Matriculation Physics 2: Comprehensive Review

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering fluids, heat, thermodynamics, wave mechanics, electromagnetism, and nuclear physics from the Matriculation Physics 2 lecture notes.

Fluid

A substance that can flow and lacks a fixed shape, taking the shape of its containing vessel; includes both liquids and gases.

Density ($\rho$)

The ratio of a substance's mass to its volume ($\rho = \frac{m}{V}$), representing the mass contained in a unit volume, measured in SI units of $\text{kg/m}^3$.

Specific Gravity (Relative Density)

The dimensionless ratio of the density of a fluid or substance to the density of pure water at $4\,^\circ\text{C}$.

Hydrostatic Pressure

The normal force exerted by a liquid per unit area due to the weight of the fluid column above it, calculated as $P = \rho g h$.

Pascal's Law

The principle stating that pressure applied at any point of an enclosed fluid at rest is transmitted undiminished in all directions to all parts of the fluid and the vessel walls.

Archimedes' Principle

The physical law stating that when an object is partially or totally immersed in a fluid, it experiences an upthrust (buoyant force) equal to the weight of the fluid displaced.

Buoyant Force (Upthrust)

The upward force exerted on an object submerged in a fluid, acting through the center of gravity of the displaced fluid (the center of buoyancy).

Surface Tension ($\gamma$)

The tangential force per unit length ($\gamma = \frac{F}{L}$) acting along the surface of a liquid at right angles to an imaginary line drawn on the surface, which causes the liquid to minimize its surface area.

Cohesion

The intermolecular force of attraction that acts between molecules of the same kind within a substance.

Adhesion

The attractive force that acts between molecules of different kinds in contact with one another.

Capillary Effect (Capillarity)

The rise or depression of a liquid inside a narrow tube (capillary) inserted into the liquid, caused by surface tension and the balance of adhesive and cohesive forces.

Hare's Apparatus

A laboratory apparatus consisting of inverted tubes used to compare the densities of two liquids by balancing columns of the liquids against air pressure ($\rho_1 h_1 = \rho_2 h_2$).

Streamline Flow (Steady Flow)

Fluid motion in which every particle passes a given point following the identical path at the same speed as preceding particles, such that streamlines never cross.

Equation of Continuity

The law of conservation of mass in fluid flow stating that for an incompressible fluid, the volume flow rate remains constant through any cross section ($A_1 v_1 = A_2 v_2$).

Bernoulli's Equation

The conservation-of-energy principle for ideal, streamlined fluid flow stating that the total mechanical energy per unit volume is constant: $P + \frac{1}{2}\rho v^2 + \rho g h = \text{constant}$.

Venturi Meter

A device designed to measure the flow speed of a fluid in a conduit by measuring the pressure difference produced as the fluid passes through a narrow constriction.

Torricelli's Theorem

A theorem stating that the efflux velocity of a liquid escaping through an orifice under gravity is identical to the velocity acquired in free fall from the liquid surface ($v = \sqrt{2gh}$).

Temperature

A macroscopic physical quantity that measures the average kinetic energy of the particles making up a substance, indicating how hot or cold it is.

Thermocouple

An electrical temperature-measuring instrument made of two dissimilar metal wires joined at two junctions; a temperature difference between the junctions produces a measurable voltage.

Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics

The physical law stating that if two bodies are each in thermal equilibrium with a third body, then all three bodies are in thermal equilibrium with each other.

Heat Capacity ($C$)

The amount of thermal energy required to raise the temperature of an entire given object or system by $1\,^\circ\text{C}$, given by $C = mc$.

Specific Heat Capacity ($c$)

The quantity of heat energy required to raise the temperature of a unit mass ($1\,\text{kg}$) of a substance by $1\,^\circ\text{C}$, expressed in $\text{J}/(\text{kg}\cdot^\circ\text{C})$.

Latent Heat

The thermal energy absorbed or released per unit mass by a substance at constant temperature during a physical change of state ($Q = mL$).

Specific Latent Heat of Fusion ($L_f$)

The quantity of heat energy required to change the state of a unit mass ($1\,\text{kg}$) of a substance from solid to liquid without altering its temperature.

Specific Latent Heat of Vaporization ($L_v$)

The quantity of heat energy required to change the state of a unit mass ($1\,\text{kg}$) of a substance from liquid to vapor without altering its temperature.

Thermal Conduction

The direct transfer of thermal energy through a material via microscopic particle collisions and free electron movement, without bulk displacement of the material.

Thermal Convection

The transfer of thermal energy within a fluid (liquid or gas) through the actual macroscopic circulation and bulk movement of the warmer, less dense fluid rising and cooler fluid sinking.

Thermal Radiation

The transfer of thermal energy through matter or empty space by means of electromagnetic waves, requiring no material medium to travel.

Transverse Wave

A wave in which the particles of the medium vibrate perpendicular (at right angles) to the direction of wave propagation and energy transfer.

Longitudinal Wave

A wave in which the individual particles of the medium oscillate back and forth parallel to the direction of wave propagation, forming compressions and rarefactions.

Standing Wave (Stationary Wave)

A wave formed by the superposition of two identical waves traveling in opposite directions through a medium, characterized by stationary nodes and antinodes.

Node

A point along a standing wave where the displacement of the medium's particles is always zero, while strain and pressure variations are at a maximum.

Antinode

A point along a standing wave where the displacement of the medium's particles reaches its maximum possible amplitude, with minimum strain.

Snell's Law

The law of refraction stating that for light passing across an interface between two media, the ratio of the sines of the incident and refracted angles equals the ratio of refractive indices: $n_1 \sin(\theta_1) = n_2 \sin(\theta_2)$.

Critical Angle ($\theta_c$)

The angle of incidence in a denser medium for which the corresponding angle of refraction in the less dense medium is exactly $90^\circ$.

Total Internal Reflection

The complete reflection of a light ray back into its original denser medium when its angle of incidence exceeds the critical angle ($\theta_i > \theta_c$).

Diffraction

The spreading out or bending of waves as they pass around an obstacle or through an aperture comparable in size to their wavelength.

Constructive Interference

The reinforcement that occurs when two in-phase waves overlap such that crests coincide with crests and troughs with troughs, yielding an increased resultant amplitude.

Destructive Interference

The cancellation that occurs when two waves out of phase overlap such that crests coincide with troughs, diminishing or eliminating the resultant amplitude.

Dispersion

The separation of white light into its constituent spectral colors when refracted through a prism, caused by different wavelengths experiencing different refractive indices.

Magnetic Flux ($\Phi$)

The total quantity of magnetic field lines passing perpendicular through a given surface area ($\Phi = BA$), measured in units of webers ($\text{Wb}$).

Solenoid

A long cylindrical coil of insulated wire with multiple tightly wound turns that produces a uniform interior magnetic field ($B = \mu_0 n I$) when carrying electric current.

Motor Effect

The physical action in which a current-carrying conductor positioned inside a magnetic field experiences a mechanical force given by $F = B I L \sin(\theta)$.

Split-Ring Commutator

A split conducting cylinder in a DC motor that reverses the direction of electric current in the rotating coil every half-turn to maintain continuous unidirectional torque.

Faraday's Law of Electromagnetic Induction

The law stating that an electromotive force (EMF) is induced in a circuit whenever the magnetic flux linking the circuit changes, proportional to the rate of flux change: $\varepsilon = -N \frac{\Delta\Phi}{\Delta t}$.

Lenz's Law

The electromagnetic principle stating that the direction of an induced current is such that its established magnetic field opposes the change in flux that caused it.

Transformer

An electrical device that uses mutual induction between two coils wound around a soft iron core to transfer AC power and step voltage up or down ($\frac{V_s}{V_p} = \frac{N_s}{N_p}$).

Alpha ($\alpha$) Particle

A positively charged particle consisting of two protons and two neutrons ($^4_2\text{He}$) emitted by heavy unstable nuclei, having high ionizing power and low penetration.

Beta ($\beta$) Particle

A high-speed electron ($\beta^-$) or positron ($\beta^+$) emitted from an unstable atomic nucleus during radioactive decay.

Gamma ($\gamma$) Ray

High-frequency, high-energy electromagnetic radiation emitted from an unstable or excited nucleus, possessing very high penetrating power and low ionizing ability.

Activity ($A$)

The rate of radioactive disintegration in a sample, defined as the number of nuclei decaying per second, measured in becquerels ($\text{Bq}$).

Half-Life ($T_{1/2}$)

The time required for half the radioactive nuclei in a given sample to decay, or for the activity of the sample to drop to half its initial value.

Nuclear Fission

The splitting of a massive unstable atomic nucleus (such as uranium-235) into two lighter nuclei accompanied by the release of neutrons and large amounts of energy.

Nuclear Fusion

The nuclear process where two light atomic nuclei combine under extreme conditions to create a heavier nucleus, liberating large amounts of energy.

Mass Defect ($\Delta m$)

The difference between the total mass of the individual, isolated nucleons that compose a nucleus and the actual mass of the bound nucleus.

Nuclear Binding Energy ($E_B$)

The energy equivalent of the mass defect ($E_B = \Delta m c^2$), representing the energy required to disassemble a bound nucleus into its individual protons and neutrons.

Moderator

A substance inside a nuclear reactor (such as graphite, heavy water, or ordinary water) that slows down fast fission neutrons to thermal speeds to maintain the chain reaction.

Control Rods

Rods made of neutron-absorbing material (such as boron or cadmium) that are inserted into or withdrawn from a reactor core to regulate or stop the nuclear fission reaction.

Nuclear Reactor

A controlled containment system that sustains a nuclear fission chain reaction to produce heat, which boils water into steam to turn a turbine and generate electricity.