5 cells each of EMF E and resistance r each are connected in series. If one cell is connected wrongly then potential difference across this cell will be?

  1. #(8E)/5#
  2. Zero
  3. #(4E)/5#
  4. #(2E)/5#

1 Answer
MetaPhysik
Feb 2, 2018

None of these above or 4/5E.

Explanation:

The question contains ambiguous information. Regarding the phrase "potential difference in this cell", does it mean it is the cell that is incorrectly connected or the cell that contains the entire series?

The possible choices listed in the answer suggests that E is the potential difference across the entire series, not across the wrongly connected cell.

1) The answer is + E or - E, hence none of these above.

If the potential difference of each cell is indeed E and that the measurement is pertaining to this particular cell, then the answer is either +E or -E depending on how you measure it, i.e., how the probe is placed across the terminals of the incorrectly connected cell.

2) The Answer is 4/5E or -4/5E.

If E designates the potential difference across the entire series, then the potential difference across each individual cell is #E/5#. If one cell is connected in correctly, the total potential across the entire series is:

#E-1/5E=4/5E#

Note: The answer choices provided by the question and the choice of words in the question could lead to serious misinterpretation.

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