Cyclotron Frequency and magnetic field problem

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around calculating the cyclotron frequency of ions in a magnetic field of 3.55 T, specifically for N2+, O2+, and CO+. The original poster provides atomic masses and attempts to apply a formula to derive the frequencies in MHz.

Discussion Character

  • Mathematical reasoning, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to use a formula involving the magnetic field strength and atomic masses to calculate cyclotron frequencies. They express uncertainty about the charge used in their calculations and question the accuracy of their results based on the feedback from an online submission system.

Discussion Status

Some participants have confirmed agreement with the original poster's calculations for one of the parts, suggesting that the issue may lie with significant figures rather than the methodology itself. There is an ongoing exploration of potential discrepancies in the answers provided.

Contextual Notes

The original poster notes that the online system provides immediate feedback on the correctness of their answers, which may influence their approach to the problem.

stunt022
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hey this is my first post, need help with a homework problem.

What is the cyclotron frequency in a 3.55 T magnetic field of the ions listed below? The masses of the atoms are shown in the table. The accuracy of your answers should reflect the accuracy of the data given below. (Although N2+ and CO+ both have a nominal molecular mass of 28, they are easily distinguished by virtue of their different cyclotron resonance frequencies.)

Atomic masses
12C 12.0000 u
14N 14.0031 u
16O 15.9949 u

(a) N2+ in MHz?
(b) O2+ in MHz?
(c) CO+ in MHz?
(numbers are subscript)

i used the following formula to try and get the answer
dccfb8c711dc7e3caecea9ada6d63f89.png


so i plugged in the numbers and got an equation that looked like this:
f = [[(3.55)*(1.6022*10^-19)]/[2*pi*((2*14.0031)*(1.66053886*10^-27))]]*10^-6
which gave me 1.946533MHz, and is wrong...
i used a charge of a proton(1.6022*10^-19) for q, for m i multiplied the atomic mass by 2 because there are 2 of them, and converted the amu into kilograms after that. finally i converted to MHz from Hz.

the only thing that might not seem right to me is the charge because of how the problem is described but i don't know what that would be.

for (b) O2+ i got 1.704137 MHz
for (c) CO+ i got 1.9473 MHz
which were wrong too.
any help on this i would appreciate.
 
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Are you submitting your homework online?
 
yes. it tells me imediatly if i am right or wrong
 
stunt022 said:
yes. it tells me immediately if i am right or wrong
I can see nothing wrong with your working, and my answer agrees with yours (for part (a)). Perhaps, the online application disagrees with your number of significant figures?
 

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