Centre No. Index No.

Name Class

RAFFLES INSTITUTION
2012 Year 6 Preliminary Examination
ESSENTIALS OF MODERN PHYSICS 9811/01
Higher 3 19 September 2012
Paper 1 3 hours

Additional Materials: Writing Paper

READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST

Write your index number, name and class on all the work you hand in.
Write in dark blue or black pen on both sides of the paper.
You may use a soft pencil for any diagrams, graphs or rough working.
Do not use staples, paper clips, highlighters, glue or correction fluid.

Section A
Answer all questions.
You are advised to spend about 1 hour 50 minutes on Section A.

Section B
Answer all questions.
You are advised to spend about 1 hour 10 minutes on Section B.

Begin each question in Section A and Section B on a fresh sheet of paper.

Tie your answers to Section A and Section B separately.
Attach this cover page on top of your Section A answer scripts.
The number of marks is given in brackets [ ] at the end of each question or part question.

For Examiners Use

1 / 14
2 / 14
3 / 18
4 / 14
5 / 20
6 / 20
Total /100
This booklet consists of 10 printed pages (including the cover page).

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DATA

speed of light in free space c = 3.00 108 m s1

permeability of free space 0 = 4 107 H m1

permittivity of free space 0 = 8.85 1012 F m1

(1/(36)) 109 F m1

elementary charge e = 1.60 1019 C

the Planck constant h = 6.63 1034 J s

unified atomic mass constant u = 1.66 1027 kg

rest mass of electron me = 9.11 1031 kg

rest mass of proton mp = 1.67 1027 kg

molar gas constant R = 8.31 J K1 mol1

the Avogadro constant NA = 6.02 1023 mol1

the Boltzmann constant k = 1.38 1023 J K1

gravitational constant G = 6.67 1011 N m2 kg2

acceleration of free fall g = 9.81 m s2

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FORMULAE

Lorentz factor = (1 (v/c)2)1/2

length contraction L = L0 /
time dilation T = T0
x
Lorentz transformation equations (1 dimension) = (x vt)
t
(t vx/c2)
=
mass-energy equivalence E = m0 c2

= ( pc )2 (m0c 2 )2

Wiens displacement law pT = 2.898 x 103 m K

h
Compton shift formula = 1 cos
mc

population distribution of atoms with energy Ex Nx = N0 exp((Ex E0)/kT)

h2 d 2
U
time-independent Schrodinger equation E = 2m dx 2

allowed energy states for a particle in a box En = (n2h2)/(8mL2)

normalised wave function for particle in a box = (2/L)1/2 sin(nx/L)
transmission coefficient T = exp(2kd)

8 2 m U E
where k =
h2

2me v
Drude model of electrical resistivity = ne 2

23
h 2 3n
Fermi energy for metals EF = 8m

4 2m
32

density of energy states for electrons in a metal (E) = E

h3

Fermi function f(E) = 1/(1 + exp((E EF)/kT))

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refractive index n = v1/v2

d
phase difference of circularly polarised light n
2
=
Brewsters angle tan B = n2/n1
attenuation of light intensity I = I0 exp(x)

SECTION A
Answer all the questions in this section.
You are advised to spend about 1 hour and 50 minutes on this section.

1 (a) State the two postulates of Special Relativity. [2]

(b) For two inertial frames of reference moving relative to each other in
the x-direction with velocity v, the Galilean transformation equations in
1-dimension are:
x ' ( x vt )
t't

Show that the Galilean transformation equations are not consistent [4]
with the second postulate when applied to a moving source of light.

(c) A thin rod is observed to have a length of 4.0 m when it is moving at a

speed of 0.80c relative to the observer. The observer also observed
30
that the moving rod is oriented at an angle of with respect to the [3]
direction of motion. Calculate the proper length of the rod.

(d) A double-decker bus of height 4.0 m is obstructed by an overhead

bridge which has a maximum clearance height of 3.0 m. The bus
driver, equipped with some knowledge of Einsteins theory of relativity,
argues that if he can drive at a speed close to the speed of light, then
the bus would shrink in height such that it could clear the bridge.
Comment on the drivers argument. [1]

(e) Two light pulses are moving in the positive direction along the x-axis of
frame O, the distance between them being L. O' is a frame moving
with a uniform velocity v along the x-axis with respect to O, their
t t'0
origins coinciding at time with their axes being parallel.
Show that, measured in O', the distance between the pulses is
[4]
L
c v
c v
.

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2 (a) Explain what is meant by an ideal black body. [1]

(b) (i) Sketch graphs, on the same axes, showing the black-body
emission spectra for three different temperatures to illustrate
Wiens Displacement Law. [3]

(ii) Radiation from the Big Bang has been Doppler-shifted to

longer wavelengths by the expansion of the universe and
today has a spectrum corresponding to that of a black body at
2.7 K. Calculate the wavelength at which the energy density of
this radiation is a maximum.
In what region of the spectrum is this radiation? [3]

(iii) Explain why the Rayleigh-Jeans Distribution Law could not

predict the black-body emission spectrum which you sketched
in (b)(i). [2]

(c) Consider a system of atoms with only two energy levels. The number
of atoms per unit volume n in each of the two states follows the
classical Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution:
E

n n0 e kT

n0
where is the total number of atoms per unit volume
E is the energy of the energy level
k is the Boltzmann constant
T is the thermal equilibrium temperature
[2]
Obtain an expression for
number of atoms per unit volume at higher energy state
number atoms per unit volume at lower energy state

in terms of T, k, Plancks constant h and photon frequency f.

(d) 50.0 cm3

A chamber is filled with argon gas to a pressure of 20.3 Pa
0C
at a temperature of . All but a negligible number of these atoms
are initially in their ground states. A flash tube surrounding the sample
energises 1.0% of the atoms into the same excited state having a
1.4 10 8 s
mean life of . [3]
Assuming that spontaneous emission is the only mechanism at work
and that the medium is an ideal gas, what is the maximum rate at
which photons are subsequently emitted by the gas?

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3 (a) Consider three dielectric media with flat and parallel boundaries with
n1 n2 n3
refractive indices , and as shown in Fig 3.1.

Fig. 3.1

(i) n2
Determine an expression for the refractive index of layer 2,
n1 n3
in terms of and , such that the reflection coefficient for
r12
normal incidence between layers 1 and 2 ( ) is the same as
r23
that between layers 2 and 3 ( ). Under such conditions, layer
2 can act as an antireflection coating.
[2]
Note: For normal incidence, the reflection coefficient between
layers i and j is given by
ni n j
rij
ni n j
.

(ii) n 2.23
Consider a Si ( ) photodiode that is designed for operation at
270 nm. Given a choice of two possible antireflection coatings, SiO 2
with a refractive index of 1.50 and TiO2 with a refractive index of 1.95,

explain which coating is preferred, and [2]

determine the thickness of the antireflection coating. State any

assumption made. [3]

(b) Fig. 3.2 shows the cross-section of an optical fibre in which the refractive
n1 n2 n3 y 2, 3 2, 5 2
index changes from to to at .

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Fig. 3.2

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A ray of monochromatic light enters the fibre at point O in medium 1. It enters

medium 2 at point B and to point B' at the boundary between media 2 and 3.
B '
At point B', is the critical angle for total internal reflection between media 2
and 3.

(i) Show that the time taken for the ray to travel from O to B' is

tOB '
21 n1
n2
12 12 [3]
c 1 n3 n1 c 1 n3 n2 2
2

(ii) Name one factor which would reduce the following effect in an optical
fibre:

dispersion

attenuation [2]

(c) (i) State one difference and one similarity between ordinary (o)
and extraordinary (e) waves in an anisotropic crystal. [2]

(ii) ne n0
Consider a negative uni-axial crystal ( ) such as a calcite plate
that has its optic axis (z-axis) parallel to the plate face. A linearly
polarized wave, travelling in the y-direction, is at normal incidence to
45
the plate face such that the electric field E is at an angle to
the optic axis as shown in Fig. 3.3(a).

Fig. 3.3(a) Fig. 3.3(b)

Front View

By copying Fig. 3.3(b) in your answer sheet, sketch and label

the o-wavefront and e-wavefront through the calcite plate. [2]

(iii) Determine the minimum thickness of a quarter-wave plate

ne 1.5442 no 1.5533
made from quartz crystals ( and ) [2]
operating at a wavelength of 590 nm.

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4 (a) (i) What is the concept of wave-particle duality? [1]

(ii) State how the principle of complementarity applies to wave-

particle duality. [1]

(b) (i) Making use of classical mechanics, derive an equation relating

the energy E of an electron with its mass m and its de Broglie
wavelength . [2]

(ii) Explain why it is permissible to use classical mechanics to

derive the equation in (b)(i) but relativistic mechanics must be
used for the derivation of the de Broglie wavelength. [2]

(c) Fig. 4 shows two crystal planes of atoms in a simple cubic structure.

Fig. 4

X-rays are incident at an angle to the crystal planes indicated in Fig. 4. The
angle of deflection of X-rays from these crystal planes for the first intensity
56
maximum is . The spacing between the two crystal planes d is 0.15 nm.
Determine

(i) a0 [2]
the inter-atomic spacing of the crystal, and

(ii) the wavelength of the X-rays. [2]

(d) (i) Determine the energy of an electron with the same wavelength
as the X-rays in (c). [2]

(ii) Explain why, in practice, electrons would need higher energy

than that calculated in (d)(i) to probe crystal structures. [1]

(iii) State one advantage of using electron diffraction instead of X-

ray diffraction to probe crystal structures. [1]

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SECTION B
Answer all the questions in this section.
You are advised to spend about 1 hour and 10 minutes on this section.

5 (a) The time-independent Schrdinger equation is

h2 d x
2

U x x E x
2m dx 2
.

(i) x U x
State what the symbols , and E in this equation [3]
represent.

x
2

(ii) [1]
State the interpretation of the quantity .
(b) The solution to the time-independent Schrdinger equation for an electron
a x A sin kx
trapped in a box between 0 and L in one dimension may be
b x A cos kx
or .

(i) b x [1]
Explain why is not a valid solution.

(ii) a x [2]
Determine the values of k for to be a valid solution.
(iii) p hk
Given that , show that the allowed energy states are
[2]
n 2h 2
En
8mL2
.
(iv) 9 1 nm
A beam of photons in a range of wavelengths is
incident on the electron trapped in a box of width of 1.0 nm.
If the electron is initially in the ground state, determine the [4]
states to which the electron can be excited.
(c) The ground state wave function of the harmonic oscillator is
1

m 4 m 2
0 exp x
h 2h
.
(i) State the zero-point energy of the harmonic oscillator. [1]
(ii) 0 [3]
Show that is normalized.
You will need to use the integral

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exp z 2 dz a0
for .
(iii) Using the substitution [3]
m
a2
h

show that
d 2 0 m m 2 2 2
x 0
dx 2 h h2
.

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6 (a) Potassium chloride (KCl), a face-centered cubic crystal, is an ionically bonded

molecule.

(i) Discuss the main features of ionic bonding in solids. [3]

(ii) The electron affinity of chlorine, which is the energy released

when an electron is added to a chlorine atom, is 3.60 eV. A net
K
energy input of 0.70 eV is required to form individual and

Cl
ions from individual K and Cl atoms. Calculate the [2]
ionisation energy of K.

(iii) A model potential energy function for the KCl molecule is the
Lennard-Jones potential,
A B
U 12

r r6

E0 [3]
where A and B are constants. Express the minimum energy
in terms of A and B.

(iv) Draw a reduced-sphere unit cell for KCl and state the number
K [3]
of closest neighbours for a ion.

(b) 0.862 g cm 3
Potassium is a monovalent metal having a density of and a
39.1 g mol1
molar mass of . Calculate

(i) the charge carrier density, and [2]

(ii) the Fermi energy of potassium. [2]

(c) A Hall probe operates with a 120 mA current. It is positioned perpendicularly

to a uniform magnetic field of magnetic flux density 0.0800 T. The Hall voltage
is 0.700 V.

(i) When placed similarly in another uniform magnetic field, the

Hall voltage is 0.330 V. Calculate the magnetic flux density of
this field. [3]

(ii) Calculate the thickness of the probe along the direction of the
magnetic flux density, given that the charge carrier density of
4.29 1025 m 3
the probe material is and each charge carrier [2]
has a charge of e.

End of Paper

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