MTE 271 FINAL EXAM REVIEW QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED SOLUTIONS LATEST UPDATE 2026
As electrons move closer and closer to the nucleus to occupy lower order shells, the energy of those
shells: - Answers decreases making the electrons bind more strongly to the nucleus
Atoms are composed of three types of subatomic particles. The nucleus of an atom contains which of
the following particles? - Answers Protons and Neutrons
The atomic number, Z, of a neutral atom, equals which of the following values? - Answers Number of
Protons
Electro-negativity: - Answers represents the atom's ability to attract (gain) electrons and become an
anion
Know how to find the atomic weight of an element - Answers Atomic weight of Pt (platinum) is
195.08 g/mol
True/False: The valence of an atom is the number of electrons in an atom that *do NOT* participate
in bonding and chemical reactions. - Answers FALSE
Coordination numbers (CN) refer to - Answers the number of nearest neighbors surrounding a
particular atom or ion.
Materials with high binding energy: - Answers have high strength and high melting temperatures.
How many crystal systems (fundamental shapes) are there in three dimensions? - Answers 7
Which of the following is an example of a covalently bonded material?
A)copper
B)Diamond
C)Polyethylene
D)FeAl
E)UO2 - Answers B)Diamond
Semiconductors typically have which type(s) of bonds? - Answers Covalent
Polymers contain multiple types of bonds. Which types are they? - Answers Covalent & Secondary
{321} defines: - Answers A family of 321 Planes.
[321] a direction
<321> a family of directions
(321) a plane
{321} a family of planes
A metallic bond is best described as: - Answers A bond formed from the delocalization of electrons
within a crystal.
Diamond is very hard whilst graphite is very soft. Both are composed of C atoms. The high hardness of
diamond is derived from: - Answers The tetrahedral sp3 bonding of the C atoms.
The greater the bond energy: - Answers the higher the melting temperature.
Polymers are interesting materials that exhibit two types of bonding. This imparts them with which of
the following properties? - Answers low melting points, small elastic modulus, and large thermal
expansions
As the cation-to-anion radius ratio decreases - Answers the coordination number decreases
A unit cell represents the smallest repeating unit in a crystal. The unit cell: - Answers Is defined by the
basic repeating lengths of a crystal's lattice parameters (a,b,c) and the angle between each of the unit
lengths of a crystal's lattice (alpha, beta, gamma)
A body centered cubic (BCC) structure - Answers has a lower packing efficiency than a face centered
cubic (FCC) structure
In a hard sphere model for a face centered cubic material, the atoms - Answers touch along the face
diagonal
The NaCl ionic structure is said to be comprised of two interpenetrating FCC lattices. Which of the
following statements best describes how the cation and anions touch? - Answers the oppositely
charged ions touch along the cube edges
Crystal structures are often described as primitive or non-primitive based on the number of atoms per
unit cell. In a FCC crystal there are: - Answers 4 atoms per unit cell
Which of the following directions lies on the (101) plane? - Answers [-1 -1 1]
note:-1 is normally written as bar 1
X-rays are used for crystal structure identification because - Answers their wavelength is of the same
size as the spacing between atoms allowing the crystal to scatter them.
, When x-ray diffraction occurs in a crystal: - Answers All the planes scatter, but only specific planes are
observed based on the selection rules.
What is the difference between atomic mass and atomic weight? - Answers Atomic mass is the mass
of an individual atom, whereas atomic weight is the average (weighted) of the atomic masses of an
atom's naturally occurring isotopes.
Which of the following statements best describes the difference between atomic structure and crystal
structure? - Answers Atomic structure relates to the number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus
of an atom, as well as the number and probability distributions of the constituent electrons. Crystal
structure pertains to the arrangement of atoms in the crystalline solid material.
What is the relationship between the unit cell edge length, a, and the atomic radius, r, for the face
centered cubic (FCC) crystal structure? - Answers a= 4r/(root 2)
In a solution, the solute is an element or compound that is present in: - Answers a minor amount.
True/False: If you increase the number of grains (decrease the gain size of a metal), that metal will get
mechanically stronger (strength will increase. - Answers True
Dislocations are line defects that cause plastic deformation. Which one of the following is
fundamental types of dislocation? - Answers Screw
In the most technologically important alloys, the usual state of a micro structure is: - Answers a
metastable (non-equilibrium) one
Once a system reaches a state of equilibrium, a shift from equilibrium can result from altering which
of the following?
A) Pressure
B) Temperature
C) Composition
D) All of the above - Answers All of the above
A liquidus line separates which of the following phase fields from each other? - Answers (liquid) and
(liquid + solid)
A eutectoid reaction refers to which of the following reactions? - Answers (solid 1) ----> (solid 2) +
(solid 3)
eutectic ----> liquid
eutectoid ----> solid
True/False: Coring, which represents a form of non-equilibrium solidification, results in variations in
the composition of a solidifying alloy. Coring occurs because of rapid solidification. - Answers True
What are the two general processes that occur during phase transformations? - Answers Nucleation
and growth
True/False: In substitutional diffusion, the rate of diffusion does not depend on the number of
vacancies. - Answers False
We know that all materials contain defects. The theoretical strength of a perfect defect-free metal is
_____ the experimental strength of the metal? - Answers Greater than
Steady-State diffusion is described by Fick's 1st Law for Diffusion. According to this law, diffusion is a
_______ process. - Answers Time Independent
Phases are best defined as _____ - Answers A homogenous portion of any system with uniform
physical and chemical characteristics.
Diffusion is slower in/with/at: - Answers close-packed structures
When the temperature rises, the number of vacancies in a material: - Answers increases
exponentially with temperature
True/False: In general, substitutional diffusion is slower than interstitial diffusion. - Answers True
True/False: One of the best ways to decrease the time required for diffusion is to use higher
temperatures or to make the diffusion distances as small as possible. - Answers True
In class you were taught that there are several classifications for defects in crystals based on their
size/dimension. Vacancies, interstitials, and substitutional solutes are which one of the following?
A) Line Defects
B) Point Defects
C) Volume Defects
D) Planar Defects
E) None of the Above - Answers Answer: B) Point Defects
As electrons move closer and closer to the nucleus to occupy lower order shells, the energy of those
shells: - Answers decreases making the electrons bind more strongly to the nucleus
Atoms are composed of three types of subatomic particles. The nucleus of an atom contains which of
the following particles? - Answers Protons and Neutrons
The atomic number, Z, of a neutral atom, equals which of the following values? - Answers Number of
Protons
Electro-negativity: - Answers represents the atom's ability to attract (gain) electrons and become an
anion
Know how to find the atomic weight of an element - Answers Atomic weight of Pt (platinum) is
195.08 g/mol
True/False: The valence of an atom is the number of electrons in an atom that *do NOT* participate
in bonding and chemical reactions. - Answers FALSE
Coordination numbers (CN) refer to - Answers the number of nearest neighbors surrounding a
particular atom or ion.
Materials with high binding energy: - Answers have high strength and high melting temperatures.
How many crystal systems (fundamental shapes) are there in three dimensions? - Answers 7
Which of the following is an example of a covalently bonded material?
A)copper
B)Diamond
C)Polyethylene
D)FeAl
E)UO2 - Answers B)Diamond
Semiconductors typically have which type(s) of bonds? - Answers Covalent
Polymers contain multiple types of bonds. Which types are they? - Answers Covalent & Secondary
{321} defines: - Answers A family of 321 Planes.
[321] a direction
<321> a family of directions
(321) a plane
{321} a family of planes
A metallic bond is best described as: - Answers A bond formed from the delocalization of electrons
within a crystal.
Diamond is very hard whilst graphite is very soft. Both are composed of C atoms. The high hardness of
diamond is derived from: - Answers The tetrahedral sp3 bonding of the C atoms.
The greater the bond energy: - Answers the higher the melting temperature.
Polymers are interesting materials that exhibit two types of bonding. This imparts them with which of
the following properties? - Answers low melting points, small elastic modulus, and large thermal
expansions
As the cation-to-anion radius ratio decreases - Answers the coordination number decreases
A unit cell represents the smallest repeating unit in a crystal. The unit cell: - Answers Is defined by the
basic repeating lengths of a crystal's lattice parameters (a,b,c) and the angle between each of the unit
lengths of a crystal's lattice (alpha, beta, gamma)
A body centered cubic (BCC) structure - Answers has a lower packing efficiency than a face centered
cubic (FCC) structure
In a hard sphere model for a face centered cubic material, the atoms - Answers touch along the face
diagonal
The NaCl ionic structure is said to be comprised of two interpenetrating FCC lattices. Which of the
following statements best describes how the cation and anions touch? - Answers the oppositely
charged ions touch along the cube edges
Crystal structures are often described as primitive or non-primitive based on the number of atoms per
unit cell. In a FCC crystal there are: - Answers 4 atoms per unit cell
Which of the following directions lies on the (101) plane? - Answers [-1 -1 1]
note:-1 is normally written as bar 1
X-rays are used for crystal structure identification because - Answers their wavelength is of the same
size as the spacing between atoms allowing the crystal to scatter them.
, When x-ray diffraction occurs in a crystal: - Answers All the planes scatter, but only specific planes are
observed based on the selection rules.
What is the difference between atomic mass and atomic weight? - Answers Atomic mass is the mass
of an individual atom, whereas atomic weight is the average (weighted) of the atomic masses of an
atom's naturally occurring isotopes.
Which of the following statements best describes the difference between atomic structure and crystal
structure? - Answers Atomic structure relates to the number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus
of an atom, as well as the number and probability distributions of the constituent electrons. Crystal
structure pertains to the arrangement of atoms in the crystalline solid material.
What is the relationship between the unit cell edge length, a, and the atomic radius, r, for the face
centered cubic (FCC) crystal structure? - Answers a= 4r/(root 2)
In a solution, the solute is an element or compound that is present in: - Answers a minor amount.
True/False: If you increase the number of grains (decrease the gain size of a metal), that metal will get
mechanically stronger (strength will increase. - Answers True
Dislocations are line defects that cause plastic deformation. Which one of the following is
fundamental types of dislocation? - Answers Screw
In the most technologically important alloys, the usual state of a micro structure is: - Answers a
metastable (non-equilibrium) one
Once a system reaches a state of equilibrium, a shift from equilibrium can result from altering which
of the following?
A) Pressure
B) Temperature
C) Composition
D) All of the above - Answers All of the above
A liquidus line separates which of the following phase fields from each other? - Answers (liquid) and
(liquid + solid)
A eutectoid reaction refers to which of the following reactions? - Answers (solid 1) ----> (solid 2) +
(solid 3)
eutectic ----> liquid
eutectoid ----> solid
True/False: Coring, which represents a form of non-equilibrium solidification, results in variations in
the composition of a solidifying alloy. Coring occurs because of rapid solidification. - Answers True
What are the two general processes that occur during phase transformations? - Answers Nucleation
and growth
True/False: In substitutional diffusion, the rate of diffusion does not depend on the number of
vacancies. - Answers False
We know that all materials contain defects. The theoretical strength of a perfect defect-free metal is
_____ the experimental strength of the metal? - Answers Greater than
Steady-State diffusion is described by Fick's 1st Law for Diffusion. According to this law, diffusion is a
_______ process. - Answers Time Independent
Phases are best defined as _____ - Answers A homogenous portion of any system with uniform
physical and chemical characteristics.
Diffusion is slower in/with/at: - Answers close-packed structures
When the temperature rises, the number of vacancies in a material: - Answers increases
exponentially with temperature
True/False: In general, substitutional diffusion is slower than interstitial diffusion. - Answers True
True/False: One of the best ways to decrease the time required for diffusion is to use higher
temperatures or to make the diffusion distances as small as possible. - Answers True
In class you were taught that there are several classifications for defects in crystals based on their
size/dimension. Vacancies, interstitials, and substitutional solutes are which one of the following?
A) Line Defects
B) Point Defects
C) Volume Defects
D) Planar Defects
E) None of the Above - Answers Answer: B) Point Defects
