PHYSICs Paper 1:

Q: Name two renewable energy sources. (Q1)
A: Solar and wind

Q: Name two renewable energy sources. (Q2)
A: Solar and wind

Q: What is the efficiency formula? (Q3)
A: Efficiency = (useful output / total input) × 100

Q: What is the unit of energy? (Q4)
A: Joules (J)

Q: Which energy store is associated with movement? (Q5)
A: Kinetic energy store

Q: What is the formula for kinetic energy? (Q6)
A: KE = 0.5 × mass × velocity²

Q: What is the formula for gravitational potential energy? (Q7)
A: GPE = mass × gravity × height

Q: What is specific heat capacity? (Q8)
A: Energy needed to raise temperature of 1 kg by 1°C

Q: What is the unit of power? (Q9)
A: Watts (W)

Q: What is the formula for work done? (Q10)
A: Work = force × distance

Q: What energy transfer method involves vibrations through solids? (Q11)
A: Conduction

Q: Which energy transfer involves movement of fluids? (Q12)
A: Convection

Q: Name a device that reduces energy wasted by friction. (Q13)
A: Lubricant

Q: Which type of energy store is found in compressed springs? (Q14)
A: Elastic potential energy

Q: What is meant by "energy is conserved"? (Q15)
A: It cannot be created or destroyed

Q: What is the formula for power using work done? (Q16)
A: Power = work done / time

Q: What is the most efficient type of lightbulb? (Q17)
A: LED

Q: How does double glazing reduce heat loss? (Q18)
A: Air gap reduces conduction

Q: What is an energy dissipation diagram called? (Q19)
A: Sankey diagram

Q: Name an appliance that uses electrical energy and produces kinetic energy. (Q20)
A: Electric fan

Q: What is the energy transfer in a hairdryer? (Q21)
A: Electrical → thermal + kinetic + sound

Q: What is the national unit of electricity? (Q22)
A: Kilowatt-hour (kWh)

Q: How do solar panels generate electricity? (Q23)
A: By absorbing sunlight using photovoltaic cells

Q: What type of energy is stored in a battery? (Q24)
A: Chemical energy

Q: What is wasted energy from a light bulb? (Q25)
A: Heat

Q: Which fuel type emits the most CO₂? (Q26)
A: Coal

Q: What is the formula for energy transferred using charge? (Q27)
A: Energy = charge × voltage

Q: Why is hydroelectric power renewable? (Q28)
A: Water cycle is continuous

Q: How does loft insulation work? (Q29)
A: Reduces heat transfer via conduction and convection

Q: What type of energy store is in food? (Q30)
A: Chemical energy

Q: Why are fossil fuels non-renewable? (Q31)
A: They take millions of years to form

Q: What’s the typical power rating of a kettle? (Q32)
A: Around 2 kW

Q: What does “power rating” mean? (Q33)
A: How much energy an appliance uses per second

Q: What does a larger specific heat capacity mean? (Q34)
A: Takes more energy to heat up

Q: How does cavity wall insulation work? (Q35)
A: Traps air between walls to reduce heat transfer

Q: What energy transfer is prevented by shiny surfaces? (Q36)
A: Radiation

Q: What is the national average voltage in UK homes? (Q37)
A: 230 V

Q: What is thermal conductivity? (Q38)
A: A measure of how well a material conducts heat

Q: Which metal has high thermal conductivity? (Q39)
A: Copper

Q: Why is polystyrene a good insulator? (Q40)
A: It traps air and reduces conduction

Q: What is the cost formula using kWh? (Q41)
A: Cost = power × time × price per unit

Q: What is the unit for specific heat capacity? (Q42)
A: J/kg°C

Q: What causes energy to be wasted? (Q43)
A: Friction, resistance, unwanted heat

Q: What happens to wasted energy? (Q44)
A: It dissipates into surroundings

Q: Which surface emits radiation best? (Q45)
A: Dull, black surfaces

Q: What is the most efficient energy resource? (Q46)
A: Hydroelectric (very little energy loss)

Q: What does “power” measure? (Q47)
A: The rate of energy transfer

Q: What is insulation? (Q48)
A: Material that reduces energy transfer

Q: What type of energy is stored in a moving car? (Q49)
A: Kinetic

Q: What is the energy change in a falling object? (Q50)
A: GPE → KE

Q: What is the unit of current? (Q51)
A: Ampere (A)

Q: What is the formula linking voltage, current, and resistance? (Q52)
A: V = I × R

Q: What is the unit of resistance? (Q53)
A: Ohms (Ω)

Q: What is the unit of voltage? (Q54)
A: Volts (V)

Q: What is the function of a fuse? (Q55)
A: It melts and breaks the circuit if current is too high

Q: What is the UK mains voltage? (Q56)
A: 230 V

Q: What type of current is mains electricity? (Q57)
A: Alternating current (AC)

Q: What current is supplied by a battery? (Q58)
A: Direct current (DC)

Q: What is the frequency of UK mains electricity? (Q59)
A: 50 Hz

Q: What is the role of the earth wire? (Q60)
A: Safety — prevents electric shock by grounding current

Q: What color is the live wire in a UK plug? (Q61)
A: Brown

Q: What color is the neutral wire? (Q62)
A: Blue

Q: What color is the earth wire? (Q63)
A: Green and yellow

Q: What is the formula for power using voltage and current? (Q64)
A: Power = voltage × current

Q: What is the formula for energy transferred? (Q65)
A: Energy = power × time

Q: What is the formula linking energy, charge, and voltage? (Q66)
A: E = Q × V

Q: What does an ohmic conductor do? (Q67)
A: Obeys Ohm’s law — current and voltage are directly proportional

Q: What kind of graph does a filament lamp produce? (Q68)
A: A curve — resistance increases with temperature

Q: What does a diode do? (Q69)
A: Allows current in one direction only

Q: How is total resistance calculated in series? (Q70)
A: Add all resistors: R_total = R₁ + R₂ + …

Q: How is current shared in a parallel circuit? (Q71)
A: Shared between branches

Q: What remains constant in parallel circuits? (Q72)
A: Voltage

Q: What is the National Grid? (Q73)
A: A system of cables and transformers distributing electricity

Q: Why is voltage increased before long-distance transmission? (Q74)
A: To reduce current and energy loss as heat

Q: What is a step-up transformer? (Q75)
A: Increases voltage, decreases current

Q: What is a step-down transformer? (Q76)
A: Decreases voltage to safe levels

Q: What is a typical fuse rating for a kettle? (Q77)
A: 13 A

Q: What does a resistor do? (Q78)
A: Limits the flow of current

Q: What is static electricity caused by? (Q79)
A: Friction transferring electrons

Q: What is an electric field? (Q80)
A: A region around a charged object where forces are felt

Q: What happens if you touch a live wire? (Q81)
A: You could get an electric shock

Q: What happens to resistance if wire length increases? (Q82)
A: Resistance increases

Q: What material has low resistance? (Q83)
A: Copper

Q: What’s the purpose of double insulation? (Q84)
A: No exposed metal — protects user

Q: What happens to current if voltage increases (constant resistance)? (Q85)
A: Current increases

Q: What kind of circuit is used in household lighting? (Q86)
A: Parallel

Q: What happens to total resistance in a parallel circuit when more branches are added? (Q87)
A: It decreases

Q: What is a variable resistor? (Q88)
A: A resistor you can adjust

Q: What does a thermistor do? (Q89)
A: Resistance decreases as temperature increases

Q: What does an LDR (light dependent resistor) do? (Q90)
A: Resistance decreases as light intensity increases

Q: What is the symbol for a fuse in circuit diagrams? (Q91)
A: A rectangle with a line through it

Q: What is the energy transfer in a heater? (Q92)
A: Electrical to thermal

Q: What is power if current = 5 A and voltage = 230 V? (Q93)
A: P = IV = 1150 W

Q: What is the formula for resistance from voltage and current? (Q94)
A: R = V / I

Q: What is the unit of charge? (Q95)
A: Coulombs (C)

Q: What does a circuit breaker do? (Q96)
A: Breaks the circuit when current is too high

Q: What is the effect of resistance on current? (Q97)
A: Higher resistance → lower current

Q: What is alternating current? (Q98)
A: Current that reverses direction

Q: What is direct current? (Q99)
A: Current that flows in one direction

Q: What are the safety features of a plug? (Q100)
A: Fuse, earth wire, insulation

Q: What is the formula for density? (Q101)
  A: Density = mass / volume

Q: What are the units for density? (Q102)
  A: kg/m³

Q: Which instrument is used to measure volume of an irregular object? (Q103)
  A: A displacement can (eureka can)

Q: How does heating affect internal energy? (Q104)
  A: It increases internal energy

Q: What is internal energy? (Q105)
  A: The total kinetic + potential energy of particles in a substance

Q: What happens to temperature during a change of state? (Q106)
  A: It stays constant

Q: What is the specific latent heat of fusion? (Q107)
  A: Energy needed to melt 1 kg of a substance

Q: What is the specific latent heat of vaporisation? (Q108)
  A: Energy needed to boil 1 kg of a substance

Q: What are the units for specific latent heat? (Q109)
  A: J/kg

Q: What are the states of matter? (Q110)
  A: Solid, liquid, gas

Q: What is the arrangement of particles in a solid? (Q111)
  A: Fixed positions in a regular pattern

Q: What is the arrangement of particles in a gas? (Q112)
  A: Random, far apart, fast movement

Q: What causes gas pressure? (Q113)
  A: Particle collisions with the container walls

Q: What is the relationship between volume and pressure at constant temperature? (Q114)
  A: Inversely proportional (Boyle’s Law)

Q: State the equation that links pressure and volume. (Q115)
  A: p × V = constant

Q: How does increasing temperature affect gas pressure? (Q116)
  A: Increases pressure

Q: What is the unit for pressure? (Q117)
  A: Pascals (Pa)

Q: Why does a balloon expand in a warm room? (Q118)
  A: Air molecules move faster and increase pressure inside

Q: What is the effect of reducing volume of a gas (at constant temperature)? (Q119)
  A: Pressure increases

Q: Why does pressure increase when a gas is compressed? (Q120)
  A: Particles collide more often with the container walls

Q: What is latent heat? (Q121)
  A: Energy required to change the state of a substance without temperature change

Q: What is specific heat capacity? (Q122)
  A: Energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 kg by 1°C

Q: What happens to internal energy when a gas is compressed? (Q123)
  A: It increases

Q: Why does a gas cool when it expands? (Q124)
  A: Particles lose energy doing work against external pressure

Q: Which state of matter has the lowest density? (Q125)
  A: Gas

Q: Why is water less dense than ice? (Q126)
  A: Ice has a more open structure

Q: What does a flat line on a heating curve represent? (Q127)
  A: A change of state

Q: What happens to particle movement when temperature increases? (Q128)
  A: Particles move faster

Q: What happens to kinetic energy of particles as temperature increases? (Q129)
  A: It increases

Q: What happens to potential energy during a change of state? (Q130)
  A: It changes — increases in melting or boiling

Q: Which phase has the most internal energy? (Q131)
  A: Gas

Q: What is a physical change? (Q132)
  A: A change that doesn't alter chemical composition

Q: What is a chemical change? (Q133)
  A: A change that forms a new substance

Q: What is Brownian motion evidence of? (Q134)
  A: Movement of particles in gases or liquids

Q: What happens to pressure if gas is cooled? (Q135)
  A: Pressure decreases

Q: What does the gradient of a mass–volume graph give? (Q136)
  A: Density

Q: What is the formula for pressure using force and area? (Q137)
  A: Pressure = Force / Area

Q: What happens to the spacing between particles when a solid melts? (Q138)
  A: Increases

Q: How does evaporation cause cooling? (Q139)
  A: Faster particles escape, leaving slower ones behind

Q: Why do gases have no fixed shape? (Q140)
  A: Particles move freely in all directions

Q: How does increasing particle collisions affect pressure? (Q141)
  A: Increases pressure

Q: What is the result of work being done on a gas? (Q142)
  A: Internal energy and temperature increase

Q: Why can gases be compressed easily? (Q143)
  A: Because particles are far apart

Q: What graph can show changes in state and temperature? (Q144)
  A: Heating curve

Q: What is sublimation? (Q145)
  A: Change from solid to gas without becoming liquid

Q: What happens to energy input during a change of state? (Q146)
  A: It breaks intermolecular bonds

Q: What is the unit of volume? (Q147)
  A: m³ or cm³

Q: What is needed to calculate the density of a regular object? (Q148)
  A: Mass and volume (length × width × height)

Q: What property affects a material's ability to store heat? (Q149)
  A: Specific heat capacity

Q: What causes a gas to exert pressure? (Q150)
  A: Collisions of particles with surfaces

Q: What are the three types of nuclear radiation? (Q151)
  A: Alpha, beta, and gamma

Q: What is an alpha particle made of? (Q152)
  A: 2 protons and 2 neutrons

Q: What is a beta particle? (Q153)
  A: A high-speed electron

Q: What is gamma radiation? (Q154)
  A: Electromagnetic wave

Q: Which radiation is the most ionising? (Q155)
  A: Alpha

Q: Which radiation is the most penetrating? (Q156)
  A: Gamma

Q: What material stops alpha radiation? (Q157)
  A: Paper or skin

Q: What material is needed to stop gamma radiation? (Q158)
  A: Thick lead or several metres of concrete

Q: What is the definition of half-life? (Q159)
  A: Time taken for half the radioactive nuclei to decay

Q: What is background radiation? (Q160)
  A: Radiation from natural and man-made sources

Q: Name two sources of background radiation. (Q161)
  A: Radon gas and cosmic rays

Q: What is an isotope? (Q162)
  A: An atom of the same element with a different number of neutrons

Q: What does ionising radiation do to atoms? (Q163)
  A: It knocks electrons off, forming ions

Q: What does a Geiger-Müller tube do? (Q164)
  A: Detects radiation

Q: What happens in beta decay? (Q165)
  A: A neutron changes into a proton and emits an electron

Q: What happens to the atomic number in alpha decay? (Q166)
  A: It decreases by 2

Q: What happens to mass number in alpha decay? (Q167)
  A: It decreases by 4

Q: What happens to atomic number in beta decay? (Q168)
  A: It increases by 1

Q: Does gamma radiation change the atomic number? (Q169)
  A: No, it does not affect atomic or mass number

Q: What is nuclear fission? (Q170)
  A: The splitting of a large nucleus

Q: What is nuclear fusion? (Q171)
  A: The joining of two light nuclei

Q: Why is fusion not currently used in power stations? (Q172)
  A: It requires extremely high temperature and pressure

Q: Where does fusion occur naturally? (Q173)
  A: In stars

Q: What is contamination in radiation? (Q174)
  A: Radioactive particles are on or in an object

Q: What is irradiation? (Q175)
  A: Being exposed to radiation without touching it

Q: How can you reduce exposure to radiation? (Q176)
  A: Use shielding, limit time, keep distance

Q: What is a use of gamma radiation in medicine? (Q177)
  A: Sterilising equipment or killing cancer cells

Q: What is a medical tracer? (Q178)
  A: A radioactive substance injected to track processes in the body

Q: Who proposed the nuclear model of the atom? (Q179)
  A: Ernest Rutherford

Q: What experiment led to the nuclear model? (Q180)
  A: Alpha particle scattering experiment

Q: What model came before the nuclear model? (Q181)
  A: The plum pudding model

Q: Who proposed the plum pudding model? (Q182)
  A: J.J. Thomson

Q: What charge does an alpha particle have? (Q183)
  A: +2

Q: Why is alpha radiation used in smoke detectors? (Q184)
  A: It ionises air but is easily blocked by smoke

Q: What are the risks of ionising radiation? (Q185)
  A: Cancer, tissue damage, mutation

Q: What is the relative charge of a proton? (Q186)
  A: +1

Q: What is the relative mass of a neutron? (Q187)
  A: 1

Q: What is the charge of an electron? (Q188)
  A: –1

Q: Where are protons and neutrons found? (Q189)
  A: In the nucleus

Q: What is the mass number of an atom? (Q190)
  A: Number of protons + neutrons

Q: What is the atomic number? (Q191)
  A: Number of protons

Q: What particle determines the identity of an element? (Q192)
  A: Number of protons

Q: What does unstable mean in atomic structure? (Q193)
  A: The nucleus is likely to decay

Q: What’s the typical range of alpha particles in air? (Q194)
  A: A few cm

Q: What’s the typical range of beta particles in air? (Q195)
  A: Around 1 m

Q: What’s the typical range of gamma rays in air? (Q196)
  A: Unlimited — travels far

Q: What does shielding from radiation involve? (Q197)
  A: Using barriers (e.g. lead aprons) to block radiation

Q: What is used to measure radiation dose? (Q198)
  A: Dosimeter

Q: What is the unit for radiation dose? (Q199)
  A: Sieverts (Sv)

Q: Why must radioactive waste be stored safely? (Q200)
  A: It remains hazardous for thousands of years