PHYSICS

CLASS XII THEORITICAL QUESTION BANK

Chapter 1: Electric Charges and Fields
1. Define electric charge and discuss its properties.
2. Explain Coulomb’s law and derive the formula for the force between two point
charges.
3. What is an electric dipole? Derive the expression for the electric field at a point on
the axial line of an electric dipole.
4. State and explain Gauss’s law in electrostatics.
5. Derive the expression for the electric field due to a uniformly charged infinite
plane sheet.
6. What is the concept of electrostatic potential energy? Derive its expression for a
system of two point charges.
7. Explain the concept of electric field lines and describe their properties.
8. What is electrostatic shielding? Discuss its practical applications.
9. Derive the expression for the electric field at a point outside a uniformly charged
spherical shell.
10. Explain the concept of electric flux and derive the expression for the flux through
a spherical surface.

Chapter 2: Electrostatic Potential and Capacitance

1. Define electrostatic potential and derive its expression due to a point charge.
2. Explain the concept of electric potential energy of a system of charges.
3. Derive the expression for the potential due to an electric dipole.
4. What is a capacitor? Derive the expression for the capacitance of a parallel plate
capacitor.
5. Discuss the effect of a dielectric on the capacitance of a capacitor.
6. Explain the concept of energy stored in a capacitor and derive its expression.
7. Derive the expression for the equivalent capacitance of capacitors connected in
series.
8. What is a dielectric constant? Explain its working principle.
9. Discuss the concept of equipotential surfaces and their significance.
10. Explain the process of charging and discharging a capacitor.

Chapter 3: Current Electricity

1. State and explain Ohm’s law. Discuss its limitations.
2. Define resistivity and conductivity. How do they vary with temperature?
3. Derive the expression for the drift velocity of electrons and relate it with current.
4. Explain the concept of electromotive force (emf) and internal resistance of a cell.
5. Derive the expression for the equivalent resistance of resistors connected in
parallel.
6. State and explain Kirchhoff’s laws of electrical circuits.
7. Derive the expression for the balance condition in a Wheatstone bridge.
8. Discuss the working principle of a potentiometer and its applications.
9. What is the role of a carbon resistor in a circuit?
10. Discuss the concept of power dissipation in a circuit and derive its expression.

Chapter 4: Moving Charges and Magnetism

1. Explain Biot-Savart law and derive the expression for the magnetic field at the
centre of a circular current-carrying loop.
2. State Ampere’s circuital law and apply it to find the magnetic field inside a toroid.
3. Derive the expression for the force on a moving charge in a uniform magnetic
field.
4. Explain the principle of a cyclotron and derive the expression for the cyclotron
frequency.
5. Derive the expression for the force between two parallel current-carrying
conductors.
6. Explain the working principle of a moving coil galvanometer.
7. Derive the expression for the torque acting on a current-carrying loop in a uniform
magnetic field.
8. Explain the concept of a magnetic dipole moment and its relation with the torque
in a magnetic field.
9. Discuss the significance of the Earth’s magnetic field and its components.
10. Explain the concept of the magnetic force on a current-carrying conductor placed
in a magnetic field.

Chapter 5: Magnetism and Matter

1. Define magnetic dipole and magnetic dipole moment. Derive the expression for
the magnetic field along the axial line of a bar magnet.
2. Discuss the concept of magnetic susceptibility and its importance in
classifying materials.
3. Explain the origin of magnetism in materials based on the domain theory.
4. What is hysteresis? Explain the significance of the hysteresis loop.
5. Explain the concept of the Earth’s magnetism and the role of the dynamo effect.
6. Differentiate between diamagnetic, paramagnetic, and ferromagnetic substances
with examples.
7. Explain the concept of magnetic shielding and its practical applications.
8. Discuss the significance of the Curie temperature in ferromagnetism.
9. What is the difference between a permanent magnet and an electromagnet?
Explain.
10. Derive the expression for the potential energy of a magnetic dipole in a uniform
magnetic field.
Chapter 6: Electromagnetic Induction
1. State and explain Faraday’s laws of electromagnetic induction.
2. Discuss Lenz’s law and its significance in electromagnetic induction.
3. Derive the expression for the induced emf in a rotating coil placed in a uniform
magnetic field.
4. Explain the concept of self-induction and derive the expression for self-inductance.
5. Discuss mutual induction and derive the expression for mutual inductance
between two coils.
6. Explain the working principle of an AC generator and derive the expression for the
induced emf.
7. Discuss the concept of eddy currents and their applications.
8. Explain the phenomenon of electromagnetic damping and its practical uses.
9. Derive the expression for the energy stored in an inductor.
10. Discuss the applications of electromagnetic induction in daily life.

Chapter 7: Alternating Current

1. Define alternating current and explain the concept of RMS value.
2. Derive the expression for the average power consumed in an AC circuit containing
a resistor, inductor, and capacitor.
3. Explain the concept of impedance and derive its expression for a series LCR circuit.
4. Discuss the concept of resonance in an AC circuit and derive the expression for
resonant frequency.
5. Derive the expression for the power factor in an AC circuit and discuss its
significance.
6. Explain the working of a transformer and derive the expression for its efficiency.
7. Discuss the concept of LC oscillations and derive the expression for the frequency
of oscillation.
8. Explain the concept of the quality factor in a resonant circuit.
9. Discuss the application of AC circuits in the transmission and distribution of
electrical energy.
10. Explain the working principle of an AC generator and derive the expression for
the induced emf.

Chapter 8: Electromagnetic Waves

1. Define electromagnetic waves and explain their transverse nature.
2. Discuss the significance of Maxwell’s equations in the propagation of
electromagnetic waves.
3. Explain the concept of displacement current and its role in the formation of
electromagnetic waves.
4. Discuss the different regions of the electromagnetic spectrum and their
applications.
5. Explain the concept of polarization of electromagnetic waves and its applications.
6. Derive the expression for the speed of electromagnetic waves in a vacuum.
7. Explain the reflection and refraction of electromagnetic waves at a boundary.
8. Discuss the concept of the Poynting vector and its significance in electromagnetic
waves.
9. Explain the concept of radiation pressure and derive its expression.
10. Discuss the role of electromagnetic waves in communication systems.

PHYSICS
CLASS XII NUMERICAL QUESTION BANK
 Chapter 1: Electrostatics (electric charges and fields + Electrostatic potential and
capacitance)
1. A cube with each side a is kept in electric field given by E = Cx as shown in the figure where
C is a positive dimensional constant. Find (i) The electric flux through the cube, and (ii) The
net charge inside the cube.

2. Two parallel plate capacitor X and Y have same area of plates and same separation
between them. X has air between the plates whereas Y has a dielectric of constant k=4 (i)
Calculate capacitance of each capacitor if equivalent capacitance is4 μF. (ii) Calculate
potential difference between the plates of X and Y. (iii) What is the ratio of electrostatic
energy stored in X and Y.
3. The capacitors C1, and C2, having plates of area A each, are connected in series, as shown.
Compare the capacitance of this combination with the capacitor C3, again having plates
of area A each, but ‘made up’ as shown in the figure.

4. An electric dipole with dipole moment 4x10-9C-m is aligned at 30⁰ with direction of electric
field of magnitude 5x104N/C. Calculate the magnitude of the torque acting on the dipole.
5. Four charges are placed at the vertices of a square of side d as shown in the figure. (i) Find
the work done to put together this arrangement. (ii) A charge q0is brought to the centre E
of the square, the four charges being held fixed at its corners. How much extra work is
needed to do this?
6. A slab of material of dielectric constant has the same area as the plates of a parallel plate
capacitor but has a thickness 3d / 4, where d is the separation of the plates. How is the
capacitance changed when the slab is inserted between the plates?
7. A charge of 24μC is given to a hollow sphere of radius 0.2m. Find the potential (i) at the
surface of the sphere, and (ii) at a distance of 0.1 m from the centre of the sphere. (iii)at
the centre.
8. If S1 and S2 are two hollow spheres enclosing charges Q and 2Q respectively as shown in
the figure (i) What is the ratio of the electric flux through S1 and S2? (ii) How will the flux
through the sphere S1 change, if a medium of dielectric constant 5 is filled in the space
inside S1.

9. A 600-pF capacitor is charged by a 200 V supply. It is then disconnected and from the
supply and is connected to another uncharged 600 pF capacitor. How much electrostatic
energy is lost in the process.
10. The given graph shows the variation of charge q versus potential difference of two
capacitors C1 and C2. The two capacitors have same plate separation, but the plate area of
C2 is double that of C1.

Chapter 2: Current Electricity

1. In a potentiometer arrangement; a cell of emf 1.25 V gives a balance point at 35.0 cm
length of the wire. If the cell is replaced by another cell and the balance point shifts to
63.0 cm, what is the emf of the second cell?
2. (a) Three resistors 2 , 4  and 5  are combined in parallel. What is the total resistance
of the combination? (b) If the combination is connected to a battery of emf 20 V and
negligible internal resistance and the total current drawn from the battery.
3. Three resistors 1 , 2  and 3  are combined in series. (a) What is the total resistance of
the combination? (b) If the combination is connected to a battery of emf 12 V and
negligible internal resistance, determine the total current drawn from the battery.
4. The following graph shows the variation of terminal potential difference V, across a
combination of three cells in series to a resistor, versus the current, i: (i) Calculate the emf
of each cell. (ii) For what current i will the power dissipation of the circuit be maximum?
5. Two cells of EMF 1V, 2V and internal resistances 2Ω and 1Ω respectively are connected in
(i) series, (ii) parallel. What should be the external resistance in the circuit so that the
current through the resistance be the same in the two cases? In which case more heat is
generated in the cells?
6. Calculate the temperature at which the resistance of a conductor becomes 20% more than
its resistance at 270C. The value of the temperature coefficient of resistance of the
conductor is 2 x 10-4 / K.
7. Two wires X, Y have the same resistivity but their cross-sectional areas in the ratio 2:3 and
lengths in the ratio 1:2. They are first connected in series and then in parallel to a dc
source. Find out the ratio of the drift speeds of the electrons in the two wires for the two
cases.
8. Two cells of emf 1.5 V and 2 V and internal resistance 1Ω and 2Ω respectively are
connected in parallel to pass a current in the same direction through an external resistance
of 5Ω. (i) Draw the circuit diagram. (ii) Using Kirchhoff’s laws, calculate the current through
each branch of the circuit and potential difference across 5Ω resistor.

9. A conductor in series with an ammeter and a semiconductor in series with another

ammeter are connected in parallel. At a certain voltage both the ammeters register the
same current. Will this condition remain as such if the voltage of the dc source is
increased? Explain your answer.
10. An electric lamp is connected with a battery of emf 10 V and it is found that 0.01A current
is flowing through it. But if the lamp is connected with 220-volt mains, a constant current
of 0.05A flows through it. Explain the apparent anomaly with Ohm's law.
11. A cell of unknown emf E and internal resistance r, two unknown resistances R1 and R2
(R2>R1) and a perfect ammeter are given. The current in the circuit is measured in five
different situations: (i) Without any external resistance in the circuit, (ii) With resistance
R1 only, (iii) With resistance R2 only, (iv) With both R1 and R2 used in series combination
and (v) With R1 and R2 used in parallel combination. The current obtained in the five cases
 are 0.42A, 0.6A, 1.05A, 1.4A, and 4.2A, but not necessarily in that order. Identify the
currents in the five cases listed above and calculate E, r, R1 and R2.

Chapter 3: Magnetic effects of current and Magnetism

1. A circular coil of wire consisting of 100 turns, each of radius 8 cm carries a current of 0.4
A. What is the magnitude of magnetic field at its centre?
2. A closely wound solenoid 80 cm long has 5 layers of winding of 400 turns each. If the
current carried is 8 A, estimate the magnetic field inside the solenoid near its centre.
3. A galvanometer of coil resistance 50 Ω shows full scale deflection for a current of 5 mA.
How can it be converted into a voltmeter of range 0 to 15 V?
4. A short bar magnet placed with its axis at 30o to a uniform magnetic field of 0.2 T
experiences a torque of 0.06 Nm. (i) Calculate the magnetic moment of the magnet. (ii)
Find out what orientation of the magnet corresponds to its stable equilibrium in the
magnetic field.
5. To increase the current sensitivity of a moving coil galvanometer by 50%, its resistance is
increased so that the new resistance becomes twice its initial resistance. By what factor
does its voltage sensitivity change?
6. A straight wire carrying a currant of 12 A is bent into a semicircular arc of radius 2 cm as
shown below. What is the magnitude and direction of magnetic field at the centre of the
arc? Would the answer change if it bent in the opposite way as shown in another figure?

7. The following figure shows the variation of intensity of magnetization versus the applied
magnetic field intensity for two magnetic materials A and B. (i) Identify the materials. (ii) For
the material B, plot the variation of intensity of magnetization versus temperature.

8. In the Bohr model of hydrogen atom, an electron revolves around the nucleus in a circular
orbit of radius 5.11 x 10-11 m at a frequency of 6.8 x 1015 Hz. What is the magnetic field at the
Centre of the orbit?
 Chapter 4: Electromagnetic Induction and Alternating Current
1. In a series LCR circuit the voltage across an inductor, a capacitor and a resistor are 20V,
20V and 60V respectively. What is the phase difference between the applied voltage and
the current in the circuit?
2. A conductor of length 1.0 m falls freely under gravity from a height of 10 m so that it cuts
the lines of force of the horizontal component of earth’s magnetic field of 3x10 -5 Wbm-2 .
Find the emf induced in the conductor.
3. A metal disc of radius 200 cm is rotated at a constant angular speed of 60 rads-1 in a plane
at right angles to an external field of magnetic induction 0.05 Wbm-2. Find the emf induced
between the centre and a point on the rim.
4. A transformer of 100% efficiency has 500 turns in the primary and 10,000 turns in the
secondary coil. If the primary is connected to 220 V supply, what is the voltage across the
secondary coil?
5. A bulb of resistance 10Ω, connected to an inductor of inductance L, is in series with an ac
source marked 100V, 50Hz. If the phase angle between the voltage and current is /4
radian, calculate the value of L.
6. Figure shows how the reactance of an inductor varies with frequency. (a) Calculate the
value of inductance of the inductor using the information given in the graph. (b) If this
inductor is connected in series to a resistor of 8 ohm, find what would be the impedance
at 300 Hz.

7. In a series RC circuit, R = 30 Ω, C = 0.25 μ F, V = 100 V and ω = 10,000 radian per second.

Find the current in the circuit and calculate the voltage across the resistor and the
capacitor. Is the algebraic sum of these voltages more than the source voltage? If yes,
resolve the paradox.
8. A resistor of resistance 400 , and a capacitor of reactance 200 , are connected in series
to a 220 V, 50 Hz ac source. If the current in the circuit is 0.49 A, find the (i) voltage across
the resistor and capacitor (ii) value of inductance required so that voltage and current are
in phase.
9. A town is situated 15 km away from a power plant generating power at 440V, requires 800
kW of electric power at 220V. The resistance of the two-wire line carrying power is 0.5
ohm per km. The town gets power from the line through a 4000-220V step down
transformer at a substation in the town. (i) Find the line power losses in the form of heat.
 (ii) How much power must the plant supply, assuming there is negligible power loss due
to leakage? (iii) Characterize the step-up transformer at the plant.
10. An athlete peddles a stationary tricycle whose pedals are attached to a coil having 100
turns each of area 0.1m2. The coil, lying in the X-Y plane, is rotated, in this plane, at the
rate of 50 rpm, about the Y-axis, in a region where a uniform magnetic field, 𝐵 ⃗ = (0.01) 𝑘̂
Tesla, is present. Find the (i) maximum emf (ii) average e.m.f generated in the coil over
one complete revolution.
Chapter 5: Electromagnetic Waves
1. The oscillating magnetic field in a plane electromagnetic wave is given by
𝐵 = (8 × 10−6 ) 𝑠𝑖𝑛 [2 × 1011 𝑡 + 300 𝜋 𝑥] 𝑇
(i) Calculate the wavelength of the electromagnetic wave.
(ii) Write down the expression for the oscillating electric field.

2. (i) How does a charge q oscillating at certain frequency produce electromagnetic waves?
Sketch a schematic diagram depicting electric and magnetic fields for an electromagnetic wave
propagating along the Z-direction.
(ii) A capacitor, made of two parallel plates each of plate area A and separation d, is being
charged by an external ac source. Show that the displacement current inside the capacitor is
the same as the current charging the capacitor.

3. When an ac source is connected across a capacitor, current starts flowing through the
circuit. Show how Ampere’s circuital law is generalized to explain the flow of current through
the capacitor. Hence obtain the expression for the displacement current inside the capacitor.

4. A radio can tune in to any station in the 7.5 MHz to 12 MHz bands. What is the
corresponding wavelength band?

5. The amplitude of the magnetic field part of a harmonic electromagnetic wave in a vacuum
is B0=510 nT. What is the amplitude of the electric field part of the wave?

6. In a plane electromagnetic wave, the electric field oscillates sinusoidally at a frequency of

2.0 × 1010 Hz and amplitude of 48 V m–1.
(a) What is the wavelength of the wave?
(b) What is the amplitude of the oscillating magnetic field?
(c) Show that the average energy density of the E field equals the average energy density of
the B field.

7. About 5% of the power of a 100 W light bulb is converted to visible radiation. What is the
average intensity of visible radiation
(a) at a distance of 1m from the bulb?
(b) at a distance of 10 m?
Assume that the radiation is emitted isotropically and neglects reflection.