The Atomic Nature of Matter, Solids, Liquids, Gases, Heat, and Sound Practice Flashcards

Vocabulary-style flashcards covering the Atomic Nature of Matter, Properties of Solids, Liquids, and Gases, Heat and Temperature, Thermodynamics, and Wave/Sound characteristics from lectures 11-21.

Homogenous mixture

A uniform mixture throughout its volume, such as air, water, or lemonade.

Heterogenous mixture

A mixture that does not have uniform consistency, such as Italian dressing, granite, or a burrito.

Elementary Particles

Particles like electrons and quarks that cannot be broken into smaller pieces.

Atomism

The idea that all matter can eventually be broken down into some type of fundamental particle.

Continuum

The idea, believed by Aristotle, that there is no fundamental particle, but rather a continuum of fluid that all matter is made of.

Democritus

A philosopher who proposed everything was composed of atoms with empty space in between, and that properties of substances related to the properties of their constituent atoms.

John Dalton

A scientist who noted that chemical compounds consist of whole number ratios of elements due to the discrete nature of atoms.

JJ Thomson

The scientist who discovered electrons using cathode-ray tubes and proposed the Plum Pudding model.

Ernest Rutherford

The scientist who performed the Gold Foil experiment, discovered the positively charged atomic nucleus, and noted that most of an atom is empty space.

Niels Bohr

Proposed that electrons orbit the nucleus in clearly defined energy levels similar to how planets orbit the sun.

Isotope

Atoms with the same number of protons but a different number of neutrons.

Ion

A charged atom created by an excess or absence of electrons, where the charge is calculated as \text{# of protons} - \text{# of electrons}.

Antimatter

Particles with the same mass as normal matter but opposite charge, such as the positron (antielectron) or antiproton.

Crystalline solids

Solids where atoms are arranged in an orderly, repeating fashion called a unit cell (e.g., diamonds, quartz, snowflakes).

Amorphous solids

Solids where atoms are arranged randomly without any order (e.g., plastics, wax, glass).

Density

A property of matter defined as how compact matter is in an object, calculated as $D = \frac{m}{V}$ with units of $kg/m^3$.

Elasticity

The property of a solid object to return to its original shape after being deformed by a force.

Hooke's Law

The mathematical definition of elasticity: $F = k\Delta x$, where $F$ is force, $k$ is the spring constant, and $\Delta x$ is the displacement.

Tension

The force that exists when a solid object is stretched or pulled apart.

Compression

The force that exists when a solid object is squeezed or pushed together.

Liquid Pressure Equation

$P = Dg(\text{depth})$, where pressure increases as depth increases regardless of the body of water's total size.

Archimedes' Principle

The principle stating that the buoyant force on an object is equal to the weight of the fluid that the object displaces.

Pascal's Principle

A pressure change everywhere in a closed system of a liquid is equal, expressed as $\frac{F_1}{A_1} = \frac{F_2}{A_2}$.

Capillarity

The tendency of a liquid to climb the walls of a container, occurring when adhesive forces are greater than cohesive forces.

K!rm!n line

The designated line 100km from Earth's surface used to mark where "space" begins.

Boyle's Law

Describes the relationship in a closed system at constant temperature where $P_1V_1 = P_2V_2$.

Ideal Gas Law

$PV = nRT$, relating pressure, volume, number of molecules, and temperature.

Bernoulli's Principle

As the speed of a fluid increases, the pressure of that fluid decreases to conserve energy.

Plasma

An ionized gas where electrons have been removed from atoms due to high energy, found in lightning and neon lights.

Absolute Zero

The lowest possible temperature that can be achieved, corresponding to $0\,K$ or $-273^{\circ}C$.

Specific Heat Capacity

The heat required to raise or lower the temperature of $1\,g$ of a substance by $1^{\circ}C$, calculated as $Q = mc\Delta T$.

Conduction

Heat transfer due to physical contact between objects or within an object via collisions between atoms or electrons.

Convection

Heat transfer due to the motion of molecules or atoms, primarily in liquids and gases.

Newton's Law of Cooling

States that the rate at which an object cools down is proportional to the temperature difference between the object and surroundings: $\frac{\Delta T}{\Delta t} \propto T_{\text{object}} - T_{\text{surroundings}}$.

Latent heat of vaporization

The amount of heat required to convert $1\,g$ of a substance from liquid to gas; for water, this is $540\,cal/g$.

Triple point

A specific combination of pressure and temperature where a substance exists in solid, liquid, and gas forms simultaneously.

First Law of Thermodynamics

$\Delta E = Q - W$, meaning the change in internal energy equals heat added minus work done by the system.

Adiabatic Process

A process where the heat added to or removed from a system is zero ($Q = 0$), usually because it is well-insulated or occurs very quickly.

Entropy

The amount of disorder in a system; the 2nd law of thermodynamics states that total entropy in the universe is always increasing.

Carnot Efficiency

The maximum theoretical efficiency of a heat engine: $e = \frac{T_{\text{hot}} - T_{\text{cold}}}{T_{\text{hot}}}$.

Amplitude

The maximum displacement from the equilibrium position in a wave.

Wave Speed Equation

$v = \frac{\lambda}{T}$ or $v = \lambda f$, where $\lambda$ is wavelength and $f$ is frequency.

Longitudinal wave

A wave where points move parallel to the wave direction (e.g., sound).

Transverse wave

A wave where points move perpendicular to the wave motion (e.g., light).

Doppler Effect

The change in frequency/pitch caused by the motion of a wave source or observer.

Resonance

Occurs when an object is forced to vibrate at its natural frequency.

Intensity

The amount of energy per unit area reaching a location every second, defined as $I = \frac{P}{A}$.