Electronics Physics Quiz
March 1974 Popular Electronics

March 1974 Popular Electronics Table of Contents Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early electronics. See articles from Popular Electronics, published October 1954 - April 1985. All copyrights are hereby acknowledged.

Robert Balin created many quizzes for Popular Electronics magazine during the 1960s and 1970s. Topics included series circuits, electrochemistry, electronic analogy, electronic coupling, electronics analogy, audio, electronic units, capacitor circuits, AC circuit theory, magnetic phenomena, electronics geography, electronic noise, plugs and jacks, electronic switching, diodes, and many more. This "Electronics Physics Quiz" is the 59th that I have posted. It challenges you to name the effects that were first noticed as the result of unexpected actions during laboratory experiments. Many of the names, as you might expect,  eponymously honor their progenitors. My score was 80%.

Electronics Physics Quiz

By Robert P. Balin

The scientific principles behind today's electronic devices were discovered when experimenters first observed certain strange occurrences. In time, these effects were developed into practical components having many applications. For example, the Doppler effect, an apparent shift in the frequency of the sound from a moving source, is utilized in modern radar systems. To test your knowledge of physics, see if you can match the following electronic effects (which are illustrated below) to the names (A to J) also given below.

1. When a nickel rod is magnetized, it becomes shorter in length.

2. When a bar of metal is heated at one end, a voltage is produced between the hot and cold ends.

3. When a dc current is sent through a semiconductor pn junction, the junction becomes hotter or cooler depending on the direction of the current.

4. When the junction of two dissimilar metal strips is heated, a voltage is produced between the free ends

5. When the input signal to a vacuum tube is increased, the tube's input capacitance is also increased, thereby reducing the frequency response of the stage.

6. When a Rochelle salt crystal is twisted, a voltage is produced between its faces.

7. When two dissimilar metals are placed in close contact with each other, a voltage is produced between the free ends.

8. When the plate in a vacuum tube is made positive with respect to the filament, electrons flow through the vacuum from the filament to the plate.

9. When a current flows through a crystal of InAs held in a magnetic field, a voltage is produced between the edges of the crystal which lie parallel to direction of current.

10. When the reverse voltage applied to a crystal diode reaches a critical value, the current increases very rapidly, indicating a sharp drop in reverse resistance.

Quizzes from vintage electronics magazines such as Popular Electronics, Electronics-World, QST, and Radio News were published over the years - some really simple and others not so simple. Robert P. Balin created most of the quizzes for Popular Electronics. This is a listing of all I have posted thus far.

Answers

   1)  C

   2)  H

   3)  E

   4)  G

   5)  D

   6)  F

   7)  I

   8)  A

   9)  B

10)  J

Posted June 17, 2020