Unit 1 Basic physical science

Physics is the science of matter

and energy, and includes the
principles that govern the motion of
particles and waves, the interaction
of particles, and the properties of
molecules, atoms, nuclei.
 Unit 1 Basic physical science
• 1.1 Measurement and units
• 1.2 Nature of matter
• 1.3 Mass, weight and density
• 1.4 Force and energy
• 1.5 Wave and electromagnetic spectrum
 1.1 Measurement and units
– SI (Système International) units. The metre (m) is the
base unit of length.
• The kilogram (kg) is the base unit of mass.
• The second (s) is the base unit of time.
• The ampere (A) is the base unit of electrical current.
• The kelvin (K) is the base unit of temperature.
• The mole (mol) is the base unit of the amount of a substance.
• The candela (cd) is the base unit of light intensity.

– Quantities such as speed (ms-1 ) and density (kgm-3 )

which are not expressed in a single base unit are
expressed in derived units.
– There are others system of unit, e.g. British system.
 Quantity Symbol Name of Symbol for Base units
unit unit
speed or velocity v m s-1 m s-1

acceleration a m s-2 m s-2

force F newton N kg m s-2
energy E joule J kg m2 s-2
power P watt W kg m2 s-3
pressure p pascal Pa kg m-l s-2
frequency f hertz Hz s-1
charge Q coulomb C As
Potential difference V volt V A-1 kg m2 s-3
resistance R ohm Q A-2 kg m2 s-3
capacitance C farad F A2 kg-1 m-2 s4
magnetic flux B tesla T A-1 kg s-2
• Quantities which have no units are described as being
dimensionless - for example the refractive index of a
material is a ratio of like quantities (light speeds) and
therefore has no unit.

• Workedexample
Show that the base units of density are kgm-3.
mass
density =
volume

so the units are or kg/m3

This is more usually written as kgm-3 - division is indicated by a

negative index.
Conversion of Units
Units can be treated algebraically in calculations
eg. :x=vt=80*3 (km/h)* h=240 km
Conversion of units: In a calculation all physical
quantities should have consistent system of units. If not
we use conversion factors to convert units between
systems.
1mi
eg.: 1 mi=1.61 km, the conversion factor is 1.61km = 1
1
but 1.61 ≠ 1
x=240 km=240km*1=240km* (1mi/1.61km)=149mi
• Powers of ten shorthand:

e.g. 4000 = 4× 10× 10× 10 = 4× 103

400 = 4× 10× 10 = 4× 102
40 = 4× 10 =
4× 101
4 = 4× 1 = 4× 100
0.4 = 4/10 = 4/101 = 4× 10-1
0.04 = 4/100 = 4/102 = 4× 10-2
0.004 = 4/1000 = 4/103 = 4× 10-3
• Prefixes
Multiple Prefix Symbol Example
10-12 pico p pF picofarad
10-9 nano n nm nanometre
10-6 micro µ µ A microamp
10-3 milli m ms millisecond
103 kilo k kg kilogram
106 mega M MJ megajoule
109 giga G GW gigawatt
Number Number in standard form
1 000 1.0 × 103
140 000 000 1.4 × 108
128 600 1.286 × 105
0.015 1.5 × 10-2
0.003 86 3.86 × 10-3
• Significant figures:
2 cm 1.5−2.5 cm
2.0 cm 1.95−2.05 cm
2.00 cm 1.995−2.005 cm
The greater the number of significant figures given, the
greater the implied precision of the measurement.
0.0385 (3 sig. fig.); 2.73× 103 (3 sig. fig.);
5000 (1, 2, 3 or 4 sig. fig.); 5.0× 103 (2 sig. fig.);
5× 103 (1 sig. fig.); 5.00× 103 (3 sig. fig.);

VERY IMPORTANT: Generally, in a physical

question, the final solution should contains 2 or 3
sig. fig.
Example: He is 180.123456789012…. m tall (what’s
wrong with it?)
 1.2 Nature of matter
• Matter is made up of tiny particles or molecules
which are too small for us to see directly. Molecules
consist of even smaller particles called atoms.
• Brownian motion
Qualitative evidence of the microscopic nature of
gases is shown by an effect called Brownian motion.
Robert Brown was a botanist studying how pollen
fertilizes an egg (ovum) in a flowering plant. When
observing grains of pollen under a microscope, he
noticed tiny particles moving around.
• an animation of Brownian motion
http://www.phy.ntnu.edu.tw/~hwang/gas2D/gas2D.html
• States of matter

Particles have a Particles are more Particles are widely

regular pattern, are widely spaced, spaced, move
close together, they move more freely randomly at high
move slightly and and have a medium speed and have a
have high density density low density

The electric forces between atoms in a

solid can be represented by springs
• Diffusion
Smells, pleasant of otherwise,
travel quickly and are caused by
rapidly moving molecules. The
spreading of a substance is called
diffusion and is due to molecular
motion.
 1.3 Mass, weight and density
• Density is the mass per unit volume of a substance

mass m
density = d=
volume V

• SI unit of density is the kilogram per cubic meter.

• To convert a density from g/cm3 to kg/m3, we multiply
by 103. For example the density of water is 1.0g/cm3
or 1.0× 103kg/m3.
•Worked example
Taking the density of copper as 9g/cm3, find
a. the mass of 5cm3 copper
b. the volume of 63g copper.

a. m = V × d = 5cm 3
× 9 g / cm 3
= 45 g

m 63 g
b. V= = 3
= 7cm 3

d 9 g / cm
• Simple density measurements
a. Regularly shaped solid
The mass is found on a balance and the volume by measuring
its dimensions with a ruler.
b. Irregularly shaped solid, e.g. pebble
The solid is weighed and its volume measured by one of the
methods shown in the following figures.
c. Liquid
– A known volume is transferred from a measuring cylinder
into a weighed beaker which is reweighed to give the mass
of liquid.
d. Air
– A flask is weighed full of air and then after removing the
air with a vacuum pump; the difference gives the mass of
air in the flask. The volume of air is found by filling the
flask with water and pouring it into a measuring cylinder.
• Floating and sinking
– An object sinks in a liquid of smaller density than
its own;
– otherwise it floats, partly or wholly submerged.

For example, a piece of glass of density

2.5g/cm3 sinks in water (density 1.0 g/cm3) but
floats in mercury (density 13.6 g/cm3). An iron
nail sinks in water but an iron ship floats
because its average density is less than that of
water.
Buoyant force

Any body completely or partially submerged

in a fluid is lifted up by the buoyant force.

According to the Archimedes’ principle, the

magnitude of the buoyant force always equals
to the weight of the fluid displaced by the
body.
 1.4 Force and energy
• Force
A force is a push or a pull. It can cause a body at rest to move,
or if the body is already moving it can change its speed or
direction of motion. It can also change its shape or size.

• Weight
The weight of a body is the force of gravity of the Earth on the
body.
– gravity is a attractive force between masses
Weight has to be distinguished from mass, which is a measure
of a resistance for an object to move under a force
• The Newton
The unit of force is Newton (N). The
weight of a body can be measured
by hanging it on a spring balance
marked in newton. The greater the
pull the more the spring stretches.

On most of the Earth’s surface: The

weight of a mass of 1kg is 9.8N.
(Often this taken as 10N)
or 1 kg = 10 N
• Hooke’s Law
extension ∝ stretching force
It is true only if the elastic limit of the spring is not exceeded.

The force constant k of a spring is the force needed

to cause unit extension, i.e. 1 m.
F
k= ( N / m)
e
• Worked example
A spring is stretched 10mm (0.01m) by a weight of
2.0N. Calculate
a. the force constant k
b. the weight W of an object which causes an
extension of 80mm (0.08m).
a. F 2.0 N
k= = 200 N / m
e 0.01m
b. W = stretching force F = k × e = 200 N / m × 0.08m = 16 N
• Energy
When an apple of mass m falls freely, its altitude z
and speed v change together in such a way that the
1 2
quantity E = mgz +
2
mv stays constant, where g is the
acceleration of gravity at Earth’s surface.

mg z
mgz, the potential energy
v
1 2
2
mv the kinetic energy.
1
mg E = mgz + mv 2 the mechanical energy.
2

E stays constant, conservation of mechanical energy

• kinetic energy is the energy possessed by an
object due to its motion. A fast moving object will
have more kinetic energy than an identical slow
moving object.
• Potential energy is the energy possessed by an
object due to its position relative to some others
objects. For example, an object will store up
potential energy when it is lifted up, or when an
elastic object (such as a spring) is stretched or
compressed.
Energy has the unit of Joule (J): 1 J = 1 N x 1 m= kg m2 s-2
• Worked example
A rock is thrown vertically 30 m into the air. Calculate the speed
with which the stone is thrown into the air. (Take the gravitational
acceleration g=10 m s-2).
By conservation of mechanical energy:
1 2 1 2
mv = mgz ∴ v = gz
2 2
∴ v = 2 gz = 2 × 10 × 30
2

∴ v = 24.5m / s
• Conservation of Energy
Energy can not be created or destroyed; it
may be transformed from one form into
another, but the total amount of energy
never changes.