Physics igcse
FORCES AND MOTION
EQUATIONS 




Hookes law:
- for a spring: F = kx
- F is the force being applied
- k is the spring constant
- x is the extension
FORCES
- forces can be either contact or non contact
contact | non contact |
---|---|
friction | gravity |
tension | electrostatic |
a force acts on an object.
- for an example, me using normal contact force to push a glass of water.
Forces are vectors
MMOVEMENT AND SPEED
- speed is measured in m/s or km/h
- movement can be easily graphed using a distance time graph or velocity time graph
STOPPIGN DISTANCE

braking distance = thinking distance + stopping distance
FACTORS THAT AFFECT THIS
THINKING | BRAKING |
---|---|
speed | speed |
distractions | worn brakes |
alchohol | wet road |
drugs | car mass |
tiredness | worn tires |
visibility | icy road |
ELECTRICITY
THINGS TO KNOW Current = I = measured in Amperes(A)
Voltage = V = measured in V, sometimes called P.d
Resistance = R = measured in ohms (Ω)
Power = P = measured in Watts (W)
Charge = Q = measured in couloumbs
conductivity = sigma
USEFUL FORMULAE:
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CURRENT:
- current is the rate of flow of charge, and can be thought of as how fast a train is going.
- current is given by I = Qt,
- Q is given in couloums and t is measured in seconds.
- in metals, current is due to the flow of electrons, whereas in solutions , this can be the flow of ions.
- current is measured with an ammeter connected in series with the component
VOLTAGE
- voltage can be thought of as how many people each carriage is carrying in a train
- Voltage is measured as the work done per unit of charge in moving between tow points in a circuit,
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- it is measured with a voltmeter placed in parallel across the component
- the higher the voltage, the greater the current.
RESISTANCE
- the resistance of a component is measured in ohms (omega) and can be found with
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- the greater the resistance, the harder it is for current to flow through the component, and more heat is released leading to energy waster.
- In an ohmic conductor (resistor), the current is directly proportional to the voltage.
- A thermistor is a resistor whose resistance decreases as the temperature increases
- a LDR ( light depended resistor is a resistor whose resistance decreases as light intensity increases.)
Electric circuits
SERIES | PARRALLEL |
---|---|
components are connected in one loop | components are connected to the power supply and each other in seperate branches |
the same current flows through every componenet | current is shared in parralel |
voltage is shared in series | voltage is the same across every branch |
resistances add up in series |
CHARGE & STATIC ELECTRICITY
- measured in coulombs (C)
- there are positive and negative charges.
- opposite charges attract and negative charges repel
- Charge is how much total current passes over a period of time
Metals, as conductors, allow electron flow, while plastics, as insulators, restrict it. Friction from rubbing two insulators transfers electrons, charging them. The material losing electrons becomes positively charged, with charge magnitude equal on both due to identical electron loss/gain.
DANGERS OF ELECTROSTATIC CHARGES:
- Static charges pose a risk of electric shock; if a person touches an object with a large amount of static charge, electrons will flow through the person’s body to the earth.
- when fuelling aircraft and tankers, if enough charge builds up on the vehicle or pump, it can create a spark and ignite the fuel.
SAFTEY MEASURES WHEN USING ELECTROSTATIC CHARGES:
- Earthing involves offering electrons an alternative pathway to the earth:
- This prevents too much electrostatic charge from building up on the surface of an insulator, reducing electric shock and its harm.
USES OF ELECTROSTATIC CHARGES INCLUDE
INKJET PRINTER:
- drops of ink are charged and pass between two charged metal plates. the droplets are attracted to the plate with the opposite charge and repelled the the other one, effectively deflecting it towards a specific index on the page
PHOTOCOPIER
- the image of a document is projected onto a positively charge plate; where light falls onto the plate, the charge leaks away. Negatively charged toner particles are attracted to the remaining positive areas.
WAVES
GENERAL WAVES KNOWLEDGE
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Waves are split into two different types:
Transverse | Longitudinal |
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peaks and troughs | compressions and rarefactions |
vibrations perpendicular to the direction of travel | vibrations are in the same direction as the direction of travel |
light | sound |
here we can see the different aspects of a transverse wave, including the wavelength, amplitude, crests and peaks.
here we can see the different aspects of a longitudinal wave, incliuding compressions and rarefactions.
ELwctromagnetic spectrum
- radio waves, microwaves, infrared radiation, visible light, UV light, X rays, Gamma rays
- the electromagnetic waves in each of these bands have different characteristics such as
- - how they are produces
- - how they interact with matter
- -their practical applications.
WAVE | USES | DANGERS |
---|---|---|
Radio waves | communications and broadcasting | N/A |
Microwaves | heating and satellite communication | Heating of cells from absorbed microwaves |
Infrafred radiation | Monitor temp. or increase it and transfer information | Skin burns if skin gets too hot |
Visible light | Photography, we can see it | N/A |
UV light | Fluorescent lamps (energy efficient) can also sterilise water | Causes damage on skin (skin cancer) and also damage eyes (blindness) |
X rays | See inside things, look inside people airport security scanners | Ionising (cause mutations and damage cells) which could lead to cancer |
Gamma rays | Sterilise medical instruments and cancer treatment | Ionising (cause mutations and damage cells)which could lead to cancer.) They have even higher frequencies, so transfer more energy and cause even more damage. |
WAVE BEHAVIOUR
When a wave meets a boundary between two materials, 3 things can happen:
- Absorption
- Transmission
- Reflection
TRANSMISSION:
- Waves travel at different speeds in materials with different densities
- If the wave hits a boundary it changes speeds
- If the wave hits a wave at a boundary at an angle, the change in speed causes a change in direction → this is called rare-fraction
- The greater the change in speed the more the wavelength
- The frequency of a wave stays the same when crossing a boundary, because of , this means a change in speed is caused by a change in wavelength
REFLECTION:
We can use ray diagrams to visualise this:
SOUND
Sound travels as a wave
- sound waves are caused by oscillating objects
- The vibrations are passed through the surrounding medium as a collection of compressions and rare-fractions → sound is a type of longitudonal wave
- Sound cant travel in space because its mostly a vacuum
HEARING SOUND Sound waves that reach your eardrums cause it to vibrate
These vibrations are passed onto tiny bones in your ear called
- Ossicles
- semicircular canals
- Cochlea
EMMISION AND ABSORPTION:
The surface of an object is really important when it comes to how infrared radiation is absorbed/ emitted.
shiny | dull | |
white | reflector, bad emitter | |
black | absorber, good emitter. |
CONDUCTION is when thermal energy in solids and liquids is transferred by the vibration of partiacles.
because insulators transfer heat very slowly, they reduce unwanted energy loss.
metals are good conductors.
MAGNETISM
RADIOACTIVITY
Atomic Structure:
- Nucleus made of neutrons and protons surrounded by shells of electrons
- Protons and neutrons have roughly the same mass, while electrons are much lighter
- Protons are positively charged, electrons are negatively charged, and neutrons have no charge
- The number of protons in an atom's nucleus determines the atomic number and identifies the element
ALPHA PARTiCTLES
- an alpha particle consists of 2 protons and 2 neutrons
- They do not pentrate very far
- They are strongly ionising
A: 4 2
BETA PARTICLES:
- Beta minus particles are fast moving electrons released by the nucleus
- Beta plus particles are fast moving positrons
- They are moderately ionising
B; 0 -1
GAMMA PARTIACLES
- Penetrate far into materials without being stopped and will travel a long distance through air
- This means they are weakly ionising
- They can be absorbed by thick sheets of lead or metres of concrete
Particle | How Ionising | Stopped by |
Alpha | Very | few cm of air |
Beta | Moderate | Thin sheet of paper |
Gamma | Weakest | thick sheets of lead |
Types of background radiation:
- Medical use
- Cosmic rays
- Buildings
- Radon Gas
- Rocks
- Short half life means → activity falls quickly
- Long half life means → activity falls slowly