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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS

SECTION I: General Physics

SECTION I
General Physics
CIE A-Level [AS and A2]

________________________

Course Notes

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

Syllabus Details______________________

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

1. Physical Quantities and Units_______________


Content
1.1 Physical quantities [AS]
1.2 SI Units [AS]
1.3 The Avogadro constant [A2]
1.4 Scalars and vectors [AS]
Learning outcomes_____________________________________
Candidates should be able to:
(a) show an understanding that all physical quantities consist of a numerical
magnitude and a unit

From the syllabus...

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

(b) recall the following SI base quantities and their units: mass (kg), length (m), time
(s), current (A), temperature (K), amount of substance (mol)
Base Quantity
length
mass
time
electric current
temperature
amount of substance

Unit
meter
kilogram
second
ampere
kelvin
mole

Symbol
m
kg
s
A
K
mol

(c) express derived units as products or quotients of the SI base units and use the
named units listed in this syllabus as appropriate
Example of derived units

(d) use SI base units to check the homogeneity of physical equations

Each side of an equation must have the same base units


F

[N]
=
-2
[mkgs ] =
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m
[kg]
[kg]

a
[ms-2]
[ms-2]
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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

(e) show an understanding of and use the conventions for labelling graph axes and
table columns as set out in the ASE publication Signs, Symbols and Systematics (The
ASE Companion to 1619 Science, 2000)
CONVENTIONS FOR TABLES (From the syllabus)

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

CONVENTIONS FOR GRAPHS (From the syllabus)

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

(f) use the following prefixes and their symbols to indicate decimal submultiples or
multiples of both base and derived units: pico (p), nano (n), micro (), milli (m),
centi (c), deci (d), kilo (k), mega (M), giga (G), tera (T)

(g) make reasonable estimates of physical quantities included within the syllabus
Remember: an estimate does not have to be exactly correct and often just expresses an
order of magnitude.
e.g. The mass of universe is ~1050 kilograms
(h) show an understanding that the Avogadro constant is the number of atoms in
0.012 kg of carbon-12
The Avogadro number:

The number of atoms in 0.012kg of carbon-12.


It is 6.02x1023

(i)
use molar quantities where one mole of any substance is the amount
containing a number of particles equal to the Avogadro constant
Mole:

One mole of a substance is the amount of that substance that


contains the same number of atoms as 0.012kg of carbon-12.
Molar Mass: The mass of one mole of a substance is called the molar mass.
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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

(j) distinguish between scalar and vector quantities and give examples of each
Vector:
Scalar:

Quantity with both magnitude and direction


Quantity with only magnitude

(k) add and subtract coplanar vectors

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

(l) represent a vector as two perpendicular components.

SEE PHET SIM

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

2. Measurement Techniques___________________
Content
2.1 Measurements
2.2 Errors and uncertainties
Learning outcomes_____________________________________
Candidates should be able to:
(a) use techniques for the measurement of length, volume, angle, mass, time,
temperature and electrical quantities appropriate to the ranges of magnitude
implied by the relevant parts of the syllabus.
In particular, candidates should be able to:
measure lengths using a ruler, vernier scale and micrometer

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

When using a ruler, be careful of parallax errors

measure weight and hence mass using spring and lever balances
measure an angle using a protractor
measure time intervals using clocks, stopwatches and the calibrated timebase of a cathode-ray oscilloscope (c.r.o.)
measure temperature using a thermometer as a sensor
use ammeters and voltmeters with appropriate scales
use a galvanometer in null methods

A Galvanometer is a current measuring meter that can be used in two ways

With a resistor in series to measure voltage


With a resistor in parallel to measure current

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

use a cathode-ray oscilloscope (c.r.o.)

KEY CONTROLS.

Time base: Time taken for beam to pass through one horizontal division [Sec/div]
Vertical amplifier gain: The vertical scale control [Volts/div]
use a calibrated Hall probe

Basic Structure of a Hall probe

A small piece of semi-conductor material placed perpendicular to the


magnetic field
A current is paced through the semi-conductor
A voltage (Hall voltage) is measured which is proportional to the magnetic
flux density

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

(b) use both analogue scales and digital displays

(c) use calibration curves

Record value from instrument


Use calibration curve to read off the corrected real value

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

(d) show an understanding of the distinction between systematic errors


(including zero errors) and random errors

Random Errors:
Errors that can not be predicted.
Systematic Errors: Errors which are the same for each measurement
(e) show an understanding of the distinction between precision and accuracy
Precision:
Accurate:

Small random error


Small systematic error

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

(f) assess the uncertainty in a derived quantity by simple addition of actual,


fractional or percentage uncertainties (a rigorous statistical treatment is not
required).
Absolute uncertainty:
Fractional uncertainty:
Percentage uncertainty:

Size of an error and its units


Absolute uncertainty / measurement
Fractional uncertainty x 100%

Addition and Subtraction


5.9 0.6m + 3.9 0.8m = 9.8 1.4m (add absolute errors)
6.9 0.6m - 3.9 0.8m = 3.0 1.4m (add absolute errors)
Multiplication and Division
5.6 0.5m x 2.6 0.5m = 15 ??m
0.5 / 5.6 = 0.089

0.5 / 2.6 = 0.19

Sum of relative errors = 0.28


Absolute error = 0.28 x 15 = 4.2m
FINAL ANSWER = 15 4 m

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A-Level Course Notes: PHYSICS


SECTION I: General Physics

Background Reading_________________
PHYSICS, Giancoli 6th edition, Chapter 1

Useful Websites______________________
http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/new
http://www.s-cool.co.uk/alevel/physics.html
http://www.physicsclassroom.com/mmedia/index.cfm
http://www.phys.hawaii.edu/~teb/java/ntnujava/index.html
http://www.colorado.edu/physics/2000/index.pl

Constants___________________________
[These are given on each test paper]

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