Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-physics-2-paper-of-the-university-of-oxford/2015-resit/8/a/solution
Past exam of the physics 2 paper of the University of Oxford 2015 resit 8 a Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-25
Use nonrelativistic dynamics, take along , and neglect radiation. The Lorentz force initially points along . It does no work, so the speed stays and the trajectory inside the field is circular, withStarting from the entry point, the orbit can be parametrized as , , where . Its largest possible before turning back is . Therefore it enters the strict region exactly whenFor that case, the first boundary crossing satisfies . The velocity components are and , so the outgoing angle above the direction isThe zero-field limit is straight motion. At the particle only touches the far boundary tangentially and does not enter ; for it turns around before reaching that boundary and eventually returns through the entrance side. The equality case must therefore not be included in a crossing condition.
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