REVIEW NOTES IN PHYSICS 2

Prepared by: Engr. Luzviminda A. Lescano

HEAT

Thermal energy energy resulting from heat flow; also known as internal energy
Internal energy total potential and kinetic energy of the particles of a substance.
Heat thermal energy that is transferred from a hot body to a cold body; thermal energy in
motion.
Q = m c ( t 2 - t1 )
Q = + when heat is absorbed
Q = - when heat is liberated
Example 1: How much heat does 25 g of aluminum give off as it cools from 100 oC to 20 oC? For
aluminum c = 0.21 cal/g Co
Ans. 420 cal
Temperature measures the average kinetic energy of the particles in a body.
Specific heat of a substance ( c ) amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of a unit mass
of a substance by one degree; substances with high specific heat heas up more slowly or cool
down at a slower rate; with low specific heat heat up quickly and cool off quickly
Calorimetry involves the measurement of the heat transferred between substances; calorimetry
problems involve the sharing of heat energy among initially hot objects and cold objects. Since
energy must be conserved:
Heat lost by hotter substances = heat gained by the cooler substances
Example 2: A thermos bottle contains 150 g of water at 4 oC. Into this is placed 90 g of metal at
100 oC. After equilibrium is established, the temperature of the water and metal is 21 oC. What is
the specific heat of the metal? Assume no heat loss to the thermos bottle . Specific heat of
water = 1 cal/g Co
Ans. 0.36 cal/g Co
o
Example 3: A 255-g block of gold at 85 C is immersed in 155 g of water at 25 oC. Find the
equilibrium temperature, assuming the system is isolated and the heat capacity of the cup can be
neglected. Sp. ht. of Au = 0.0308 cal/g Co
Ans. 27.9 oC
o
Example 4: A 20-kg gold bar at 35 C is placed in a large, insulated 0.80-kg glass container at 15
o
C and 2.0 kg of water at 25 oC. Calculate the final temperature of mixture.
Sp. ht. of glass= 0.2 cal/g Co
Ans. 26.6 oC
Abnormal expansion of water:
Cooling water from 4 C to 0 C it expands
At 0 C it freezes to ice, volume increases, density decreases
Below 0 C it contracts
Vaporization process of changing from liquid to gaseous state at the boiling
Melting of fusion process of changing a solid to liquid.
Freezing changing liquid to solid
Condensation vapor to liquid
Sublimation solid to vapor
Latent Heat of fusion heat required to melt 1 kg of a solid in to a liquid phase at the solid melting
point; also equal to the heat given off when a substance changes from liquid to solid.
For water: 80 cal/g
Latent Heat of vaporization energy required to change 1 kg of a substance from the liquid to the
vapor state at the liquids boiling point; also the energy given off when the substance changes
from vapor to liquid.
For water: 540 cal/g
Heat involved in a change of phase:
For heat absorption processes: Q =+ mL ( m=mass , L=latent heat )
For heat liberation process:
Q = -mL
Example 5: How much heat is required to change 40 g of ice cube from ice at -10 oC to steam at
110oC? Specific heats: ice = 0.5 cal/g Co ; steam = 0.48 cal/g Co
Ans. 29 192 cal
Example 6: How much heat is given up when 20 g of steam at 100 oC is condensed to 20 oC?
Ans. -12 400 cal

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Example 7:
A 20-g piece of aluminum at 90 oC is dropped into a cavity in a large block of
ice at 0 oC? How much ice does the aluminum melt?
Sp. ht. of Al= 0.215 cal/g Co
Ans. 4.7 g
Example 8: Determine the resulting temperature, when 150 g of ice at 0 oC is mixed with 300 g
of water at 50 oC. Ans. 6.7 oC
Evaporation process in which a liquid changes to the gas phase at room temperature.
Conduction transfer of heat due to atomic ( or molecular ) collisions within a substance
(solid, liquid and gas) or from one object to another when they are in contact. The rate of
heat flow within a substance is
Convection transfer of heat in fluids by means of fluid currents within the heated fluids that
carry heat from one place to another; the material itself moves from one place to another.
Radiation transfer of heat by means of electromagnetic waves ;
James Prescot Joule- showed the quantitative relationship between heat and work
If an object has an initial length Lo at some temperature to and undergoes a change in
temperature t , its linear dimension changes by the amount L, which is proportional to the
objects initial length and the temperature change.
L = Lo t = Lo ( t to )
where = coefficient of linear expansion of the material
V = Vo t = Vo ( t to )
= coefficient of volume expansion of the material
= 3
Example 9: A steel railroad track has a length of 30.000 m when the temperature is 0 oC.
What is its length on a hot day when the temperature is 40 oC? of steel = 11 x 10 -6 ( Co)-1
Ans. 30.013 m
Example 10. A 1.00-liter aluminum cylinder at 5.00 oC is filled to the brim with gasoline at
the same temperature. If the aluminum and gasoline are warmed to 65 oC, how much
gasoline spills out?
of Al = 24 x 10-6 ( Co)-1 ; of gasoline = 9.6 x 10-4 ( Co)-1
Ans. 53.3 cm

OPTICS

Geometric optics branch of optics for which the ray description is adequate.
Physical optics branch dealing with wave behavior
Corpuscular theory light consists of tiny particles called corpuscles that travel in a straight
line through space ; proposed by Isaac Newton
Wave theory proposed by Christian Huygens ; suggested that light consists of a series of
waves.
Electromagnetic theory light is an electromagnetic wave which can travel in space without
any medium, proposed by James Clark Maxwell
Heinrich Rudolf Hertz verified experimentally the existence of electromagnetic wave as
described by Maxwell.
Quantum theory light consists of packets of energy called photons or quanta; explained the
photoelectric effect
Modern theory light exhibits a dual characteristics that of wave and of particle.
Speed of light : Light travels in empty space (vacuum) at the speed of 3 x 10 8 m/s
Dispersion spreading of light into colors. Dispersion in water droplets is responsible for
rainbows.
Transparent materials materials which transmit light because objects can be seen through
them
Translucent materials transmit little light through them
Opaque materials which absorb or reflect light
Polarization process of affecting radiation especially light so that the vibrations of the waves
assume a (s) is(are) permitted to pass through a polarizer; process of filtering light such that
only one, two or definite direction The reflected light is polarized when the reflected and
transmitted rays are perpendicular to each other.

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Color property of light that reaches the eyes; an object appears a particular color because it
reflects light of that color; black is the absence of reflected light; White objects reflect all the
wavelengths while black objects absorb all the wavelengths.
Luminous intensity ( I ) amount of light that a source give out measured in candela (cd).;
brightness of light source
Luminous flux ( F ) rate at which light energy is emitted from a source expressed in lumen
(lm)
F = 4I
Illumination ( E ) rate at which light energy falls on a unit area some distance from a light
source; brightness on surface; luminous flux per unit area
F
E =
A
Illumination from an isotropic light source with a given intensity
I
E =
when point source is directly above the surface
r2
or the flux is perpendicular to the surface
I cos
E =
r2

when point source is not directly above the surface

or the flux makes an angle with the normal

where : r = distance of point source from surface

Units of E:

lm/m2 = lux = m-candle

lm/cm2 = cm-candle
lm/ft2 = foot-candle

Luminous efficiency total luminous flux (F ) radiated by the source divided by the power
( P )of the source expressed in lm/W.
F
Luminous efficiency =
P
Example 11: A 60 watt incandescent lamp has a luminous intensity of 66.5 cd. Determine
the total luminous flux radiated by the lamp and the luminous efficiency of the lamp.
Ans.
836 lm ; 13.9 lm/W
Example 12: Compute the illumination of a small surface at a distance of 120 cm from an
isotropic point source of luminous intensity 72 cd (a) if the surface is normal to the luminous
flux and (b) if the normal to the surface makes an angle of 30 o with the light rays.
Ans. 50 lux ; 43 lux

Photometry - deals with the measurement of the intensity of a source of light.

Photometer instrument for comparing the luminous intensities of light sources.
I1

I2
=

r12

Where: I1 and I2 are the luminous intensities of the two light sources
r1 and r2 are their respective distances from the screen of the photometer

r2 2

Example 13. In an experiment with a bar photometer , it was found that two lamps
produced the same illumination when the screen was 40 cm from a standard lamp and 160
cm from a second lamp. The standard lamp was rated at 8 cd. Determine the luminous
intensity of the second lamp.
Ans. 128 cd
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Reflection of Light
Kinds of reflection of light:
Diffuse reflection reflection on a rough surface; light is reflected in irregular
directions
Specular or regular reflection reflection on smooth-polished surface

Law of reflection: In specular ( or mirror) reflection: (1) the incident ray, reflected ray and
normal to the surface lie in the same plane. (2) the angle of incidence equals the angle of
reflection.
normal
Incident ray

1 2

reflected ray

Reflecting surface
1 = 2

Mirror any highly polished surface that forms images by regular reflection of light.
Plane Mirror form images that are erect, of the same size as the object, and as far behind
the reflecting surface as the object is in front of it. ; the images are virtual.
Real image image formed by converging rays of light actually passing through the image
point; can be projected on a screen; appear in front of the mirror
Virtual image image formed by rays of light that appear to have diverged from the image
point but do not actually pass through that point; cannot be projected on the screen
Spherical mirror or curve mirror is a small portion of the surface of a sphere, one side of
which is polished with a reflective material ; when viewed from the inside, the mirror is called
concave mirror (converging mirror), and viewed from the outside, it is called convex mirror
( or diverging mirror)
Ray Diagram
Rays parallel to the principal axis of a spherical mirror pass the focus after reflection
Rays that pass the focus are reflected parallel to the principal axis
Rays that proceeds along a radius of the mirror is reflected back along its original
path
Parts of a spherical mirror
Center of curvature ( C ) center of sphere
Radius of curvature ( R )
Vertex ( V ) center of mirror
Principal axis line that passes through the vertex and the center
Secondary axis line passing through the center of curvature normal to the mirror.
Focus ( F ) point where rays parallel to the principal axis meet or seem to meet
after reflection.
Focal length ( f ) distance from the focus to the mirror: f = R

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For concave mirror or converging mirror: rays parallel to the principal axis actually converge
at the focus after reflection
mirror
Incident ray
object

V
V

principal avis

image
Reflected rays
f
R =radius of curvature

Image formed by a concave mirror

Case 1. Object at an infinite distance
Image is a point at the focal point F
Case 2. object at a finite distance beyond the center of curvature C
Real, inverted, smaller than object, located between the focal
pf
point and the center of curvature
Case 3 object at the center of curvature C
Image is at C, inverted, real and same size as object
Case 4 Object between C and F
Image is beyond C, inverted, real and bigger
pf
Case 5 object is between F and mirror
Image is virtual, bigger , erect
P=f
Case 6 object at F
No image

For convex mirror or diverging mirror: rays parallel to the principal axis diverge after reflection
Reflected ray
Incident ray
Object
principal axis

image

Mirror

Image formed by convex mirror

Virtual, erect, behind the mirror, smaller

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Mirror equation for both concave and convex spherical mirrors:

1
1
2
1
+
=
=
p
q
R
f
where:

p = object distance from the mirror

q = image distance from the mirror
R = radius of curvature of the mirror
f = focal length of the mirror = R/2
p = + when object is in front of mirror
q = + when the image is real ( in front of mirror)
q = - when the image is virtual ( behind the mirror)
R and f are (+) for a concave mirror and (-) for a convex mirror
Size of Image formed by a spherical mirror:
height of image
image distance
q
Linear magnification =
=
=
height of object
object distance
p
q
In general:

M = -

When M
M
M
M
M

P
= ( - ) the image is inverted
= ( + ) the image is upright or erect
1 the image is smaller than object
1 the image is bigger than object
= 1 the image is of the same size as object

Example 14: Describe the image of an object positioned 20 cm from a concave spherical
mirror of radius 60 cm. Ans. virtual, erect, 60 cm behind the mirror , magnified 3 times.
Example 15; An object 7 cm high is placed 15 cm from a convex mirror of radius 45 cm.
Describe its image.
Ans. virtual, erect, 9 cm behind mirror, 4.2 cm high
Example 16; How far should an object be from a concave mirror of radius 36 cm to form a
real image 1/9 its size?
Ans. 180 cm
Example 17: What is the focal length of a convex mirror which produces an image 1/6 the
size of an object located 12 cm from the mirror?
Ans. -2.4 cm
Refraction of Light
Bending of light rays as they pass obliquely from one medium to another of different optical
density
Bending of light caused by a change in the velocity of light due to a change in the optical
density of the medium
It is because of refraction that we are able to see transparent objects.
This phenomenon is a direct result of the fact that light travels slower in a denser medium and
that it travels faster when it passes into a medium that is less dense.
Optical density property of a transparent substance which measure the speed of light
through the medium. The greater the optical density of a medium, the slower the speed of
light through the medium.

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When a ray of light passes obliquely from a less dense medium where its speed is greater to
a denser medium where its speed is less, the ray of light is bent towards the normal as it
enters the denser medium.
normal
incident ray

less dense ( air )

n=1

If

v1 v2 then

denser (glass )
n1

Refracted ray
1 2

When a ray of light passes from a denser medium where its speed is less to a less dense
medium where its speed is greater, the ray will bent away from the normal
Normal
incident ray

denser (glass )
n1

1
2

refracted ray
less dense (air )
n=1

If

v1 v2 then 1 2

Absolute Index of Refraction ( n ) of a medium ratio of speed of light in vacuum or air to

the speed of light in medium
Speed of light in vacuum
n =

c
=

Speed of light in medium

Light always travel more slowly in a material than in vacuum: c v

For vacuum: n = 1.0
Relative index of refraction ( nr ) ratio of speed of light in the first medium of the speed in
the second medium
v1
nr =
v2

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Snells Law of Refraction : For any two given transparent mediums ,the ratio of the sine of
the angle of incidence to the sine of the angle of refraction is constant and is equal to the
inverse ratio of the two indexes of refraction.
sin 1
sin 2

v1
=

n2
=

v2

n1

For air: n = 1.0003

Critical angle for Total Internal Reflection (c) : When light passes from an optically denser
medium out into air , as the angle of incidence is increased the angle of refraction increases
and approaches the limiting value of 90 o, beyond which there could be no light refracted into
the air, or there is no refracted wave but the wave is totally reflected at the boundary
between the media. The limiting angle of incidence in the denser medium, which makes the
angle of refraction 90o, is called the critical angle of incidence c.
Total internal reflection occurs only when a ray of light is incident on the interface with a
second material whose n is smaller than that of the material in which the ray is traveling;
principle behind fiber optics
Optical fiber far superior to copper wire in its capacity to carry information because of the
higher frequency of the infrared light used to carry the information .
Denser medium

c
90o

less dense medium

n2
Sin c =

n1 = index of refraction of the denser medium

n2 = index of refraction of the less dense medium

n1
Index of refraction and wavelength
o
=
n

where: = wavelength of light in a material

o = wavelength of light in vacuum = 633 nm
n = index of refraction of material

Example 18 The angle of incidence of a ray of light in air is 45 o and the angle of refraction
in a medium is 30o. What is the index of refraction of the second medium?
Ans. 1.414
Example 19: What is the speed of light in a substance having an index of refraction of 1.5?
Ans. 2 x 108 m/s
Example 20: A ray of light in water (n=4/3) is incident upon a plate of crown glass
(n=1.517) at an angle of 45o. What is the angle of refraction for the ray in the glass?
Ans. 38.42o
Example 21: What is the critical angle for light passing from glass (n=1.54) to water
(n=1.33)
Ans. 59.73o
Example 22: The wavelength of red light from a helium-neon laser is 633 nm in air but 474
nm in the aqueous humor inside your eyeball. Calculate the index of refraction of the
aqueous humor and the speed and frequency of the light in this substance.
Ans. 1.34 ; 2.25 x 108 m/s ; 4.74 x 1014 Hz
Shallowing Effect of Refraction of light

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The ratio of the actual depth to the apparent depth is 4/3 , which is the index of refraction of
water.
Actual depth
n =
Apparent depth
Example 23: A pool of water is 60 cm deep. Find its apparent depth when viewed
vertically through air. Ans. 45 cm

Lens transparent medium bounded by spherical surfaces; transparent material which

refracts light rays in such as way as to form an image ; most familiar and widely used optical
device ( after the plane mirror )
Thin lens simplest lens ( distance between the two spherical surfaces are close to one
another that can be neglected or thickness of lens is negligible Examples: contact lenses
and eye glasses.
Ray Diagram
A ray parallel to the axis emerges from the lens in a direction that passes through
the second focal point of a converging lens, or appears to come from the second
focal point of a diverging lens.
A ray through the center of the lens is not appreciably deviated .
A ray through the first focal point emerges parallel to the axis.

Convex or converging lenses or positive lenses is one where the center portion is thicker
than the edge; lens that brings parallel light into a single real focal point; with two foci one on
each side of the lens.
Double convex (biconvex)

Incident ray

principal axis (optic axis)

Second focal point

First focal point
Case 1: Object from infinity:

Image is a point at the focus F

Images formed by a converging lens

Characteristics of the
Image

Case 2 Distant
object

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Real
Inverted
Smaller than object
At F

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Case 3 Object
at 2F

Real
Inverted
Same size
At 2F

Case 4 Object
between 2F and
F

Real
Inverted
Larger than object
Beyond 2F

Case 5 Object
at F

No image
Refracted rays
are parallel

Case 6 Object
between F and
lens

Virtual
Erect
Larger than object
Behind the object on the
same side of the lens

Concave or diverging lenses or negative lens one in which the center portion is thinner
than the edge ; deviates parallel light outwards as though it originated at a single virtual
focal point.
Double concave (biconcave)

Incident ray

F
Virtual focus
(principal focus)

Image formed by a diverging lens

e) Object
at F

Characteristics of the image

regardless of object position
Virtual
Erect
Smaller than object
Between object and lens

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Lens Equation equation that relates the positions of the image and the object of a thin
lens to the focal length.
1
1
1
+
=
p
q
f

where:

p = object distance from the lens

q = image distance from the lens
f = focal length of the lens
p = + for real object and negative for virtual object
q = + for real image and negative for virtual image
f is (+) for a converging lens and (-) for diverging lens

Size of Image formed by a spherical mirror:

height of image
Linear magnification (M ) =
Height of object

image distance
=
object distance

q
=
p

q
In general:

M = -

When M
M
M
M
M

P
= ( - ) the image is inverted
= ( + ) the image is upright or erect
1 the image is smaller than object
1 the image is bigger than object
= 1 the image is of the same size as object

Example 24: Locate and describe the image formed by a converging lens of focal length 20
cm if the object is placed 30 cm from the lens.
Ans. real image , 60 cm away from the lens, inverted , bigger
Example 25: An object 9 cm high is 27 cm in front of a concave lens of focal length 18 cm.
Determine the position and height of its image. Ans. 10.8 cm in front of the lens ; 3.6 cm
The Lensmakers Equation relationship among the focal length f, the index of refraction n of
the lens, and the radii of curvature R1 and R2 of the lens surfaces.
1

1
= (n1)

f
where:

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1
+

R1
n
R1 and R2
R1
R2
f
f

R2
= index of refraction of the lens material
= radii of curvature of the two lens surfaces
= ( + ) for convex surfaces
= ( - ) for concave surfaces
= (+ ) for converging lens
= ( - ) for diverging lens

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Lenses in Contact: When two thin lens having focal lengths f 1and f2 are in contact, the focal
length of the combination is
1
1
1
=
+
f
f1
f2
Example 26: A lens has a convex surface of radius 20 cm and a concave surface of radius
40 cm , and is made of glass of refractive index 1.54. Compute the focal length of the lens
and state whether it is a converging or a diverging lens. Ans. f = +74.1 cm , converging
Example 27: A double convex lens has faces of radii 18 and 20 cm. When an object is 24
cm from the lens, a real image is formed 32 cm from the lens. Determine the focal length of
the lens and the refractive index of the lens material.
Ans. +13.7 cm , n=1.69
Lens Power amount by which it can change the curvature of a wave ; reciprocal of the
frequency; expressed in diopers ( m-1 ).
Aberrations responsible for the formation of imperfect images by lenses and mirrors.
Spherical aberration failure of parallel rays to meet at a single point on a spherical surface
after reflection or refraction
Chromatic aberration arises from the fact that light rays of different wavelengths focus at
different points when refracted by a lens
Mirage images seen in the desert, or on a hot road in summer caused by refraction of light
in the air
Rainbows formed by the dispersion of light in water; refraction in the atmosphere; produced
by bending of light rays in the atmosphere when there are large differences in temperature
between the ground and the air.
Dispersion the dependence of the index of refraction on wavelength; separation of white
light into its component colors
Spectrum band of continuous spread of colors from the longest to the shortest wavelength.
White light mixture of the waves of different wavelengths in the visible region of the
spectrum.
The brilliance of diamond is due to its large refractive index and its large dispersion
Prism refracts a light ray and deviates the light through an angle called angle of deviation;
when a beam of white light ( a combination of all visible wavelengths is incident on a prism,
because of dispersion, the different colors refract through different angle of deviation ( red,
orange, yellow, green, blue and violet) ; violet deviates the most, red light the least.

red
White light
violet

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