MCQEasyJEE 2023Electromagnetic Spectrum & Applications

JEE Physics 2023 Question with Solution

If a source of electromagnetic radiation having power 15kW15 \, \text{kW} produces 101610^{16} photons per second, the radiation belongs to a part of spectrum is:

  • A

    Micro waves

  • B

    Ultraviolet rays

  • C

    Gamma rays

  • D

    Radio waves

Answer

Correct answer:C

Step-by-step solution

Standard Method

Given: Power of source = 15kW=15×103W15 \, \text{kW} = 15 \times 10^3 \, \text{W} and number of photons emitted per second = 101610^{16}.

Find: The part of the electromagnetic spectrum to which the radiation belongs.

Energy emitted per second is the power, so energy of one photon is

E=15×1031016=15×1013JE = \frac{15 \times 10^3}{10^{16}} = 15 \times 10^{-13} \, \text{J}

Using

E=hνE = h\nu

with h=6×1034J sh = 6 \times 10^{-34} \, \text{J s}, we get

ν=Eh=15×10136×1034=2.5×1021Hz\nu = \frac{E}{h} = \frac{15 \times 10^{-13}}{6 \times 10^{-34}} = 2.5 \times 10^{21} \, \text{Hz}

This frequency lies in the gamma ray region of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Therefore, the correct option is C.

Using photon energy idea

Given: The source emits 101610^{16} photons each second and has total power 15kW15 \, \text{kW}.

Find: Which spectral region corresponds to the radiation.

First find the energy associated with each photon from total power divided by photons emitted per second:

Energy per photon=Powerphotons per second\text{Energy per photon} = \frac{\text{Power}}{\text{photons per second}}

So,

E=15×1031016=15×1013JE = \frac{15 \times 10^3}{10^{16}} = 15 \times 10^{-13} \, \text{J}

Now apply Planck's relation:

E=hνE = h\nu

Hence,

ν=Eh\nu = \frac{E}{h}

Substituting the values,

ν=15×10136×1034=2.5×1021Hz\nu = \frac{15 \times 10^{-13}}{6 \times 10^{-34}} = 2.5 \times 10^{21} \, \text{Hz}

Since gamma rays have extremely high frequencies, and this value is greater than 1019Hz10^{19} \, \text{Hz}, the radiation is gamma rays.

Therefore, the correct option is C.

Common mistakes

  • Using E=hνE = h\nu directly with 101610^{16} as frequency is incorrect because 101610^{16} here is the number of photons emitted per second, not the wave frequency. First find energy per photon from power.

  • Forgetting to convert 15kW15 \, \text{kW} into 15×103W15 \times 10^3 \, \text{W} gives the wrong energy per photon. Always convert power into SI units before substitution.

  • Dividing by Planck's constant incorrectly can lead to the wrong order of magnitude. Since hh is very small, the resulting frequency should be extremely large, indicating a high-frequency region like gamma rays.

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