Topic 4 MCQ March 2022 [38

marks]

1. A light ray passes from air to water as shown. [1 mark]

What are the change in the wavelength of the light wave and the change in the
angle the ray makes with the normal to the surface?

2. A transverse travelling wave has an amplitude x0 and wavelength λ. [1 mark]

What is the minimum distance between a crest and a trough measured in the
direction of energy propagation?
A. 2x0
B. x0
C. λ
λ
D. 2
3. A wave on a string travels to the right as shown. The frequency of the [1 mark]
wave is f . At time t = 0, a small marker on the string is in the position
shown.
1
What is the position of the marker at t = 4f
?

4. Electromagnetic waves [1 mark]

A. always obey an inverse square law.
B. are made up of electric and magnetic fields of constant amplitude.
C. always travel at the same speed in a vacuum.
D. are always polarized.
5. A wave pulse travels along a light string which is attached to a frictionless [1 mark]
ring. The ring can move freely up and down a vertical rod.

What is the shape of the wave pulse after reflection?

6. A standing (stationary) wave is set up on a string at a particular [1 mark]

frequency as shown.

How many nodes will be on the string if the frequency is doubled but nothing else
is changed?
A. 2
B. 3
C. 7
D. 8
7. Electromagnetic waves pass through a slit in a metal plate with minimal [1 mark]
diffraction. The slit has a width of 0.25 m. What is the wavelength of the
waves?
A. Much less than 0.25 m
B. Between 0.10 m and 0.40 m
C. Equal to 0.25 m
D. Much greater than 0.25 m

8. Light is incident from air on the surface of a transparent medium. [1 mark]

When V is equal to the Brewster angle, which angle is equal to 90°?

A. V+W
B. W only
C. X+Y
D. Z only

9. What is the phase difference, in rad, between the centre of a compression [1 mark]
and the centre of a rarefaction for a longitudinal travelling wave?
A. 0
B. π2
C. π
D. 2π
10. Two wave pulses, each of amplitude A, approach each other. They then [1 mark]
superpose before continuing in their original directions. What is the total
amplitude during superposition and the amplitudes of the individual pulses after
superposition?

11. The refractive index for light travelling from medium X to medium Y is 4 . [1 mark]
3
The refractive index for light travelling from medium Y to medium Z is 35 . What is
the refractive index for light travelling from medium X to medium Z?
A. 45

B. 15
12

C. 54

D. 29
15

12. A pipe of fixed length is closed at one end. What is [1 mark]

third harmonic frequency of pipe
?
first harmonic frequency of pipe

A. 15

B. 13

C. 3
D. 5
13. The graph shows the variation with position s of the displacement x of a [1 mark]
wave undergoing simple harmonic motion (SHM).

What is the magnitude of the velocity at the displacements X, Y and Z?

14. The diagram shows a second harmonic standing wave on a string fixed at [1 mark]
both ends.

What is the phase difference, in rad, between the particle at X and the particle at
Y?
A. 0
B. π4

C. π2

D. 34π
15. A particle undergoes simple harmonic motion (SHM). The graph shows the[1 mark]
variation of velocity v of the particle with time t.

What is the variation with time of the acceleration a of the particle?

16. What statement about X-rays and ultraviolet radiation is correct? [1 mark]
A. X-rays travel faster in a vacuum than ultraviolet waves.
B. X-rays have a higher frequency than ultraviolet waves.
C. X-rays cannot be diffracted unlike ultraviolet waves.
D. Microwaves lie between X-rays and ultraviolet in the electromagnetic
spectrum.
17. Two pulses are travelling towards each other. [1 mark]

What is a possible pulse shape when the pulses overlap?

18. Unpolarized light of intensity I0 is incident on the first of two polarizing [1 mark]
sheets. Initially the planes of polarization of the sheets are perpendicular.
I0
Which sheet must be rotated and by what angle so that light of intensity 4 can
emerge from the second sheet?
19. When a sound wave travels from a region of hot air to a region of cold air, [1 mark]
it refracts as shown.

What changes occur in the frequency and wavelength of the sound as it passes
from the hot air to the cold air?

20. In simple harmonic oscillations which two quantities always have opposite [1 mark]
directions?
A. Kinetic energy and potential energy
B. Velocity and acceleration
C. Velocity and displacement
D. Acceleration and displacement

21. A girl in a stationary boat observes that 10 wave crests pass the boat [1 mark]
every minute. What is the period of the water waves?
1
A. 10 min
1
B. 10 min–1

C. 10 min
D. 10 min –1
22. The graph shows the variation with distance x of the displacement of the [1 mark]
particles of a medium in which a longitudinal wave is travelling from left
to right. Displacements to the right of equilibrium positions are positive.

Which point is at the centre of a compression?

A. x = 0
B. x = 1 m
C. x = 2 m
D. x = 3 m

23. A beam of unpolarized light is incident on the first of two parallel [1 mark]
polarizers. The transmission axes of the two polarizers are initially
parallel.

The first polarizer is now rotated about the direction of the incident beam by an
angle smaller than 90°. Which gives the changes, if any, in the intensity and
polarization of the transmitted light?
24. The frequency of the first harmonic standing wave in a pipe that is open [1 mark]
at both ends is 200 Hz. What is the frequency of the first harmonic in a
pipe of the same length that is open at one end and closed at the other?
A. 50 Hz
B. 75 Hz
C. 100 Hz
D. 400 Hz

25. A travelling wave of period 5.0 ms travels along a stretched string at a [1 mark]
speed of 40 m s–1. Two points on the string are 0.050 m apart.
What is the phase difference between the two points?
A. 0
B. π2
C. π
D. 2π

26. Properties of waves are [1 mark]

I. polarization
II. diffraction
III. refraction
Which of these properties apply to sound waves?
A. I and II
B. I and III
C. II and III
D. I, II and III
27. Water is draining from a vertical tube that was initially full. A vibrating [1 mark]
tuning fork is held near the top of the tube. For two positions of the water
surface only, the sound is at its maximum loudness.

The distance between the two positions of maximum loudness is x.

What is the wavelength of the sound emitted by the tuning fork?
A. x2
B. x
C. 32x
D. 2x

28. A body undergoes one oscillation of simple harmonic motion (shm). What [1 mark]
is correct for the direction of the acceleration of the body and the
direction of its velocity?
A. Always opposite
B. Opposite for half a period
C. Opposite for a quarter of a period
D. Never opposite
29. A particle oscillates with simple harmonic motion (shm) of period T. Which [1 mark]
graph shows the variation with time of the kinetic energy of the particle?

30. A light ray is incident on an air–diamond boundary. The refractive index of[1 mark]
diamond is greater than 1. Which diagram shows the correct path of the
light ray?

31. A spring XY lies on a frictionless table with the end Y free. [1 mark]

A horizontal pulse travels along the spring from X to Y. What happens when the
pulse reaches Y?
A. The pulse will be reflected towards X and inverted.
B. The pulse will be reflected towards X and not be inverted.
C. Y will move and the pulse will disappear.
D. Y will not move and the pulse will disappear.
32. A student stands a distance L from a wall and claps her hands. [1 mark]
Immediately on hearing the reflection from the wall she claps her hands
again. She continues to do this, so that successive claps and the sound of
reflected claps coincide. The frequency at which she claps her hands is f. What is
the speed of sound in air?
A. L
2f

B. L
f
C. Lf
D. 2Lf

33. A point source of light of amplitude A0 gives rise to a particular light [1 mark]
intensity when viewed at a distance from the source. When the amplitude
is increased and the viewing distance is doubled, the light intensity is doubled.
What is the new amplitude of the source?
A. 2A0
B. 2√2 A0
C. 4A0
D. 8A0

34. Which diagram shows the shape of the wavefront as a result of the [1 mark]
diffraction of plane waves by an object?
35. A point source emits sound waves of amplitude A. The sound intensity at [1 mark]
a distance d from the source is I. What is the sound intensity at a distance
0.5d from the source when the source emits waves of amplitude 2A?
A. 16I
B. 4I
C. I
D. 14 I
36. A water wave moves on the surface of a lake. P and Q are two points on [1 mark]
the water surface. The wave is traveling towards the right.

The diagram shows the wave at time t = 0. Which graph shows how the
displacements of P and Q vary with t?
37. Horizontally polarized light of intensity I0 enters a polarizer P whose [1 mark]
polarization axis makes an angle of θ degrees with the horizontal. Light
from P is then incident on a polarizer A with fixed vertical polarization axis.

The angle θ is varied from 0 to 90 degrees. Which of the following represents the
variation with θ of the intensity I of the light transmitted through A?
 38. A pipe of length L has two open ends. Another pipe of length L′ has one [1 mark]
open end and one closed end.
′
The frequency of the first harmonic of both pipes is the same. What is L ?
L
A. 2
B. 32
C. 1
D. 12

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