Question Bank

Electromagnetism
Numericals
1. Three charges, each equal to 1 micro coulomb, are placed at the three corners of a
square of side 1 m. Find the electric field at the fourth corner.
2. Find the electric filed at a point P on the perpendicular bisector of a uniformly
charged rod. The length of the rod is L, the charge on it is Q and the distance of
P from the centre of the rod is a.
3. Can a gravitational field be added vertorially to an electric field to get a total
field? Explain it.
4. Can two equipotential surfaces cut each other? Explain it.
5. Three equal charges 2.0 micro coulomb each, are held fixed at the three corners of
an equilateral triangle of side 5 cm. Find the Coulomb force experienced at its
centre.
6. An electric field of 20N/C exists along the X-axis in space. Calculate the potential
difference VB-VA where the points A and B are given by
(a) A = (0,0) and B = (4,2) metre.
(b) A = (4,2) meter
and B=(6,5) metre.

7. An electric field E (20i 30 j ) N / C exists in the space, If the potential at

the origin is taken as to be zero, find the potential at (2,2) meter.
8. 12 joule of work has to be done against an existing electric field to take a charge
of 0.01 C from A and B. How much is the potential difference VB-VA.
9. How much work has to be done in assembling three charged particles q1= 2 micro
coulomb, q2= 3 micro coulomb and q3= 4 micro coulomb at the vertices of a
equilateral triangle of side 5 cm.

x
10. The electric field in a region is given by E E i . Find the charge contained
l
inside a cubical volume bounded by the surfaces x=0, x=a, y=0, y=a, z=0, z=a.
Take E0=5X103N/C and a=1 cm.
11. A charge Q is placed at the centre of a cube. Find the flux of the electric field
through the six surfaces of the cube.
12. Find the magnitude of the electric field at a point 4 cm away from a line charge of
density 2 micro Coulomb /metre.
13. A long cylindrical volume contains a uniformly distributed charge of density
and radius R. Find the electric field at a point P inside the cylindrical volume at a
distance x (x<R).
14. A parallel plate capacitor has plates of area 200 cm2 and separation between the
plates 1.00 mm. What potential difference will be developed if the charge of 1 nC
is given to the capacitor? If the plate separation is now increased to 2.00 mm,
what will be the new potential difference?
(a) An isolated sphere has a capacitance of 50 pF.
(b) Calculate its radius
15. How much charge should be placed on it to raise its potential to 10,000 V.
16. A parallel plate capacitor having plate area 100 cm2 and separation 1.0 mm holds
a charge of .12 C when connected to a 120 V battery. Find the dielectric constant
of the material filling the gap.
17. Three capacitors of capacitance 6F each are available. Calculate the minimum
and maximum capacitances that could be obtained.
0

18. An alpa particle is projected vertically upward with a speed of 3 X 104 Km/Sec in
a region where a magnetic field of magnitude 1 Tesla exists in the direction south
to north. Find the magnetic force that acts on the alpha particle.
19. A magnetic field of 4 10 k Tesla exerts a force of (4i 3 j ) 10 N on a
particle having a charge of 1 pC and going in the X-Y plane. Find the velocity of
the particle.
20. Consider a 10 cm long portion of a straight wire carrying a current of 10 A
placed in a magnetic field of 0.1 T making an angle of 53 0 with the wire. What
magnetic force does the wire experience?
3

10

21. A negative point charge of 10-6 coulomb is situated in air at the origin of a
rectangular coordinate system. A second negative point charge of 10 -4 is situated
on the positive x-axis at a distance of 50 cm from the origin. What is the force on
the second charge due to first?
22. A negative point charge 10-8 coulomb is situated in air at the origin of a
rectangular coordinate system. What is the electric field intensity at a point on the
positive x direction 3 metres from the origin?
23. Two charges of the value 15X10-9 coulomb and 30X10-9 coulomb are placed at a
distance 6 cm. Find the intensity of electric field at point which is at a distance 2
cm from the first and 4 cm from the second respectively.
24. What is the magnitude of a point charge so that the electric field 50 cm away has a
magnitude 2.0 N/C?
25. A positive point test charge q0 is placed at the midpoint p between the two equal
positive charges q. What forces acts on it at or near this point p?
26. Two charges 1X10-6 coulomb and 2X10-6 coulomb are separated by 10 cm. At
what point line joining the two charges is the electric field strength is zero?
27. Four point charges 1X10-8 C, -2X10-8 C, 3X10-8 C and 2X10-8 C are placed at the
corners of a square of a side 1 m. Calculate the potential at its centre.
28. The potential at a certain distance form a point charge is 600 volts and the electric
field is 200 N/C.
(a) What is the distance of the point charge?
(b) What is the magnitude of the charge?
29. Calculate the potential and field due to a short dipole of dipole moment
5.0 X 10-16 coulomb-cm at a point distant 1 cm from it.
(a) on its axis
(b) on its perpendicular bisector
30. A charge of 3X10-4 Coulomb at P (1, 2, 3) and a charge of -10-4 Coulomb at N (2,
0, 5) in a vacuum. We desire to calculate the force exerted on second charge due to
first?

31. A charge of -0.3 micro Coulomb is located at A (25 , -30 , 15 ) ( in cm ), and a

second charge of 0.5 micro Coulomb is at B ( -10 , 8 , 12 ) ( in cm ). Find electric
field E at
32. The origin (b) At point A ( 15 , 20 , 50 ) ( in cm )
33. Three infinite uniform sheets of charge are located in free space as follows: 3
nC/m2, at z=-4, 6 nC/m2 at z=1, and -8 nC/m2 at z=4. Find electric field E at a
point
34. P1 ( 2 , 5 , -5 ); (b) P2 ( 4 , 2 , -3)
(c) P3 ( -1 , -5 , 2 )
35. An electric field is expressed in rectangular coordinates by E 6 x 2 i 6 yj 4 z
V/m. Find
(a) VMN if points M and N are specified by M ( 2 , 6 , -1 ) and N ( -3 , -3 , 2 )
(b) VM if V=0 at Q ( 4 , -2 , -35 )
36. Two long wires a and b, carrying equal currents of 10 A, are placed parallel to
each other with a separation of 4 cm between them as shown in figure 1. Find the
magnetic field B at each of the points P, Q and R.
P

2cm

2cm

2cm

2cm

fig-1
37. Two parallel wires P and Q placed at a separation of 6 cm carry electric currents
i1=5 A and i2 = 2 A in opposite directions as shown in fig-2. Find the point on the
line PQ where the resultant magnetic field is zero.
P

Q
d cm
fig-2

38. Fig-3 shows a square loop Made from a uniform wire. Find the magnetic field at
the centre of the square if a battery is connected between the points A and C.
39.

B
Fig-3
40. Two long wires, carrying currents i1 and i2, are placed perpendicular to each other
in such a way that they just avoid to contact. Find the magnetic force on a small
length dl of the second wire situated at a distance L from the first wire.
41. Two long wires P and Q, carrying equal currents of 5 Ampere and the distance
between the wire is 5 cm. Calculate the force applied on each wire if

a. Current flowing in same direction.

b. Current flowing in opposite direction.
42. The magnetic field B inside a solenoid, carrying a current of 5 A, is 3.14 X 10-2 T.
Find the number of turns per unit length of the solenoid.
43. A long solenoid is fabricated by closely winding a wire of radius 0.5 mm over a
cylindrical nonmagnetic frame so that the successive turns nearly touch each
other. What would be the magnetic field B near the centre of the solenoid if it
carries a current of 5 A.
44. Calculate the inductance of a solenoid of 2000 turns round uniformly over a
length of 50 cm on a cylindrical paper tube 4 cm in diameter. The medium is air.
45. An air cored toroidal coil has 500 turns and a mean diameter of 32 cm with a cross
sectional area of 2 cm2, Calculate
(i) Inductance of the coil
(ii) The average emf induced when a current of 2 amp is reversed in a time of 0.02
sec.
46. A long solenoid of diameter 3 cm has 200 turns/cm and carries a current of 1.5
amp. A close packed coil of diameter 2 cm having 100 turns is placed at the centre
of the solenoid is parallel to the axis of the coil. The current through the solenoid
is reduced to zero and then increased to 1.5 amp in the reverse direction at a
steady rate over a period of 0.05 sec. Calculate the emf induced in the coil while
the current is being changed.
47. When a copper disc of radius 10 cm makes 20 rotations per sec with its plane
perpendicular to a uniform magnetic field an induced emf of 3.14 milivolts is
generated between the centre and the edge of the disc. Find B.
48. An air core solenoid of 80 cm length has 500 turns and its circular cross section
has a diameter of 2 cm. Calculate
(a) The self inductance of the solenoid.
(b) The self linked flux when the current in the solenoid is 2 amp.
(c) The rate of change of current in the solenoid that will produce a self induced
emf of 3 volt.
49. Two coils, a primary of 600 turns and a secondary of 30 turns are wounded on an
iron ring of mean radius 10 cm and a cross section 4 cm diameter. Find mutual
inductance. For iron =800.
50. What energy is stored in a magnetic field of solenoid of inductance 5 mili henry
when maximum current of 3 amp flows through it?
51. Calculate the self inductance of a toriod of circular cross section with radius of 10
cm and total number of turns is 1000.
52. Find the frequency of the oscillator that is to be connected between the dees of a
cyclotron with a magnetic field B=1.5 wb/m2 for accelerating deutron. How the
result is modified if we choose alpha particle or proton.

53. In the above problem, if the radius of the dees is 50cm. Find the energy of the
emergent deutrons.
54. A cyclotron accelerating protons has dees of 40cm radius and a radio frequency of
12 megacycles per second at 10000 volts maximum value. Calculate
(a) The magnetic field B
(b) The speed and kinetic energy acquired by protons
(c) Maximum number of revolutions and time spend within dees.

Theoritical Questions
1. Give physical significance of gradient, Divergence and Curl.
2. Define Guass law and calculate electric field at all possible points due to
(i)
Charged Sphere (Hollow Sphere) (inside, outside and on the surface of the sphere)
(ii)
Charged Sphere (Solid Insulator) (inside, outside and on the surface of the
sphere)4w
(iii)
(iv)
Infinite large line charge
(v)
Infinite long Cylinder ( Solid insulator) ( inside, ourside and on the suface )
3. What is a capacitor and calculate capacitance of
(i)
of a plane plate capacitor
(ii)
of a cylindrical capacitor
(iii)
of a spherical capacitor
Note: Assume all values you needed for the problem.
4. Explain how capacitance of a capacitor depends on area, distance between the plates and
on the dielectric material.
5. Draw electric field lines of a
(i)
positive point charge
(ii)
Negative pint charge
(iii)
Two same charges at a very small distance between then
(iv)
Two different charges at a very small distance between them
6. Define amperes law and calculate magnetic field at any point P due to
(i)
Infinite long wire
(ii)
Inside a solenoid
(iii)
Inside a toroid
7. Define Biot Savart Law and calculate magnetic field at any point away from the infinite
long wire carrying current I.
8. State and explain Faradays laws of electromagnetic induction.

9. What is electromagnetic induction? Describe experiments to illustrate how this

phenomenon occurs.
10. Derive Maxwells all four equations and give their physical meaning.
11. Write Maxwells equations in differential & integral form and give their physical
meaning.
12. Write Maxwells equations in free space or Vacuum and derive electromagnetic wave
equations in the same medium and also show that the speed of electromagnetic wave in
free space is equal to the speed of light.
13. Write Maxwells equations in dielectric medium and derive electromagnetic wave
equations in the same medium.
14. Write Maxwells equations in conducting medium and derive electromagnetic wave
equations in the same medium and give its solution.
15. Define Poynting theorem and derive its mathematical expression and give physical
significance of each term of this theorem.
16. Prove that the nature of electromagnetic wave is transverse.
17. Explain in brief about the cyclotron and write its applications and limitations.
18. Explain in brief about Retarded Potential.
19. Explain the principle, construction and working of CRO.
20. Define Self inductance and Mutual inductance.
21. Define displacement current and explain the concept of displacement current.
22. Define Continuity equation and explain its physical significance.
23. Calculate self inductance of following problems.
(i)

Two parallel wires separated by diatance dcarring current i in opposite

direction.
(ii) Coaxial cylinder havinf length L and radius of inter cylinder be a and outer
cylinder be b.
(iii) Inside a solenoid of length L having radius r and number of turns N.
(iv) Inside a toriod of radius R and number of turns be N.