Temperature, Heat, & Thermodynamics
On a phase diagram, beyond the critical point, no ____ form is possible; only _____ form is possible.
(hint: solid, liquid, gas)
No liquid form is possible, only gas form is possible.
Should a voltmeter be connected in series or in parallel with the circuit component whose voltage you wish to measure? What about an ammeter?
Parallel; series
Describe the Right Hand Rules 1 & 2.
1: Right-hand rule for a straight current-carrying wire; thumb points with current, curled fingers show magnetic field direction.
2: Right-hand rule for a current loop/solenoid; curl fingers with current, thumb points toward the magnetic field/north pole.
Describe the law of reflection.
The Law of Reflection states that light's exit angle equals its incident angle within the same medium.
What is diffraction, & what does it have to do with the nature of light?
Light bends around edges and creates interference patterns. This provides definitive proof for light's wave-like behavior.
What general ideal gas law variable must remain constant during an isochoric expansion?
Volume (V)
Why should an ammeter never be connected directly across the terminals of a battery voltage source?
An ammeter has near-zero internal resistance; connecting it directly across a voltage source causes a massive short-circuit current that can damage the meter or blow a fuse.
What are eddy currents?
They are circular currents induced inside a conductor when the magnetic flux through it changes. They are caused by electromagnetic induction.
What is the angle of incidence?
According to the fundamental Law of Reflection, the angle of reflection always equals this specific angle measured relative to the surface normal.
Describe fission v.s. fusion.
Fission releases energy by splitting a heavy atomic nucleus into smaller fragments (heavy -> light), whereas fusion releases energy by doing this to light atomic nuclei (light -> heavy).
Describe the Zeroth, First, and Second Laws of Thermodynamics.
Zeroth: If system A is in thermal equilibrium with system B, and B is with C, then A and C are also in thermal equilibrium.
First: Energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed.
Second: Heat spontaneously flows from hot to cold.
If you double the resistance R in an RC circuit while keeping the capacitance C constant, what happens to the charging time constant τ?
It doubles (2τ).
Why does a step-up transformer, which increases output voltage, not violate the Law of Conservation of Energy?
Because the output current decreases by the exact same factor, keeping total power (P = IV) constant.
Describe Snell's Law & its relationship with the normal line.
According to Snell's Law, when a light ray enters an optically denser medium with a higher index of refraction (n2 > n1), the ray bends in this directional direction relative to the boundary's normal line.
What are leptons?
Subatomic matter particles are broadly classified into two categories based on the strong force: hadrons feel it, while these fundamental particles (such as electrons and neutrinos) do not.
Why does running hot water over a tight metal lid on a glass jar make it easier to open?
Metals generally have a higher coefficient of thermal expansion than glass, expanding more than the jar neck.
Why does placing a dielectric material between the plates of a capacitor increase its capacitance?
The dielectric molecules polarize, creating an opposing internal field that lowers the overall electric field (and voltage) for a given amount of stored charge.
What is back emf?
This induced voltage generated by a running electric motor opposes the main supply voltage driving the motor.
Describe a constant (or fixed) phase relationship (temporal coherence).
For two overlapping light beams to produce a stationary, stable interference pattern, they must originate from the same source to satisfy spatial coherence and maintain this specific temporal condition regarding their phase difference over time.
Protons and neutrons are composed of up and down quarks. What pattern of up/down do these two particle follow?
Protons: uud
Neutrons: udd
What happens to the total entropy of the universe during any real, spontaneous (irreversible) process?
The total entropy of the universe always increases (ΔS > 0).
Kirchoff's Rule Problem: Solve for I1, I2, and I3 in Ex 21.5 in the textbook (project on screen).
I1 = 4.75 A
I2 = -3.5 A
I3 = 8.25 A
Describe the core operating mechanism of a generator, an electric motor, and a transformer.
Generator: Generator turns a coil inside a magnetic field to convert mechanical energy into electrical current via Faraday's law of induction.
Electric Motor: Passes current through a coil inside a magnetic field to generate magnetic torque, converting electrical energy into mechanical rotation.
Transformer: Uses alternating current in a primary coil to create a changing magnetic flux through a shared core, inducing a stepped-up or stepped-down voltage in a stationary secondary coil via mutual induction.
What is Young's Double-Slit Experiment?
A single light beam passes through two closely spaced apertures to produce an alternating pattern of bright and dark fringes on a screen, providing definitive proof of the wave nature of light.
What is critical mass?
Refers to the minimum mass of fissile material required to sustain a self-propagating nuclear chain reaction, where the rate of neutron loss to the surroundings equals or is less than the rate of neutron production.