Electrostatics-

Chapter-1 : Electric charges and Fields

Chapter 2 : Electrostatic potential and Capacitance

1. Derive an expression for the electric field at a point on the axial position of an electric dipole.
2. Derive an expression for the electric field at a point on the equatorial position of an electric dipole.
3. Derive an expression for the energy stored in a capacitor. Show that whenever two conductors share
charges by bringing them into electrical contact, there is a loss of energy.
4. Derive an expression for the effective capacitance when capacitors are connected in (a) series and (b)
parallel
5. Explain the principle of a capacitor and derive an expression for the capacitance of a parallel plate
capacitor.
6. State Gauss theorem and apply it to find the electric field at a point due to (a) a line of charge (b) A
plane sheet of charge (c) A Charged spherical conducting shell.
7. State Coulomb's law and express it in vector form. Derive it using Gauss theorem.
8. Derive an expression for the torque on an electric dipole in a uniform electric field.
9. Derive an expression for the work done in rotating an electric dipole in a uniform electric field.
10. Derive an expression for the energy stored (Potential Energy) in a dipole in a uniform electric
field.
11. Derive an expression for the electrostatic potential energy of a system of point charges.
12. Derive an expression for the capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor with (a) a dielectric slab (b) a
metallic plate in between the plates of the capacitor.
13. Define electric potential at a point. Derive an expression for the electric potential at a point due to (a)
a point charge (b) a system of point charges
(c) a dipole.

Chapter 3 : Current Electricity-

1. Define drift velocity and derive an expression for it.

2. Derive the expression I=nAevd .
3. Deduce Ohm's law from elementary ideas and hence write an expression for resistance and
resistivity.
4. Derive an expression for conductivity in terms of mobility
 5. Derive an expression for the current in a circuit with external resistance R when (a) n identical cells of emf E and
internal resistance r are connected in series (b) m identical cells are connected in parallel CBSE 2016
6. State and explain Kirchhoff’s laws.
7. State and explain the principle of Wheat Stone's principle. Deduce it using
Kirchhoff’s laws.
.
8. Explain the variation of resistance and resistivity with temperature and hence define temperature
coefficient of resistance and resistivity.

Objective Questions
Current Electricity

Q1: Drift speed of electrons, when 1.5 A of current flows in a copper wire of cross section 5 mm2 is v. If the electron
density of copper is 9 × 1028/m3 the value of v in mm/s is close to (Take charge of electron to be = 1.6 × 10 –19 C)
(a) 3 (b) 0.2 (c) 2 (d) 0.02
Q2: Two equal resistances when connected in series to a battery, consume electric power of 60 W. If these resistances
are now connected in parallel combination to the same battery, the electric power consumed will be
(a) 240 W (b)120 W (c) 60 W (d) 30 W
Q3: A current of 2 mA was passed through an unknown resistor which dissipated a power of 4.4 W. Dissipated power
when an ideal power supply of 11 V is connected across it is
(a) 11 × 10–4 W (b) 11 × 10–5 W (c) 11 × 105 W (d) 11 × 10–3 W
Q4: An ideal battery of 4 V and resistance R are connected in series in the primary circuit of a potentiometer of length 1
m and resistance 5 . The value of R, to give a potential difference of 5 mV across 10 cm of potentiometer wire is
(a) 490 (b) 495 (c) 395 (d) 480
Q5: A cell of internal resistance r drives current through an external resistance R. The power delivered by the cell to the
external resistance will be maximum when
(a) R = 0.001 r (b) R = r (c) R = 2r (d) R = 1000 r
Q6: A metal wire of resistance 3 is elongated to make a uniform wire of double its previous length. This new wire is
now bent and the ends joined to make a circle. If two points on this circle make an angle 60° at the centre, the equivalent
resistance between these two points will be
(a) (7/2) Ω (b) (5/2) Ω (c) (12/5) Ω (d) (5/3) Ω
Q7: On interchanging the resistances, the balance point of a meter bridge shifts to the left by 10 cm. The resistance of
the combination is 1 kΩ. How much was the resistance on the left slot before the interchange?
(a) 990 (b) 505 (c) 550 (d) 910
Q8: A constant voltage is applied between two ends of a metallic wire. If the length is halved and the radius of the wire
is doubled, the rate of heat developed in the wire will be
(a) Increased 8 times (b) Unchanged (c) Doubled (d) Halved
Q9: A heating element has a resistance of 100 Ω at room temperature. When it is connected to a supply of 220 V, a
steady current of 2 A passes in it and the temperature is 500°C more than room temperature. What is the temperature
coefficient of resistance of the heating element?
(a) 1×10– 4 °C–1 (b) 2 × 10– 4 °C–1 (c) 0.5 × 10– 4 °C–1 (d) 5 × 10– 4 °C–1
Q10: A uniform wire of length l and radius r has a resistance of 100 Ω. It is recast into a wire of radius r/2.The resistance
of new wire will be
(a) 400 Ω (b)100 Ω (c) 200 Ω (d)1600 Ω
Q11: A 2 W carbon resistor is colour coded with green, black, red and brown, respectively. The maximum current which
can be passed through this resistor is
(a) 20 mA (b) 0.4 mA (c) 100 mA (d) 63 mA
Q12: In a large building, there are 15 bulbs of 40 W, 5 bulbs of 100 W, 5 fans of 80 W and 1 heater of 1 kW. The
voltage of the electric mains is 220 V. The minimum capacity of the main fuse of the building will be
(a) 14 A(b) 8 A(c) 10 A(d) 12 A
Q13: If a wire is stretched to make it 0.1% longer, its resistance will
(a) increase by 0.05% (b) increase by 0.2% (c) decrease by 0.2% (d) decrease by 0.05%
Q14: A thermocouple is made from two metals, antimony and bismuth. If one junction of the couple is kept hot and the
other is kept cold then, an electric current will
(a) flow from antimony to bismuth at the cold junction
(b) flow from antimony to bismuth at the hot junction
(c) flow from bismuth to antimony at the cold junction
(d) not flow through the thermocouple.
Q15: The resistance of a wire is 5 ohm at 50°C and 6 ohm at 100°C. The resistance of the wire at 0°C will be
(a) 3 ohm (b) 2 ohm (c) 1 ohm (d) 4 ohm
16.If 25% part of length of wire is stretched by 25%, then percentage change in resistance of wire will be about
a) 7%b) 14%c) 25%d) 62.5%
17.A boy has two spare light bulbs in his drawer. One is marked 240 V and 100 W and the other is marked 240 V
and 60 W. He tries to decide which of the following assertions are correct?

(A) The 60 W light bulb has more resistance and therefore burns less brightly.
(B) The 60 W light bulb has less resistance and therefore burns less brightly.
(C) The 100 W bulb has more resistance and thereforeburns more brightly.
(D) The 100 W bulb has less resistance and therefore burns less brightly.
18.In a circuit a cell with internal resistance r is connected to an external resistance R. The condition for the
maximum current that drawn from the cell is

(A) R= r (B) R < r (C) R > r (D) R =0

19.In parallel combination of n cells, we obtain

(A)more voltage (B) more current (C) less voltage (D) less current

20.1 ampere current is equivalent to

18 –1 18 –1
(A) 6.25 × 10 electrons s (B) 2.25 × 10 electronss
14 –1 14 –1
(C) 6.25 × 10 electrons s (D) 2.25 × 10 electrons s

21.The voltage V and current I graphs for a conductor at two different temperatures T1 and T2 are shown in the figure.
The relation between T1 and T2 is
 (A) T1  T2 (B) T1  T2

(C) T1 T2 (d)T1=1/T2

22.Figure (a) and figure (b) both are showing the variation of resistivity () with temperature (T) for some
materials. Identify the type of these materials.

(a)Conductor and semiconductor

(B)Conductor and Insulator
©Insulator and semiconductor
(d)Both are conductors

23.Figure shows current in a part of an electric circuit, then current I is

(A)1.7 A (B) 3.7 A

(C) 1.3 A (D) 1A
24.In the given circuit the potential at point B is zero, the potential at points A and D will be
 (A) VA  4V; VD  9V (C) VA  9V; VD  3V
(B) VA  3V; VD 4V
(D) VA  4V
6 2
25.An electric current of 16 A exists in a metal wire of cross section 10 m and length 1 m. Assuming one
3
free electron per atom. The drift speed of the free electrons in the wire will be (Density of metal = 5  10
3
kg/m , atomic weight = 60)
3 3
(A) 5  10 m/s (B) 2  10 m/s
3 3
(C) 4  10 m/s (D) 7.5  10 m/s

26. KVL is based upon law of conservation of

(a) charge (b) energy (c) mass (d) momentum

27.To get maximum current in a resistance of 3 , one can use n parallel rows of m cells each
(connected in series). If the total no. of cells is 24 and the internal resistance is 0.5 ohm then
(A) m = 12, n = 2 (B) m = 8, n = 3
(C) m = 2, n = 12 (D) m = 6, n = 4

28.In the given circuit, the resistance R has a value that depends
on the current. Specifically, R is 20 ohms when I is zero and the R
250 V
increase in resistance (in ohms)is numerically equal to one-half of
the current in amperes. What is the value of current I in the
circuit?

(a)12.5 A (B) 10 amp (c)18.5 (d)8.33

Electric Charges and Field (Objective questions)

Q.1. Charge is the property associated with matter due to which it produces and experiences
(a) electric effects only
(b) magnetic effects only
(c) both electric and magnetic effects
(d) None of these

Q.2. Charge is
(a) transferable (b) associated with mass
(c) conserved (d) All of these

Q.3. A body is positively charged, it implies that

(a) there is only positive charge in the body.
(b) there is positive as well as negative charge in the body but the positive charge is more than
negative charge
(c) there is equal positive and negative charge in the body but the positive charge lies in the outer
regions
(d) negative charge is displaced from its positive

Q.4. On rubbing, when one body gets positively charged and other negatively charged, the
electrons transferred from positively charged body to negatively charged body are
(a) valence electrons only
(b) electrons of inner shells
(c) both valence electrons and electrons of inner shell
(d) yet to be established

Q.5. Which of the following is the best insulator?

(a) Carbon (b) Paper
(c) Graphite (d) Ebonite

Q.6. If a body is negatively charged, then it has

(a) excess of electrons (b) excess of protons
(c) deficiency of electrons (d) deficiency of neutrons

Answer
Q.7. When a body is charged by induction, then the body
(a) becomes neutral
(b) does not lose any charge
(c) loses whole of the charge on it
(d) loses part of the charge on it

Q.8. On charging by conduction, mass of a body may

(a) increase (b) decreases
(c) increase or decrease (d) None of these

Q.9. Quantisation of charge implies

(a) charge cannot be destroyed
(b) charge exists on particles
(c) there is a minimum permissible charge on a particle
(d) charge, which is a fraction of a coulomb is not possible.

Q.10. If an object possesses an electric charge, it is said to be electrified or … A … When it has no

charge, it is said to be … B … Here, A and B refer to
(a) charged, neutral (b) neutral, charged
(c) discharged, charged (d) active, reactive
Q.11. A positively charged rod is brought near an uncharged conductor. If the rod is then suddenly
withdrawn, the charge left on the conductor will be
(a) positive (b) negative
(c) zero (d) cannot say

Q.12. Two spheres A and B of exactly same mass are given equal positive and negative charges
respectively. Their masses after charging
(a) remains unaffected (b) mass of A > mass of B
(c) mass of A < mass of B (d) Nothing can be said

Q.13. When a comb rubbed with dry hair attracts pieces of paper. This is because the
(a) comb polarizes the piece of paper
(b) comb induces a net dipole moment opposite to the direction of field
(c) electric field due to the comb is uniform
(d) comb induces a net dipole moment perpendicular to the direction of field

Q.14. When some charge is transferred to …A… it readily gets distributed over the entire surface of
… A… If some charge is put on … B…, it stays at the same place. Here, A and B refer to
(a) insulator, conductor (b) conductor, insulator
(c) insulator, insulator (d) conductor, conductor

Q.15. Quantisation of charge was experimentally demonstrated by

(a) Einstein’s photoelectric effect
(b) Frank-Hertz experiment
(c) Davisson and Germer experiment
(d) Millikan’s oil drop experiment

Q.16. In annihilation process, in which an electron and a positron transform into two gamma rays,
which property of electric charge is displayed?
(a) Additivity of charge
(b) Quantisation of charge
(c) Conservation of charge
(d) Attraction and repulsion

Q.17. The law, governing the force between electric charges is known as
(a) Ampere’s law (b) Ohm’s law
(c) Faraday’s law (d) Coulomb’s law
Q.18. The value of electric permittivity of free space is
(a) 9 × 109 NC2/m2 (b) 8.85 × 10–12 Nm2/C2 sec
(c)8.85 × 10–12 C2/Nm2 (d) 9 × 109 C2/Nm2

Q.19. Coulomb’s law is true for

(a) atomic distances (= 10–11 m)
(b) nuclear distances (= 10–15 m)
(c) charged as well as uncharged particles
(d) all the distances

Q.20. What happens when some charge is placed on a soap bubble?

(a) Its radius decreases (b) Its radius increases
(c) The bubble collapses (d) None of these

Q.21. When a glass rod is rubbed with silk, it

(a) gains electrons from silk.
(b) gives electrons to silk.
(c) gains protons from silk.
(d) gives protons to silk.

Q.22. In general, metallic ropes are suspended on the carriers taking inflammable materials. The
reason is
(a) to control the speed of the carrier.
(b) to keep the centre of gravity of the carrier nearer to the earth.
(c) to keep the body of the carrier in contact with the earth.
(d) none of these.
Q.23. Two charges q1 and q2 are placed in vacuum at a distance d and the force acting between
them is F. If a medium of dielectric constant 4 is introduced around them, the force now will be (a)
F (b) F/2 (c) F/4 (d) 4F

Q.24. When 1014 electrons are removed from a neutral metal sphere, the charge on the sphere
becomes ______ .

Q.25. Two similar spheres having +Q and -Q charges are kept at a certain distance. F force acts
between the two. If at the middle of two spheres, another similar sphere having +Q charge is kept,
then it experiences a force in magnitude and direction as
(a) zero having no direction.
(b) 8F towards +Q charge.
(c) 8F towards -Q charge.
(d) 4F towards +Q charge.

Q.26. A charge Q is divided into two parts of q and Q – q. If the coulomb repulsion between them
when they are separated is to be maximum, the ratio of Q/q should be
(a) 2:1
(b) 1/2
(c) 4:1
(d) 1/4

Q.27. Four equal charges q are placed at the four comers A, B, C, D of a square of length a. The
magnitude of the force on the charge at B will be

Q.28. Dielectric constant for metal ______ .

Q.29. Two charges of equal magnitudes kept at a distance r exert a force F on each other. If the
charges are halved and distance between them is doubled, then the new force acting on each
charge is

Q.30. The electric field inside a spherical shell of uniform surface charge density is
(a) zero.
(b) constant, less than zero.
(c) directly proportional to the distance from the centre.
(d) none of the above

Q.31. A cylinder of radius R and length L is placed in a uniform electric field E parallel to the
cylinder axis. The total flux for the surface of the cylinder is given by
Q.32. Electric field at a point varies as r° for
(a) an electric dipole
(b) a point charge
(c) a plane infinite sheet of charge
(d) a line charge of infinite length

Q.33. An electric charge q is placed at the centre of a cube of side a. The electric flux on one of its
faces will be

Q.34. Total electric flux coming out of a unit positive charge kept in air is

Q.35. The electric field intensity due to an infinite cylinder of radius R and having charge q per
unit length at a distance air r (r > R) from its axis is
(a) directly proportional to r².
(b) directly proportional to r3.
(c) inversely proportional to r.
(d) inversely proportional to r².
Q.36. A point charge q is placed at a distance a/2 directly above the centre of a square of side a. The
electric flux through the square is

Q.37. Which of the following graphs shows the variation of electric field E due to a hollow
spherical conductor of radius R as a function of distance from the centre of the sphere?
Q.38. The magnitude of electric field intensity E is such that, an electron placed in it would
experience an electrical force equal to its weight is given by
(a) mge
(b) mg/e
(c) e/mg
(d) e²g/m²

Q.39. In Fig. (i) two positive charges q2 and q3 fixed along the y-axis, exert a net electric force in the
+x direction on a charge q1 fixed along the x-axis. If a positive charge Q is added at (x, 0) in figure
(ii), the force on q1 is [NCERT Exemplar]

(a) shall increase along the positive x-axis.

(b) shall decrease along the positive x-axis.
(c) shall point along the negative x-axis.
(d) shall increase but the direction changes because of the intersection of Q with q2 and qy

Q.40. Which of the following statement is correct? The electric field at a point is [NCERT
Exemplar]
(a) always continuous.
(b) continuous if there is a charge at that point.
(c) discontinuous only if there is a negative charge at that point.
(d) discontinuous if there is a charge at that point.

Q.41. A point charge +q is placed at a distance d from an isolated conducting plane. The field at a
point P on the other side of the plane is [NCERT Exemplar]
(a) directed perpendicular to the plane and away from the plane.
(b) directed perpendicular to the plane but towards the plane.
(c) directed radially away from the point charge.
(d) directed radially towards the point charge.

Suggested Investigatory Projects

1. To study various factors on which the internal resistance/EMF of a cell depends.
2. To study the variations in current flowing in a circuit containing an LDR because of a variation
in (a) the power of the incandescent lamp, used to 'illuminate' the LDR (keeping all the lamps at
a fixed distance). (b) the distance of a incandescent lamp (of fixed power) used to 'illuminate'
the LDR.
3. To find the refractive indices of (a) water (b) oil (transparent) using a plane mirror, an
equiconvex lens (made from a glass of known refractive index) and an adjustable object needle.
4. To investigate the relation between the ratio of (i) output and input voltage and (ii) number
of turns in the secondary coil and primary coil of a self-designed transformer. 5. To investigate
the dependence of the angle of deviation on the angle of incidence using a hollow prism filled
one by one, with different transparent fluids.
6. To estimate the charge induced on each one of the two identical Styrofoam (or pith) balls
suspended in a vertical plane by making use of Coulomb's law.
7. To study the factor on which the self-inductance of a coil depends by observing the effect of
this coil, when put in series with a resistor/(bulb) in a circuit fed up by an A.C. source of
adjustable frequency.
8. To study the earth's magnetic field using a compass needle -bar magnet by plotting magnetic
field lines and tangent galvanometer.