Examkin

Question

Difficulty: HardElectromagnetic Waves and Electromagnetic Spectrum

A physics laboratory utilizes four specialized instruments to detect different regions of the electromagnetic spectrum: an aerial antenna, a thermopile, a photographic plate sensitive to sun-tanning radiation, and a Geiger-Müller tube.

Arrange these detectors in order of INCREASING frequency of the electromagnetic radiation they are primarily designed to detect (from lowest frequency to highest frequency).

  1. 1Aerial antenna
  2. 2Thermopile
  3. 3Photographic plate sensitive to sun-tanning radiation
  4. 4Geiger-Müller tube

Answer

The correct order from lowest frequency to highest frequency is: Aerial antenna (Radio waves) → Thermopile (Infrared) → Photographic plate sensitive to sun-tanning radiation (Ultraviolet) → Geiger-Müller tube (Gamma rays).
The correct sequence arranges the instruments according to the increasing frequency of the radiation they detect. Radio waves (detected by an aerial antenna) have the lowest frequency, followed by infrared radiation (detected by a thermopile), ultraviolet radiation (detected by photographic plates sensitive to sun-tanning rays), and gamma rays (detected by a Geiger-Müller tube) which have the highest frequency.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the type of electromagnetic radiation detected by each device.
Aerial antenna detects radio waves; Thermopile detects infrared radiation; Photographic plate for tanning radiation detects ultraviolet radiation; Geiger-Müller tube detects gamma rays.
Each detector operates on specific physical properties characteristic of a particular band of the electromagnetic spectrum.
2
Recall the order of the electromagnetic spectrum in terms of frequency (ff).
Radio waves (<109 Hz< 10^9\text{ Hz}) < Infrared (1011−1014 Hz10^{11} - 10^{14}\text{ Hz}) < Ultraviolet (1015−1017 Hz10^{15} - 10^{17}\text{ Hz}) < Gamma rays (>1019 Hz> 10^{19}\text{ Hz}).
Frequency increases continuously across the spectrum from radio waves to gamma rays.
3
Sequence the detectors based on their associated radiation frequencies from lowest to highest.
Aerial antenna →\rightarrow Thermopile →\rightarrow Photographic plate sensitive to sun-tanning radiation →\rightarrow Geiger-Müller tube.
This directly matches the increasing frequency order of radio waves, infrared, ultraviolet, and gamma rays.

Key Concept

Detection mechanisms and frequency distribution across the electromagnetic spectrum
Estimated Time:2m 0s
Rate this question

Topics

Electromagnetic Waves and Electromagnetic Spectrum

More questions from this topic