from both positive and negative
charges:
j  r v   r v
r  r  r
Now in a neutral wire carrying electric current,
r  r
Further, v+ ~ 0 which gives r  0
ir_v
Thus, the relation j = r v does not apply to the total current charge density.
6. Kirchhoff’s junction rule is based on conservation of charge and the outgoing currents add up and
are equal to incoming current at a junction. Bending or reorienting the wire does not change the
validity of Kirchhoff’s junction rule
Magnetism and Matter
1. A satisfactory understanding of magnetic phenomenon in terms of moving charges/currents was
arrived at after 1800 AD. But technological exploitation of the directional properties of magnets
predates this scientific understanding by two thousand years. Thus, scientific understanding is not a
necessary condition for engineering applications. Ideally, science and engineering go hand-in-hand,
one leading and assisting the other in tandem.
2. Magnetic monopoles do not exist. If you slice a magnet in half, you get two smaller magnets. On the
other hand, isolated positive and negative charges exist. There exists a smallest unit of charge, for
example, the electronic charge with value |e| = 1.6 × 10 C. All other charges are integral multiples of
this smallest unit charge. In other words, charge is quantised. We do not know why magnetic
monopoles do not exist or why electric charge is quantised.
3. A consequence of the fact that magnetic monopoles do not exist is that the magnetic field lines are
continuous and form closed loops. In contrast, the electrostatic lines of force begin on a positive
charge and terminate on the negative charge (or fade out at infinity).
4. The earth earth are responsible for the earth sustains this current, and why the earth million years or
so, we do not know.
5. A miniscule difference in the value of  , the magnetic susceptibility, yields radically different
behaviour: diamagnetic versus paramagnetic. For diamagnetic materials  = –10 whereas  = +10
for paramagnetic materials.
6. There exists a perfect diamagnet, namely, a superconductor. This is a metal at very low temperatures.
In this case  = –1,  r = 0,  = 0. The external magnetic field is totally expelled. Interestingly, this
material is also a perfect conductor. However, there exists no classical theory which ties these two
properties together. A quantum-mechanical theory by Bardeen, Cooper, and Schrieffer (BCS theory)
explains these effects. The BCS theory was proposed in1957 and was eventually recognised by a
Nobel Prize in physics in 1970.
7. The phenomenon of magnetic hysteresis is reminiscent of similar behaviour concerning the elastic
properties of materials. Strain may not be proportional to stress; here H and B (or M) are not linearly
related. The stress-strain curve exhibits hysteresis and area enclosed by it represents the energy
dissipated per unit volume. A similar interpretation can be given to the B-H magnetic hysteresis
curve.
8. Diamagnetism is universal. It is present in all materials. But it is weak and hard to detect if the
substance is para- or ferromagnetic.
9. We have classified materials as diamagnetic, paramagnetic, and ferromagnetic. However, there exist
additional types of magnetic material such as ferrimagnetic, anti-ferromagnetic, spin glass, etc. with
properties which are exotic and mysterious.
Electromagnetic Induction
1. Electricity and magnetism are intimately related. In the early part of the nineteenth century, the
experiments of Oersted, Ampere and others established that moving charges (currents) produce a
magnetic field. Somewhat later, around 1830, the experiments of Faraday and Henry demonstrated
that a moving magnet can induce electric current.
2. In a closed circuit, electric currents are induced so as to oppose the changing magnetic flux. It is as per
the law of conservation of energy. However, in case of an open circuit, an emf is induced across its
ends. How is it related to the flux change?
3. The motional emf discussed in Section 6.5 can be argued independently from Faraday’s law using the
Lorentz force on moving charges. However, even if the charges are stationary [and the q (v × B) term
of the Lorentz force is not operative], an emf is nevertheless induced in the presence of a time-
varying magnetic field. Thus, moving charges in static field and static charges in a time-varying field
seem to be symmetric situation for Faraday’s law. This gives a tantalising hint on the relevance of
the principle of relativity for Faraday’s law.
4. The motion of a copper plate is damped when it is allowed to oscillate between the magnetic pole-
pieces. How is the damping force, produced by the eddy currents?
Alternating Current
1. When a value is given for ac voltage or current, it is ordinarily the rms value. The voltage across the
terminals of an outlet in your room is normally 240 V. This refers to the rms value of the voltage.
The amplitude of this voltage is
v m  2V  2(240)  340v
2. The power rating of an element used in ac circuits refers to its average power rating.
3. The power consumed in an circuit is never negative.
4. Both alternating current and direct current are measured in amperes. But how is the ampere defined
for an alternating current? It cannot be derived from the mutual attraction of two parallel wires
carrying ac currents, as the dc ampere is derived. An ac current changes direction with the source
frequency and the attractive force would average to zero. Thus, the ac ampere must be defined in
terms of some property that is independent of the direction of the current. Joule heating is such a
property, and there is one ampere of rms value of alternating current in a circuit if the current
produces the same average heating effect as one ampere of dc current would produce under the
same conditions.
5. In an ac circuit, while adding voltages across different elements, one should take care of their phases
properly. For example, if V R and VC are voltages across R and C, respectively in an RC circuit, then the
total voltage across RC combination is VRC  VR2  VC2 and not VR + V C since VC is  /2 out of phase
of VR.
6. Though in a phasor diagram, voltage and current are represented by vectors, these quantities are not
really vectors themselves. They are scalar quantities. It so happens that the amplitudes and phases
of harmonically varying scalars combine mathematically in the same way as do the projections of
rotating vectors of corresponding magnitudes and directions. The ‘rotating vectors’ that represent
harmonically varying scalar quantities are introduced only to provide us with a simple way of adding
these quantities using a rule that we already know as the law of vector addition.
7. There are no power losses associated with pure capacitances and pure inductances in an ac circuit.
The only element that dissipates energy in an ac circuit is the resistive element.
1
8. In a RLC circuit, resonance phenomenon occur when XL = XC or 0  For resonance to occur,
LC
the presence of both L and C elements in the circuit is a must. With only one of these (L or C)
elements, there is no possibility of voltage cancellation and hence, no resonance is possible.
9. The power factor in a RLC circuit is a measure of how close the circuit is to expending the maximum
power.
10. In generators and motors, the roles of input and output are reversed. In a motor, electric energy is
the input and mechanical energy is the output. In a generator, mechanical energy is the input and
electric energy is the output. Both devices simply transform energy from one form to another.
11. A transformer (step-up) changes a low-voltage into a high-voltage. This does not violate the law of
conservation of energy. The current is reduced by the same proportion.
12. The choice of whether the description of an oscillatory motion is by means of sines or cosines or by
their linear combinations is unimportant, since changing the zero-time position transforms the one
to the other.
Electromagnetic Waves
1. The basic difference between various types of electromagnetic waves lies in their wavelengths or
frequencies since all of them travel through vacuum with the same speed. Consequently, the waves
differ considerably in their mode of interaction with matter.
2. Accelerated charged particles radiate electromagnetic waves. The wavelength of the electromagnetic
wave is often correlated with the characteristic size of the system that radiates. Thus, gamma
radiation, having wavelength of 10–14 m to 10–15 m, typically originate from an atomic nucleus. X-rays
are emitted from heavy atoms. Radio waves are produced by accelerating electrons in a circuit. A
transmitting antenna can most efficiently radiate waves having a wavelength of about the same size
as the antenna. Visible radiation emitted by atoms is, however, much longer in wavelength than
atomic size.
3. The oscillating fields of an electromagnetic wave can accelerate charges and can produce oscillating
currents. Therefore, an apparatus designed to detect electromagnetic waves is based on this fact.
Hertz original ‘receiver’ worked in exactly this way. The same basic principle is utilized in practically
all modern receiving devices. High frequency electromagnetic waves are detected by other means
based on the physical effects they produce on interacting with matter.
4. Infrared waves, with frequencies lower than those of visible light, vibrate not only the electrons, but
entire atoms or molecules of a substance. This vibration increases the internal energy and
consequently, the temperature of the substance. This is why infrared waves are often called heat
waves.
5. The centre of sensitivity of our eyes coincides with the centre of the wavelength distribution of the
sun. It is because humans have evolved with visions most sensitive to the strongest wavelengths
from the sun.
Ray Optics and Optical Instruments
1. The laws of reflection and refraction are true for all surfaces and pairs of media at the point of the
incidence.
2. The real image of an object placed between f and 2f from a convex lens can be seen on a screen
placed at the image location. If the screen is removed, is the image still there? This question puzzles
many, because it is difficult to reconcile ourselves with an image suspended in air without a screen.
But the image does exist. Rays from a given point on the object are converging to an image point in
space and diverging away. The screen simply diffuses these rays, some of which reach our eye and
we see the image. This can be seen by the images formed in air during a laser show.
3. Image formation needs regular reflection/refraction. In principle, all rays from a given point should
reach the same image point. This is why you do not see your image by an irregular reflecting object,
say the page of a book.
4. Thick lenses give coloured images due to dispersion. The variety in colour of objects we see around us
is due to the constituent colours of the light incident on them. A monochromatic light may produce
an entirely different perception about the colours on an object as seen in white light.
5. For a simple microscope, the angular size of the object equals the angular size of the image. Yet it
offers magnification because we can keep the small object much closer to the eye than 25 cm and
hence have it subtend a large angle. The image is at 25 cm which we can see. Without the
microscope, you would need to keep the small object at 25 cm which would subtend a very small
angle.
Wave Optics
1. Waves from a point source spread out in all directions, while light was seen to travel along narrow
rays. It required the insight and experiment of Huygens, Young and Fresnel to understand how a
wave theory could explain all aspects of the behaviour of light.
2. The crucial new feature of waves is interference of amplitudes from different sources which can be
both constructive and destructive, as shown in Young’s experiment.
3. Even a wave falling on single slit should be regarded as a large number of sources which interefere
constructively in the forward direction ( q = 0), and destructively in other directions.
4. Diffraction phenomena define the limits of ray optics. The limit of the ability of microscopes and
telescopes to distinguish very close objects is set by the wavelength of light.
5. Most interference and diffraction effects exist even for longitudinal waves like sound in air. But
polarisation phenomena are special to transverse waves like light waves.
Dual Nature of Radiation and Matter
1. Free electrons in a metal are free in the sense that they move inside the metal in a constant
potential (This is only an approximation). They are not free to move out of the metal. They
need additional energy to get out of the metal.
2. Free electrons in a metal do not all have the same energy. Like molecules in a gas jar, the
electrons have a certain energy distribution at a given temperature. This distribution is
different from the usual Maxwell’s distribution that you have learnt in the study of kinetic
theory of gases. You will learn about it in later courses, but the difference has to do with the
fact that electrons obey Pauli’s exclusion principle.
3. Because of the energy distribution of free electrons in a metal, the energy required by an
electron to come out of the metal is different for different electrons. Electrons with higher
energy require less additional energy to come out of the metal than those with lower
energies. Work function is the least energy required by an electron to come out of the metal.
4. Observations on photoelectric effect imply that in the event of matterlight interaction,
absorption of energy takes place in discrete units of hn. This is not quite the same as saying
that light consists of particles, each of energy hn.
5. Observations on the stopping potential (its independence of intensity and dependence on
frequency) are the crucial discriminator between the wave-picture and photon-picture of
photoelectric effect.
h
6. The wavelength of a matter wave given by   has physical significance; its phase velocity
p
vp has no physical significance. However, the group velocity of the matter wave is physically
meaningful and equals the velocity of the particle.
Atoms
1. Both the Thomson’s as well as the Rutherford’s models constitute an unstable system.
Thomson’s model is unstable electrostatically, while Rutherford’s model is unstable because
of electromagnetic radiation of orbiting electrons.
2. What made Bohr quantise angular momentum (second postulate) and not some other
quantity? Note, h has dimensions of angular momentum, and for circular orbits, angular
momentum is a very relevant quantity. The second postulate is then so natural!
3. The orbital picture in Bohr’s model of the hydrogen atom was inconsistent with the uncertainty
principle. It was replaced by modern quantum mechanics in which Bohr’s orbits are regions
where the electron may be found with large probability.
4. Unlike the situation in the solar system, where planet-planet gravitational forces are very
small as compared to the gravitational force of the sun on each planet (because the mass of
the sun is so much greater than the mass of any of the planets), the electron-electron
electric force interaction is comparable in magnitude to the electronnucleus electrical force,
because the charges and distances are of the same order of magnitude. This is the reason
why the Bohr’s model with its planet-like electron is not applicable to many electron atoms.
5. Bohr laid the foundation of the quantum theory by postulating specific orbits in which
electrons do not radiate. Bohr’s model include only one quantum number n. The new theory
called quantum mechanics supportes Bohr’s postulate. However in quantum mechanics
(more generally accepted), a given energy level may not correspond to just one quantum
state. For example, a state is characterised by four quantum numbers (n, l, m, and s), but for
a pure Coulomb potential (as in hydrogen atom) the energy depends only on n.
6. In Bohr model, contrary to ordinary classical expectation, the frequency of revolution of an
electron in its orbit is not connected to the frequency of spectral line. The later is the
difference between two orbital energies divided by h. For transitions between large quantum
numbers (n to n – 1, n very large), however, the two coincide as expected.
7. Bohr’s semiclassical model based on some aspects of classical physics and some aspects
of modern physics also does not provide a true picture of the simplest hydrogenic atoms.
The true picture is quantum mechanical affair which differs from Bohr model in a number of
fundamental ways. But then if the Bohr model is not strictly correct, why do we bother about
it? The reasons which make Bohr’s model still useful are:
(i) The model is based on just three postulates but accounts for almost all the general
features of the hydrogen spectrum.
(ii) The model incorporates many of the concepts we have learnt in classical physics.
(iii) The model demonstrates how a theoretical physicist occasionally must quite literally ignore
certain problems of approach in hopes of being able to make some predictions. If the
predictions of the theory or model agree with experiment, a theoretician then must somehow
hope to explain away or rationalise the problems that were ignored along the way.
Nuclei
1. The density of nuclear matter is independent of the size of the nucleus. The mass density of
the atom does not follow this rule.
2. The radius of a nucleus determined by electron scattering is found to be slightly different from
that determined by alpha-particle scattering. This is because electron scattering senses the
charge distribution of the nucleus, whereas alpha and similar particles sense the nuclear
matter.
3. After Einstein showed the equivalence of mass and energy, E = mc2, we cannot any longer
speak of separate laws of conservation of mass and conservation of energy, but we have to
speak of a unified law of conservation of mass and energy. The most convincing evidence
that this principle operates in nature comes from nuclear physics. It is central to our
understanding of nuclear energy and harnessing it as a source of power. Using the principle,
Q of a nuclear process (decay or reaction) can be expressed also in terms of initial and final
masses.
4. The nature of the binding energy (per nucleon) curve shows that exothermic nuclear
reactions are possible, when two light nuclei fuse or when a heavy nucleus undergoes
fission into nuclei with intermediate mass.
5. For fusion, the light nuclei must have sufficient initial energy to overcome the coulomb
potential barrier. That is why fusion requires very high temperatures.
6. Although the binding energy (per nucleon) curve is smooth and slowly varying, it shows
peaks at nuclides like 4He, 16O etc. This is considered as evidence of atom-like shell
structure in nuclei.
7. Electrons and positron are a particle-antiparticle pair. They are identical in mass; their
charges are equal in magnitude and opposite. (It is found that when an electron and a
positron come together, they annihilate each other giving energy in the form of gamma-ray
photons.)

8. In â--decay (electron emission), the particle emitted along with electron is anti-neutrino ( v ).
On the other hand, the particle emitted in   decay (positron emission) is neutrino (n).
Neutrino and anti-neutrino are a particle-antiparticle pair. There are anti particles associated
with every particle. What should be antiproton which is the anti particle of the proton?
9. A free neutron is unstable (n  p  e  v) . But a similar free proton decay is not possible,
since a proton is (slightly) lighter than a neutron.
10. Gamma emission usually follows alpha or beta emission. A nucleus in an excited (higher)
state goes to a lower state by emitting a gamma photon. A nucleus may be left in an excited
state after alpha or beta emission. Successive emission of gamma rays from the same
nucleus (as in case of 60Ni, Fig. 13.4) is a clear proof that nuclei also have discrete energy
levels as do the atoms.
11. Radioactivity is an indication of the instability of nuclei. Stability requires the ratio of neutron
to proton to be around 1:1 for light nuclei. This ratio increases to about 3:2 for heavy nuclei.
(More neutrons are required to overcome the effect of repulsion among the protons.) Nuclei
 which are away from the stability ratio, i.e., nuclei which have an excess of neutrons or
protons are unstable. In fact, only about 10% of knon isotopes (of all elements), are stable.
Others have been either artificially produced in the laboratory by bombarding a, p, d, n or
other particles on targets of stable nuclear species or identified in astronomical observations
of matter in the universe.

Semiconductor Electronics: Materials, Devices and Simple Circuits

1. The energy bands (EC or EV) in the semiconductors are space delocalized which means that
these are not located in any specific place inside the solid. The energies are the overall
averages. When you see a picture in which EC or EV are drawn as straight lines, then they
should be respectively taken simply as the bottom of conduction band energy levels and top
of valence band energy levels.
2. In elemental semiconductors (Si or Ge), the n-type or p-type semiconductors are obtained by
introducing ‘dopants’ as defects. In compound semiconductors, the change in relative
stoichiometric ratio can also change the type of semiconductor. For example, in ideal GaAs
the ratio of Ga:As is 1:1 but in Ga-rich or As-rich GaAs it could respectively be Ga1.1 As 0.9 or
Ga0.9 As1.1. In general, the presence of defects control the properties of semiconductors in
many ways.
3. In transistors, the base region is both narrow and lightly doped, otherwise the electrons or
holes coming from the input side (say, emitter in CE-configuration) will not be able to reach
the collector.
4. We have described an oscillator as a positive feedback amplifier. For stable oscillations, the
voltage feedback (Vfb) from the output voltage (Vo) should be such that after amplification (A)
it should again become Vo. If a fraction b¢ is feedback, then Vfb = Vo.  and after
amplification its value A(vo.  ) should be equal to Vo. This means that the criteria for stable
oscillations to be sustained is A  ’ = 1. This is known as Barkhausen's Criteria.
5. In an oscillator, the feedback is in the same phase (positive feedback). If the feedback
voltage is in opposite phase (negative feedback), the gain is less than 1 and it can never
work as oscillator. It will be an amplifier with reduced gain. However, the negative feedback
also reduces noise and distortion in an amplifier which is an advantageous feature.

Communication System
1. In the process of transmission of message/ information signal, noise gets added to the signal
anywhere between the information source and the receiving end. Can you think of some
sources of noise?
2. In the process of modulation, new frequencies called sidebands are generated on either side
(higher and lower than the carrier frequency) of the carrier by an amount equal to the
highest modulating frequency. Is it possible to retrieve the message by transmitting (a) only
the side bands, (b) only one side band?
3. In amplitude modulation, modulation index   1 is used. What will happen if µ > 1?