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Lesson 1: Movement, Position & Velocity

Speed

We are all aware of saying that a car is travelling at 100mph or 100 miles per hour.

What does this mean?

Remaining at that speed it would travel 100 miles in one hour.

So simply put: speed = 100miles/1hour = 100 miles/hour

In all sciences we must use certain units so that everything adds up properly and in Physics we
use metres (m), seconds (s) and therefore metres/second (m/s or ms-1). We also use the term
Velocity for Speed, but it means the same.

distance - metres (m)

time - seconds (s)

speed - metres per second (ms-1)

If a runner in the Olympics runs the 100m in 10 seconds, what is their speed (or velocity)?

Speed = 100metres/10seconds

Speed = 10m/s

That is a speed of 10 metres per second.


Example:

A car travels 4.8 km in four minutes. Calculate its speed:

We could call this 4.8/4 = 1.2 km/minute

BUT

We are going to convert this to m/s:

that's 4.8Km x 1000 = 4800m

and 4 minutes = 240 seconds

so therefore 4800/240 = 20 metres/second =20m/s

Acceleration

Acceleration (or deceleration) is what happens when speed changes.

I’ll continue with cars for this example. We've all heard of the acceleration of a car i.e. how
quickly it picks up speed, or gains speed from a stationary position.

Let’s say a car is standing still and accelerates to a speed of 60m/s in 20 seconds.

Acceleration = (final speed – starting speed) / time. In this case then:

a = (60 – 0)m/s / 20s

a = 3 m/s/s or 3 ms-2

Note on units: speed is already in m/s and we're dividing that by seconds again so the units are
metres per second per second or m/s/s or ms-2

Let's say that a car speeds up from 30m/s to 80m/s in 10 seconds. What is the acceleration?

A = (80-30)/10 = 50/10 = 5ms-2


Distance/Time graphs

If this graph represents somebody walking, we can see that they have been walking at a constant
speed (because it is a straight line). Looking for a convenient point on the graph, we can also see
that they travelled 70 metres in approximately 80 seconds. The graph is not detailed enough to
pin that down any further so we say approximately.

Speed = distance/time

Speed = 70/80

= 0.875 m/s

which is also the gradient of the graph.

If an object is accelerating, or decelerating the line is not straight:


The rate of change of distance is changing. You can imagine this as a car starting off slowly and
speeding up. Some cars would take 10 seconds to get to 60mph others only take 4. Even if they
both stay at 60mph at the end their acceleration to that point has been different and they would
have differently curved graphs.

Here is an interesting interactive lesson on these graphs:

https://goo.gl/iVUjVB

Speed (or Velocity) / Time Graphs.

These graphs are similar but show the speed of an object over time.

In the previous distance/graph, a flat line meant no increase in distance while time still passed –
so a stationary object. On these graphs, a flat line means no increase in Velocity (or Speed) – but
no decrease either, maintaining a steady speed. If the line were flat along the time axis, clearly
speed = 0 m/s, therefore no distance is travelled either.

With these graphs, we can find the total distance travelled by working out the AREA under the
graph. Therefore, if an object has remained at a constant velocity of 30m/s for ten seconds the
area under the graph looks like a rectangle. To calculate the area of a rectangle we multiply the
length of the sides.

30m/s x 10s = 300m – 300 metres travelled in 10 seconds.

We can also work out the distance travelled by an object that is changing speed.

area of a triangle = ½ the base x height

For instance, this object accelerated until X number of seconds, then travelled at a constant
speed until Y number of seconds, then decelerated until it stopped. We can find the total
distance travelled by finding the area under the graph. To do this, we split it into 2 triangles and
a rectangle and then add up the results.

Also, we can find:

Average Speed = Total Distance/Total Time

This is also interesting and don’t be put off by the term displacement; it means the same as
distance. An object has been ‘displaced’ a certain distance.

https://goo.gl/o6NH2f

The final equation that allows us to calculate movement in this section is:
Which means:

(final speed)2 = (initial speed)2 + (2 × acceleration × distance moved)

Practice

If the initial speed was 3m/s, the acceleration 5m/s/s and the distance moved was 100

Then:

Always keep in mind before calculating:

Distance : metres: m

Convert kilometres to metres by x 1000

Time: seconds : s

Convert hours to minutes x 60, convert minutes to seconds x 60

Speed : metres/second : m/s : ms-1

Acceleration : metres/second/second : m/s/s: ms-2

Lesson 2: Force
What is a force?

We tend to think of force as something pushing or pulling something somewhere. Can you force
a door open? You would probably try to pull it open or push it open.

Pushing or pulling is what forces do, but there are different ways in which that happens so far as
we are concerned in Physics.

A force is a push or pull upon an object resulting from the object's interaction with another
object. Whenever there is an interaction between two objects, there is a force upon each of the
objects. When the interaction ceases, the two objects no longer experience the force. Forces
only exist because of an interaction.

Contact & Non-Contact Forces

Some forces require objects to be touching to exert force on each other.

Vectors And Scalars

Vectors and Scalars are different types of quantity. Vectors are forces that have direction, like a
push. Scalars do not (they just have scale – good way to remember). Below is a list of examples.
One way to look at it is that vectors are ‘going somewhere’, scalars just exist.
Wh
at’s the difference between weight and mass? Well, mass is the quantity of matter making up an
object (a SCALAR), weight is the downward force (a VECTOR) caused due to gravity. We’ve all
seen Astronauts jumping up high on the moon, their mass is the same as earth, but their weight
is different because gravity is different there compared with Earth.

Remember weight as we are thinking about it now is a force in measured in Newtons.

https://goo.gl/CxV8Q4

We are going to concentrate on physical push/pull forces for now.

This is expressed as:


If that person hits a brick wall what happens?

You might say – nothing happens. They no longer move and the wall doesn’t move.

However, they are still exerting the same force of 300N. The reason nothing is happening is that
force is not enough to break the wall. So, the wall is effectively acting on the person with the
same force and the forces are in equilibrium.

Forces acting along a line

To put it simply forces acting along a line add up.

10N 15N = 25N

And subtract from one another.

10N 15N = 5N

The 2 x 10N cancel each other out leaving 5N acting toward the left.

https://goo.gl/6VmUP8

A bit more about Friction…

Imagine pushing a block along a rough surface. The friction of the block against that surface is
the force effectively slowing you down.

Friction acts against the direction of motion.

Lesson 3: Forces of Stopping Distances of Vehicles


What is a stopping distance?

Imagine you were driving, saw something ahead and decided to stop. The distance you travelled
before stopping is the stopping distance.

This is a combination of thinking time and breaking time.

Stopping Distance = Thinking Distance + Braking Distance:

The thinking distance is based on people having approximately the same reactions and deciding
as quickly as possible to apply the brakes. In reality, however, this is variable.

The braking distance is affected by the force of the vehicle travelling, the friction applied by the
brakes on the wheels to make them stop (efficiency of the brake pads) and then the friction the
tyres apply to the road surface to actually make the vehicle stop (tyre tread/weather conditions).
Bald tyres in icy conditions will take much longer to stop the vehicle.

Factors Affecting Stopping Distances

Thinking Distance: Decision/Reaction time

Braking Distance: Mass and Velocity of vehicle, functionality of brakes, condition of tyres, road
condition.

Lesson 4: Falling Objects


As we talked about previously, gravity is a force that pull objects towards each other. The most
obvious example of this is the gravitational pull of the earth on all objects. It is the reason that
when we drop objects they fall. Another way to describe this is that they are pulled toward the
centre of the earth – you might say that is why people on the ‘bottom’ of the earth don’t fall off!

We know that the earth’s gravity causes an acceleration of approximately 9.8 ms-2

This implies that objects would speed up continuously until they hit the ground. But they don’t.
Parachutists never get much faster than about 53ms-1. Which means they’ve stopped
accelerating after about 5.5 seconds. Why?

Air resistance

Imagine being on a rollercoaster. The faster you move, the more you feel the air against your
face.

This is because you are pushing through the air. We don’t often think about it because we are in
air all the time but air is a substance, like water, that we can pass through. We particularly feel it
when we are going quickly.

The same applies to falling, as applies to all forces – there is an equal and opposite reaction.
Effectively the air pushes back and resists us falling through it.

The earth is pulling us toward itself, accelerating at 9.8ms-2 and the air resists. The faster we go,
the more it resists and eventually cancels out the force of gravity. So, what happens then? Do we
float? Obviously not: we know that we keep falling. But we do stop accelerating? We continue to
fall to earth at the same rate. We can affect air resistance by adjusting our surface area – if you
adopt a diving position you will fall more quickly than forming a star shape – because there will
be less air resistance. You have become more aerodynamic. The final speed we reach is called
Terminal Velocity which varies from object to object depending on their shape. We use
parachutes to help us fall more slowly, even though they add weight, because they generate
more air resistance.: enough to allow us to fall slower and to land safely.

Lesson 5: Extension and Hooke’s Law


We all know what happens when we pull an elastic band or spring – it stretches and stretches,
the harder we pull it, until it deforms and breaks.

This is the essence of Hooke’s Law.

The extension is proportional to the force applied, until we reach the Elastic Limit

We can see that the graph starts as a straight line – this means the relationship is proportional.
For example, if we applied a force of 2N and the object extended by 4cm then we know that if
we applied a force of 4N the extension would be 8cm.

The Elastic Limit is reached when this no longer happens. The object deforms and will no longer
spring back, if we continue to add force and eventually it will break.

The straight line on the graph is the Hooke’s Law region and the limit of proportionality.

Lesson 6: Momentum
Imagine a train travelling along a track, the engine is switched off but the breaks are not applied.
What happens? It carries on down the track because it has momentum. And when will it stop?
Well, on a perfect track with no friction caused by the wheels and in space, with no air to resist
the travel, the train would go on forever.

How much momentum?

Look at the diagram above. As we only have so many letters in the alphabet, we use P to
represent momentum.

A 100kg vehicle travelling at 30ms-1 would have what value of momentum?

100kg x 30ms 1 = 3000kgms-1

Practice Questions:

Practice 1

A car of mass 1000 kg is moving at a speed of 30ms-1. Calculate its momentum.

Practice 2

If a vehicle has a momentum of 15000 kgms-1 and a mass of 1500 kg, at what speed is it
travelling?

Practice 3

If a vehicle has a momentum of 12000 kgms-1 and a speed of 25ms-1, what is its mass?

Answers to Practice Questions:

Practice 1

A car of mass 1000 kg is moving at a speed of 30ms-1. Calculate its momentum.

p = mv

p = 1000 x 30

p = 30000 kgms-1

Practice 2
If a vehicle has a momentum of 15000 kgms-1 and a mass of 1500 kg, at what speed is it
travelling?

p = mv

v = p/m

v = 15000/1500

p = 10ms-1

Practice 3

If a vehicle has a momentum of 12000 kgms-1 and a speed of 25ms-1, what is its mass?

p = mv

m = p/v

m = 12000/25

m = 480kg

Conservation of momentum

Conservation of momentum is the principle that, after a collision, zero momentum is lost (again
in a perfect world). Look at the diagram below.

The carriage on the left, we’ll call it C1, has a momentum of:

P = 5000 x 2 = 10000kgms-1

It hits carriage 2, which we’ll call C2 from now on. They bounce off each other, and go back in
the opposite direction. C1 bounces off at a speed of 1.25ms-1, what speed C2 is C2 travelling at?

The momentum of C1, P = 10000


The momentum, C2, P = 5000

So, the total momentum = 15000

Now we know from the question, C1 bounces back at a speed of 1.25 – so how much
momentum is that?

5000 x 1.25 = 6250

We know from the whole collision C1 is travelling away with 6250 so:

15000 – 6250 = 8750

Now we know C2 is travelling with a momentum of 8750, so how fast is that?

8750 = 5000 x speed

8750/5000 = 1.75

So C2 is travelling at 1.75ms-1

No momentum has been lost; it has just been transferred.

Lesson 7: Astronomy
What is Astronomy?

One way to describe Astronomy is to say it is the study of objects (often referred to as bodies)
and occurrences in space. You could say that means EVERYTHING and in a sense, it does.
However, generally it is more to do with the movement and interaction of very large objects like
planets, stars, moons, comets and other satellites over very large distances and often huge time
spans.

So where do we start?

How about, the Earth, the Sun and the Moon? We live on the Earth and can see the Sun and
Moon nearly every day.

In the sky, the Sun and Moon look quite similar in size, however, they are greatly different.

Even though they are not perfect, we think of celestial bodies as spherical. Their orbits are not
circular either so at this point we will just write an average distance:

The Sun has a radius of 695,700km and for now we are going to imagine it as stationary in the
middle of the Solar System.

The Earth has a radius of 6370km and orbits the sun at an average distance of 150 million km –
that’s 150,000,000km.

The Moon has a radius of 1737km and orbits the Earth at an average distance of 385,000km.

We can see that the earth is a satellite of the Sun and that the Moon is a satellite of the earth.
For this example, we are imagining the Sun as stationary, which it is not. The Sun is at the centre
of our solar system and is orbited by all the planets, including Earth. It is also part of a galaxy,
which is a collection of stars, which is also moving through the universe.

The Earth is a planet, because it orbits the Sun. There are other planets in the solar system. Earth
is the third closest one after Mercury and Venus, then after Earth there are Mars, Jupiter, Saturn,
Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Some people call Pluto a Dwarf-Planet or Minor Planet. It has been
classified and reclassified numerous times and may well have been again by the time you read
this. It is not particularly important to this lesson!

The Sun is at the centre of the solar system and the planets travel round the sun in an elliptical
orbit:
Elliptical orbits are more like an oval if you look at them from above, not a circle.

Now, what makes all these huge objects spin round each other?

Gravity. All objects pull towards each other due to gravity. The Moon and Earth are in a little
system of their own and the Sun and the Earth are in another. The Sun will also affect the moon.
However, it is so far away that it is not the object that the moon is orbiting. Earth has the
stronger pull as gravity fades over distance.

For any two objects in proximity to each other, there will be a specific speed or velocity where
one object will orbit the other without any collision. This is the orbital velocity. There are also
other effects due to the gravitational pull.

Tides & Moons

The gravitational pull of both the Moon and Sun are responsible for producing tides. As they pull
against the Earth and Earth pulls back, the great bodies of water are dragged around and make a
bulge in the middle. When both the Sun and the Moon are pulling from the same point larger
tides are created which are called spring tides:
Compared to the moons of other planets in our solar system, Earth’s moon is large. It is large
enough to have a significant impact on the tides. Other planets, some of which are much larger
than earth, have numerous, much smaller moons, which have much less effect on them than
ours.
The definition of a moon is that it is a satellite that orbits a planet. It can also have other
properties and still be a moon. Earth’s moon is a pretty plain piece of rock. However, other
moons, like Jupiter’s moon Europa, is so much more interesting. In fact, scientists are currently
considering it to have one of the highest potentials for life in the solar system.

Gravitational Field Strength

In the Forces section of this course, we looked at the force of gravity on Earth. It is approximately
10 N/kg and we refer to it by the symbol g.

The value g varies from planet to planet and moon to moon, depending on their mass and
volume and therefore density. You have probably seen the footage of the astronauts jumping
high on the moon and taking a long time to come down. This is because the gravity on the moon
is less then earth.

Celestial Body Value of g (N/kg)

Mercury 4.0

Venus 8.9
Mars 3.7

Pluto 0.6

The Moon (Earth’s) 1.6

Jupiter 24.8

The four outer planets are much less dense than Earth, being comprised mainly of gas, among
other things. Therefore, even though, Saturn and Jupiter are much bigger, their gravitational
strength is only a few times stronger than on Earth.

Remember, it is the Sun’s gravity which keeps all the planets in elliptical orbits around it.
Newton’s Laws of motion state that, they also pull at the Sun in much the same way as the Moon
causes tides on the earth. As these orbits are not circular, they have points at which they are
closer and further away. The closet point is the Perihelion and furthest the Aphelion.

Other Objects

There are other objects in our solar system orbiting the sun, such as asteroids and comets. Their
orbits are even more elliptical than planets. Also, the planets are almost all in one plane, if you
can imagine them as balls on the same pool table. However, comets are at all sorts of angles.
A comet’s orbit would be more like this, with the Sun nowhere near the centre and being
extremely elliptical, unlike the planets:

Halley’s Comet

Halley's Comet or Comet Halley, officially designated 1P/Halley, is a short-period comet visible
from Earth every 74–79 years. Halley is the only known short-period comet that is regularly
visible to the naked eye from Earth, and the only naked-eye comet that might appear twice in a
human lifetime. Halley last appeared in the inner parts of the Solar System in 1986 and will next
appear in mid-2061.

Human-made satellites

Gravity is also the force that keeps our satellites in orbit round the earth. These can be used for
many things such as telecommunications and photography (like those we see on Google Earth).

Orbital Speed

Orbital speed quite often comes up on the exams. They are quite straight forward questions
based on:

Speed or Velocity = Distance/Time

The orbits’ satellites above earth are circular so the distance can be worked out as:

A satellite takes 2 hours to orbit the earth at a height 100km. Calculate the orbital speed in km/s.
Practice:

A satellite is orbiting earth at a height of 150km. It takes 3.6 hours to orbit the earth. What is its
orbital speed in km/s?

Answer:

3.16 km/s

Representation of the satellites orbiting earth: http://www.gearthblog.com/satellites

The Solar System


Unfortunately, it is very difficult to draw a diagram of the solar system accurately as it looks
nothing like the diagram above. If we drew it to scale, we would have to draw it so small that
everything within it would practically be dots! The solar system and distances in astronomy in
general are so massive that they are difficult to represent or even to imagine.

Diagrams like this are more accurate:


You can see us in the centre there. No human has ever travelled further than the Moon, which is
about 385000km away. You can see the Sun not far from the Earth. It takes the light from the sun
approximately 8.3 minutes to reach us.

It would take, therefore, 17 years to reach the Sun travelling at 1000km/h all the way. Where
would we get the fuel from? On the diagram, reaching the Sun looks relatively easy.

Galaxies
The Solar System is based around the Sun. The Sun is one of billions of stars that make up a
galaxy. Galaxies are huge collections of stars. The galaxy that our Sun belongs to is called the
Milky Way.

The Milky Way is made up of billions of stars in a spiral formation. Our Sun is midway down one
of the arms and would appear as a tiny speck in this picture, if at all.

It is estimated that there are 200-400 billion stars in the Milky Way. Our nearest neighbour is
Alpha Centauri. Remember, it takes light about 8m 20s to reach us from the Sun but the light
from Alpha Centauri takes approximately 4.5 years to arrive. How long would that be in a
1000km/jet?

Nearly 5 million years. (I hope you brought enough food for the journey!) How long would it take
for light to travel from one side of our galaxy to the other?

About 100,000 years. In space, we use the term light years to measure distances not time. So,
our galaxy is approximately 100,000 light years across.

The nearest galaxy to us is the Andromeda galaxy which is approximately 2 million light years
away.

Even if we humans could invent a space ship that travelled at the speed of light (which we are
nowhere near yet) it would take 2 million years to get there!
The Universe

Yes, you guessed it, there are billions of galaxies too. Some estimate there are between 200 and
500 billion galaxies in the universe. Some are like the Milky Way with billions of stars. Some stars
are like the Sun with planets. However, if there are alien species out there it wouldn’t be
surprising if we never met, because we are so very far apart.

Lesson 8: Mains Electricity and Hazards


Electricity is potentially very dangerous. The first thing then, we are going to look at is safety.

The main hazards with electricity are contact with live parts causing shock and burns.

Faults which could cause fires; fire or explosion where electricity could be the source of ignition.

We are going to look primarily at the first two, both of which could be caused by the same issues
in the home.

Exposed or Frayed cables & Damaged Plugs


If a cable is continually bent and unbent, rubbed against, receives an impact or just gets old the
conducting copper cables inside can become exposed. If anyone were to touch them they may
receive a shock or a spark could occur, which is also a potential fire hazard.
When the plastic of the plug has become damaged to the extent that it shows exposed
conducting material it has the same shock and fire hazard risks as along the cable.

Long Cables

Longer Cables produce more heat. To prevent this becoming a problem, we should use thicker
wires. If the correct thickness of wire (or cable) has not been used, then the cable could
overheat. This is a fire risk.

Water

Water is a conductor of electricity. We should be very careful where there are both in one place
for example kitchens and bathrooms. You will notice there are no conventional light switches in
bathrooms. They are either outside or a pull cord type. They always have a plastic section at the
bottom in case the cord itself gets saturated with water which would effectively create a
conductive link all the way from your hand to the conductive material in the switch on the
ceiling.
Inserting conductors (usually metal objects) into sockets

This is self-explanatory. If you stick a knitting needle, for example, into a plug socket you may get
a shock. Some objects may act as conductors even if they are not metal. They could also set
alight themselves, causing a fire. Therefore, do not put anything into sockets.

Electrical Safety

How can we stay safe while using electricity? Insulation is the material we put around
conducting cables to keep them from contact with us and other potentially dangerous situations.
These are usually made of plastic because plastics are poor conductors of electricity– think of
your electrical appliances. The cable or flex will be made of plastic, though we know it has a
conducting core, out of sight (hopefully).

Double Insulation
Appliances like hairdryers and vacuum cleaners have plastic bodywork making them double
insulated. However, appliances such as Washing machines which have metal bodywork, are not.

Double insulated appliances do not have an earth wire (one of the 3 within the cable that is
attached to the mains).

They also have a symbol of a box within a box to represent double insulation:

Earthing and the Earth Cable

The earth cable is the top middle pin on your plug. The other two are live and neutral, a bit like
the two ends of a battery. The earth, however, is different.

On electrical appliances with metal bodywork, the earth physically connects to the exterior of
the appliance. This is to ensure that if there is a fault inside the appliance and the outside of the
appliance becomes live) then it will be discharged down the earth cable. The earth cable in the
plug socket ultimately leads to a metal pipe, such as a water pipe, which can carry any current o
the ground where the electricity can safely dissipate, rather than going through you if you were
to touch the outside of the appliance.
Fuses

Another safety feature, always within the plug and sometimes also within the appliance, is the
fuse. The fuse is an easily replaceable piece of wire that will burn out/melt when a certain
amount of current passes through it. This is to protect the appliance and the cable from surges in
electricity. The fuse will ‘blow’ before any harm can come to anything else. They are cheap and
easy to replace. They have different ratings in ‘Amps’ The higher the rating the more current the
fuse can withstand before blowing. The most common ratings are:

3 amp – for appliances rated up to 700watts

13 amp – for appliances rated over 700watts


There are other types of fuse with some appliances having additional fuses for different parts of
their circuitry. There are also temporary fuses, called circuit-breakers which turn themselves off
rather than burn out. The can be found in various places – like extension cables, certain plugs
and at your home domestic consumer unit. They do the same job as a fuse, but once the fault is
fixed or the surge has passed, they can just be reset with a switch. They don’t blow or need
replacing. They work by detecting surges or current in the earth cable – both of which are
potentially hazardous.

Current and Heat

Current is a flow of electrons through a material. As they flow they interact with the particles
within the conductor and produce heat.

Effectively we have:

This can be desirable or not depending on the situation. Some appliances have been invented
purely to make use of this effect:

- Fan Heater

- Hair Dryer

- Kettle

- Electric Hob

- Washing Machine etc.


Any appliance that generates heat from electricity only is using this property.

Electrical Power

Watt is the unit of Power?

If you have a 60watt bulb in your lamp at home, what does that mean?

It means how much energy it is using in what amount of time.

Energy/Time = Power

The unit of power is Watts – W. Often appliances use kW – kilowatts,

1 kW = 1000 Watts

The formula for calculating electrical power is:

Currently in the UK almost all your appliances will be running at a voltage of 230V.

Example:

A lamp operates at 230V, the current is 0.08, calculate the power of the bulb.

P = 0.08 x 230

P = 18.4W

Example:

A toaster has a rating of 2Kw, what current does it use?

Practice Questions:

Practice 1

A sandwich-maker is rated at 1kW. Calculate the current it uses.

Practice 2

A current of 0.5A flows through a power tool producing 12V. Calculate the output power.

Practice 3
Calculate the power of an electric mixer that uses 0.2 A.

Answers to Practice Questions:

Practice 1

A sandwich-maker is rated at 1kW. Calculate the current it uses.

P = IV

I = P/V

I = 1000/230

I = 4.35A

Practice 2

A current of 0.5A flows through a power tool producing 12V. Calculate the output power.

P = IV

P = 12 x 0.5

P=6W

Practice 3

Calculate the power of an electric mixer that uses 0.2 A.

P = IV

P = 230 x 0.2

P = 46 W

Electrical Energy

As soon as an appliance is switched on it is using electrical energy. This depends on its power
rating and how long it has been in use for.

The equation for electrical energy usage:

E = Energy (joules)

I = Current (Amps)

V = Voltage (Volts)
T = Time (seconds)

This is an extension of the previous equation, because we know that:

We can replace IV in that equation with P:

So we are saying:

Energy = Power x Time

Example:

A current of 1.5A flows through a domestic appliance for 6 minutes, how much energy is used?

E = IVt

E = 1.5 x 230 x time

E = 345 x (6 x 60)

E = 124,200j

AC and DC

DC stands for direct current and is the sort of current that you get from a battery. If you connect
a battery to a circuit, electrons will flow continuously from the negative end of the battery to the
positive end of the battery at a fairly constant rate.

Oscilloscopes measure voltage against time. If we were to use one on a battery we would see a
constant level, only altering as the battery began to ran out.
AC stands for alternating current and is the type of current you get from the plugs in a home.
The direction of the current alternates. In a standard home electrical system, it alternates 50
times a second, that is at a frequency of 50Hz.

On an oscilloscope, the reading would look more like this:

Unlike the battery, where the electrons flow from one side to the other continuously, with AC
the electrons change the direction they are coming from.

Lesson 9: Energy and Potential Difference in Circuits


Conductors, Insulators and Current

Electrical current is simply the flow of negatively charges electrons. Electrons flow easily through
some substances (called conductors) and less easily, or not at all, through others (called
insulators).

Metals are good conductors: plastics are good insulators.

The current is the rate of flow of charge through a circuit.

Current is measured using a device called an ammeter. The ammeter is connected in series to
the circuit, and a reading can easily be taken from the display.
An ammeter – used for measuring current

Electrical charge (Q) is measures in coulombs (C). One coulomb being the equivalent of the
charge carried by 6 x 1018 electrons.

Electrical current (I) is measured in amperes. If one C of charge flows along a wire every second,
the current would be 1A.

The equation is as follows:

Voltage (V) is the amount of energy supplied by a battery or cell (or other source) to a circuit.

If we connect a 2V cell to a circuit, that cell will provide 2J of energy to each coulomb of charge
that passes through the cell.

As a charge flows around a circuit, some of the energy that it carries, is converted into other
forms of energy by the component parts of the circuit that it passes through. The voltage across
any given component within the circuit will tell us how much energy it is converting.

If the voltage across a given component within a circuit is 5V, this means that that component
part of converting 5J of energy into other forms of energy (heat or light perhaps) every time 1C
of charge passes through it.

Voltage is measured using a piece of technology called a voltmeter, which is connected across
the component part you are investigating, and a reading can be taken off the screen.
A voltmeter, in appearance very similar to an ammeter.

Series and parallel circuits

When a switch is turned on, a circuit is completed and electricity will begin to flow. When the
switch is turned off, the circuit is broken and electricity stops flowing.

Circuits

In many circuits, including the one illustrated above, when the circuit is complete there is only
one path for the charge to flow along, illustrated by the arrows. This circuit is a simple loop and
is called a series circuit. Circuits that have branches or junctions are called parallel circuits.

Series and parallel circuits have different characteristics and perform in different ways. These
differences make each suitable for different applications.

In the left- hand illustration, the bulbs are in series. On the right, they are in parallel.

In circuits in series

A single switch can turn all the components on or off.

If one component breaks (a bulb as above for example), the circuit is broken and the whole
circuit fails.

The voltage supplied is shared between all the components. If a large number of bulbs are in
series, they will become dimmer. The amount of voltage any component takes depends on its
resistance.

In Circuits in Parallel

Switches can be placed at a number of parts of the circuit to either switch on all lights, or
individual lights.

If one component fails, the remainder can keep working.

Each branch of the circuit receives the same voltage, so as many bulbs as you like can be added
and they will not become dimmer.

Christmas tree lights are usually wired in series, so when one fails they all fail. They are not
bright lights so any reduction in brightness due to a large number being present will not
noticeably affect them.

The lights in a house are wired in parallel. Many rooms will have two switches, for example,
which will switch the lights on in that room without having to switch on every light in the house.
Also, if one light bulb fails, the whole system does not fail.

Current in a series circuit

There are standard symbols that are used in electrical circuit drawings, and we should look at
these before progressing:

Standard symbols

As we implied earlier, in a series circuit, the current is the same in all parts of that circuit.

The size of the current depends on the voltage supplied to that circuit as well as the number and
nature of other components connected to the circuit.

The current in a series circuit is the same at every point.

The current of a circuit will double if a second cell of the same power is added. Similarly, the
current will decrease if more bulbs are added because they are essentially resistors, and
therefore more of them will increase the total resistance in the circuit.

As resistance increases, current decreases.

As current decreases the light intensity produced by every bulb will decrease. The temperature
achieved by every thermistor will also decrease for the same reasons (a decrease in current as
thermistors essentially act as resistors too).

Lights as indicators of current

We have noted that if a circuit is incomplete, current will not flow. If a switch is closed and the
circuit is completed then a current does flow, and any lights or LED’s in the circuit will light up,
indicating current flow.

With this basic fact in mind, we can therefore use either an LED or a bulb as a test for the
presence of current in a circuit.

Resistance

Resistance in a circuit is something you increase and decrease every day without thinking about
it, and probably without realising it. Whenever you alter the volume on a stereo or radio, or
change the temperature on an oven, you are changing the resistance in the circuit to have a
direct effect on the output of that circuit.

Every component in a circuit will offer a measure of resistance to the flow of the current in that
circuit.

When a component allows the current to flow easily, they are described as having low resistance
(electrical wires for example). Components that restrict the flow more significantly are said to
have a high resistance (a bulb for example).

Remember that we said earlier that the electrical energy is converted into other forms of energy,
such as heat or light, by these high resistance components.

Ohm’s Law

Resistance in a circuit can be measured by comparing the current that flows through it with the
voltage across its ends. The three concepts are related by the following equation:

Voltage = Current x Resistance


V=IxR

Activity

Rearrange the above equation to calculate resistance. if the circuit has 20 V applied to it and 1.5
amps flows through it.

Answer to Activity:

1. Use: V = I x R

2. Rearrange: R = V/I

3. So: R = 20/1.5

4. Therefore: R = 13.33 Ω

Bulbs act as resistors

Types of resistor

Fixed resistors are placed within circuits with the intention of controlling the size of the current
and voltage. If a circuit has too high a voltage applied to it, the resultant current may be too
much for the component parts of that circuit. For example, they may cause a bulb to fail. The
resistor controls this and ensures that the bulb will not be exposed to a current that is too high
for its capacity.

Fixed resistors are so called because they have a fixed level of resistance. Variable resistors,
however, have the capacity built into them of being able to vary the level of resistance they
provide.

If the resistance of the variable resistor is decreased, a larger current will flow and a component
like a bulb will glow more brightly. If the resistance is increased the reverse will happen, the bulb
will be dimmer.

Along with these two basic types of resistor there are specific types of resistor. For example:

- Thermistors

- LDRs

- Diodes

Thermistors are resistors whose resistance changes with temperature. If the thermistor heats up,
more electrons are freed and resistance decreases. They are often used in circuits where
temperature sensitivity is important – fire alarms for example.

Thermistor

LDRs, or light dependant resistors, contain very few free electrons and therefore have the
highest resistance (the flow of electrical current being the flow of negatively charged electrons,
and the current being the rate of flow of this charge). As light intensity increases, the number of
free electrons increases and resistance decreases. They are frequently used in light sensitive
circuits in, for example, photographic equipment.

LDR

Diodes are resistors that act as one way valves. They allow the current to pass through them in
one direction only, with very little resistance. They stop current from flowing in the other
direction. They are important in circuits where you wish to convert AC to DC.
Diode

Lesson 10: Electrical Charge


We have already mentioned that some materials, such as metals, are good conductors of
electricity. Other materials, such as plastics, are not, and are therefore called insulators.

Insulators can become charged, however. If an uncharged plastic rod is rubbed with an
uncharged cloth, both will become charged. This is because some electrons from the atoms in
the rod will move onto the cloth. Since electrons are negatively charged particles, removing
them from the rod leaves a net positive charge. Increasing their numbers on the cloth leaves a
net negative charge.

Both the rod and the cloth become charged.

We can demonstrate this transfer of electrons experimentally by using a balloon and a jumper.

You have no doubt carried out at least part of this experiment previously yourself. However, if
you rub the balloon on your jumper (or your hair), it will gain electrons and thus gain a negative
charge.

Activity:

What will happen to the balloon if you then hold it against a wall?

Answer to Activity:
Assuming the wall has no charge, the static charge in the balloon will cause it to “stick” to the
wall.

The static charge causes the balloons to "stick" to the wall

The wall will have an even distribution of positive and negative charges prior to the approach of
the balloon. As the negatively charged balloon approaches the wall, the negative charges in the
wall are repelled leaving positive charges close to the surface. These are attracted to the
negatively charges balloon and therefore the two “stick” together.

This experiment demonstrates that even insulating materials can be charged by friction.

If you then try the same experiment but place two balloons next to each other, nothing will
happen. This is because there is repulsion between objects with a like charge (and both balloons
would be negative), whilst there is attraction between objects with an unlike charge (i.e. one
positive, the other negative).

Electrostatic charge and the movement of electrons

We have already noted that an electrostatic charge is created by the movement of electrons.
Now, we will examine another experiment that demonstrates this.

A gold leaf electroscope is a piece of equipment that can be used in a laboratory to detect
electrical charge.

Gold leaf electroscope

There is either a ball, or more typically a plate, at the top of the electroscope. This is attached to
a rod in the centre of the machine, but is insulated from the rest of the machine. This rod has a
very thin gold leaf attached to it at the top.
Schematic representation of a gold leaf electroscope

When a positively charged object comes close to the plate, it attracts negative charges towards it
from both the rod and the gold lead. This leaves behind a positive charge on both. These in turn
repel each other and the gold leaf can be seen to move away from the fixed rod.

In the below illustration, there are two gold leaves within the chamber, but the principle is
exactly the same. They develop a positive charge and repel each other:

The leaves repel

Uses of static electricity

Static electricity can be used beneficially to spray paint objects of a difficult or unusual shape.

If the spray gun is designed in such a way that the particles of paint are all charged as they leave
the nozzle, they will all repel each other once in the open air forming a fine mist of paint
particles. If the object being spray painted is connected to an electrical circuit giving it the
opposite charge to the one imparted by the nozzle of the spray gun on the paint particles, then
the particles of paint will be attracted to the object being painted. This will mean that all of the
surfaces, even those difficult to reach, will attract paint particles evenly.

Static electricity is also used in modern laser printers and photocopiers to transfer ink to paper.
Dangers of static electricity

Static electricity, whilst useful in some circumstances, is very dangerous in others.

Aircraft can gather static charge as they fly through the air. As the charge increases, so does the
potential difference between the aircraft and the ground. With an increase in potential
difference, the change of a spark increases when the plane lands. This can be disastrous if it
occurs while refuelling, for example, as it can cause an explosion. For this reason, aeroplanes
must be earthed as soon as they land, to allow any charge to flow to earth before fuelling
commences.

The same applies to tankers on roads too; before any fuel is transferred to or from them they
must be earthed.

Lesson 11: Waves


Units

In this unit, we will use the following units:

- Degree (o) – unit of measurement of an angle

- Hertz (Hz) – unit of measurement of frequency

- Metre (m) – unit of measurement of distance

- Meter/second (m/s) – unit of measurement of speed

- Second (s) – unit of measurement of time

Properties of Waves

Longitudinal and transverse waves

Waves are a mechanism for transferring energy or information from one place to another. It is
important to understand that this transfer involves no matter being transferred.

There is a very simple experiment you can perform to witness the creation and propagation of a
wave.
A transverse wave in a spring

If you spread out a slinky spring on the floor and vibrate the coils left to right, you will see the
wave that is created travel down the spring. What you are witnessing is the movement of energy
down the spring.

The illustration shows that the wave was created at the left of the spring and it propagates
towards the right. It also shows the wave moving as the time progresses (t1 – t6).

You will also note that the actual pieces of the spring move from side to side; they do not move
down the spring with the wave. This is because the vibration is across the direction of the
movement of energy and is called a transverse wave.

A longitudinal wave

If you cause a wave within the spring by pushing forwards and pulling backwards on the spring
(rather than side to side), a different type of wave can be observed.
Here the vibrations (the wave essentially) occur along the direction of movement of energy and
this is, therefore, called a longitudinal wave.

Amplitude, frequency, wavelength and period

There are a number of basic properties that waves possess. The first we will identify are
wavelength and amplitude.

Whenever a wave moves through a substance, the particles are displaced from their resting
position. The maximum movement of particles from their rest position is called the amplitude.
This property is illustrated on the wave in the diagram below. The symbol for amplitude is A.

The wavelength is the distance between any fixed point on a wave and the same point on the
following wave. This is usually calculated as peak to peak, as below. The symbol for wavelength is
the Greek letter λ.

Wavelength and amplitude

Consider the slinky spring example we looked at above. If the person holding one end of the
spring shakes it from side to side (creating a transverse wave) at a certain interval, then the wave
would be at a certain frequency. If the person vibrated the spring much more frequently, more
waves would be created over the same time period, and the frequency would be higher.

Wave frequency
Frequency is the number of waves produced every second, or the number of waves that pass a
particular location every second. If the wave vibrates slowly, it will have a low frequency; if there
are a lot of vibrations then it is said to be high frequency.

In the illustration above:

- The first wave has 4 peaks per second, and is therefore 4Hz

- The second wave has 2 peaks per second, and is therefore 2Hz

- The third wave has 1 peak per second, and is therefore 1Hz

The symbol for frequency is f.

The period of a wave is the time it takes for the source to produce one wave. The symbol for
period is T.

Period can be calculated by:

T = 1/f

We can rearrange this as:

f = 1/T

Activity:

Calculate the period of a wave with a frequency of 175Hz.

Answer to Activity:

1. Use the formula: T = 1/f

2. Therefore: T = 1/175

3. So: T = 0.0057

4. Or: T = 5.7ms

The relationship between speed, frequency and wavelength

The relationship between speed, frequency and wavelength is the same for all waves, and can be
demonstrated in the wave equation:
Activity:

What is the wave speed of a wave with a frequency of 10Hz and a wavelength of 2m.

Answer to Activity:

1. Use the formula: v = f x λ

2. Therefore: v = 10 x 2

3. v = 20 m/s

Activity:

What is the wavelength of a wave with a speed of 35m/s and a frequency of 5Hz?

Answer to Activity:

1. Start with the formula: v = f x λ

2. Rearrange the formula to make wavelength the subject: λ = v/f

3. Therefore: λ = 35/5

4. λ = 7m

Note that the two previous equations, those to calculate period and the wave equation, can be
applied to any wave. These include sound waves and electromagnetic waves; the calculations are
the same.

Reflection and diffraction of waves

When a wave hits a flat surface, it will bounce off it (it will be reflected). The angle at which it
bounces off (is reflected) is the same as the angle at which the wave hits the barrier.

The angle of incidence = The angle of reflection

If you consider the illustration below you will see that a wave hits the reflector at angle i (the
angle of incidence) and is reflected at angle r (the angle of reflection).
A reflected wave

If the surface that the wave hits is convex, then the waves will spread out.

Waves hitting a convex barrier

If the surface that the wave hits is concave, then the waves will converge.

Waves hitting a concave barrier

With diffraction, if we have a barrier with a gap in the centre placed in the path of a wave, some
of the waves that pass through the gap in the barrier continue in a straight line, unaffected by
the gap or barrier. If the gap is small, the waves will tend to fan out as they pass through the gap,
as illustrated below.
Waves passing through a small gap

If the gap in the barrier is much larger, only the edges of the waves will spread out. The majority
will continue as before.

Waves passing through a large gap

The waves in this case are diffracted by the edges of the gap as they pass through it. The size of
the gap relative to the wavelength of the wave determines the level of diffraction observed.

Diffraction will also occur with a single edge (rather than a gap in a barrier) and again, the
amount of diffraction will depend on the wavelength of the wave:

Diffraction against a single edge

Activity:

Have you ever observed diffraction? On the surface of water for example? Describe what you
saw.

Lesson 12: The Electromagnetic Spectrum


We use our eyes to see the world around us. We can only see when there is light. Light is a wave.
In fact, it is what we call an electromagnetic wave. It is essentially a vibration in the electric and
magnetic fields that surround us.

The electromagnetic spectrum is a family of waves that vary in wavelength and frequency. The
spectrum is continuous but can be divided up into different types or waves.

One very small portion of the electromagnetic spectrum is visible light i.e. the light we see.

The different types of waves have different properties and can be used in different ways. These
types of waves include:

- Gamma radiation

- X-rays

- Ultraviolet

- Visible light

- Infrared

- Microwave

- Radio waves

The electromagnetic spectrum

At one end of the spectrum, the waves are of a long wavelength and therefore low frequency. At
the other, the waves are very short, and hence high frequency.

All of the waves in the electromagnetic spectrum have similar basic properties – they:
- All transfer energy

- Are all transverse waves

- Travel at the speed of light in a vacuum

- The all travel at the same speed in free space

- Can be reflected, refracted of diffracted

Properties of waves in the electromagnetic spectrum

The most evident and frequently used section of the electromagnetic spectrum, for most of us at
least, is visible light.

The visible light part of the spectrum is small in terms of the range of wavelengths and
frequencies, but it accounts for every shade and colour that we can see. As the wavelength
increases the colour shifts from blue to red, as illustrated below.
The visible light section of the electromagnetic spectrum expanded

The properties of different groups of waves

Gamma rays

Gamma rays are highly penetrating and can cause mutations in living cells that will often result in
cancer. They can have other uses, however. They can be used to sterilise medical equipment and
kill harmful organisms to allow food to keep for longer. They are also used in the medical
treatment of cancer (radiotherapy). Note that they can, therefore, both cause cancer (even in
small doses) but can also cure it (in large doses it can kill cancer cells).

X-Rays

These waves can pass relatively easily through the soft tissue of the body (muscle, fat, organs
etc) but are stopped by bone. This is the basis for the production of an x-ray of the body.
A typical x-ray of the chest cavity

Whilst x-rays can produce useful medical images as above, over exposure can again cause cancer.

X-rays can also be used to scan luggage in airports. They can also be used to detect cracks in
building structures.

Ultraviolet

Ultraviolet is another naturally occurring part of the electromagnetic spectrum, and is again
harmful to humans. It can cause skin cancer and damage the eyes (causing blindness in extreme
cases). It is also the part of the sun’s rays that cause you to “tan”.

Ozone (O3) in the earth’s atmosphere absorbs most of the harmful UV rays that come from the
sun. This is why a hole in the ozone layer is such a problem; far more UV radiation is allowed
through to the area of land underneath the hole.

One of the main uses of UV is in fluorescent bulbs. These bulbs produce UV radiation which
strikes a special coating on the inside of the bulb causing it to glow. Some of these same
chemicals can be used as security markers too. If a stamp comprising of these chemicals is put
on an object (a bicycle for example) and a UV light is shone on that stamp, it will glow. This could
be used to demonstrate ownership (the stamp could be your postcode, name, pin number, etc.).
Inside a fluorescent lamp

Visible light

We have described the visible light spectrum above, but we must look at some of its uses.

Lasers in the visible spectrum are used to read compact discs and bar codes. Visible light can also
be used in optical cables wither for communication of to see inside objects such as the human
body (in surgery). Visible light is also detected by the sensors in a digital camera and can be used
to take still photographs or video.

Infra-red

All objects emit a certain amount of infra-red radiation. As you read this text, you are emitting IR
radiation, as is the chair you sit on etc. Infra-red is essentially heat, the hotter an object the more
IR radiation it will emit.

IR radiation is commonly used in night vision equipment. The equipment itself will be designed
to detect IR radiation, more of which will be generated by living things and is more visible at
night. Night vision goggles or cameras are often used in the military, and by search and rescue
teams, looking for people after earthquakes and other disasters.

IR radiation can also be used in room heaters and remote controls. It is useful in this context
because IR radiation does not penetrate far and is unlikely to interfere with any other remote
controls in use nearby.

Although it is largely safe, over exposure to IR radiation can result in skin burns.
Night vision - The people in the foreground emit more IR radiation than the object around them

Microwaves

Microwaves are best known for their use in cooking food. Microwave ovens are so fast at heating
up food because the waves heat up the water molecules within the food very quickly These
water molecules then release their heat to the surrounding food. The food cooks from within,
therefore, rather than being exposed to heat from the outside only as in conventional cooking.

Microwaves have other uses too, however. They can be used in communication. Microwaves
easily penetrate the earth’s atmosphere, so they can be used to bounce signals off
communication satellites. Messages and signals sent by a mobile phone use microwave
technology in this manner.

In terms of safety, exposure to microwave radiation will heat up the body tissue of any living
creature (including people using mobile phones) by the same mechanism as a microwave oven
heating food. Water molecules within the body will be heated by the microwaves which then
release their heat to the rest of the body. Overexposure should be avoided.

Radio waves

These have the longest wavelength, and lowest frequency, of any wave in the electromagnetic
spectrum. When radio waves are released by a transmitter, they travel until they are detected by
an aerial and receiver which translates the message.

Radio waves and detectors


Lesson 13: Reflection and Refraction

Light waves are transverse waves that can be reflected, refracted and diffracted.

When a beam of light strikes a mirror, it is reflected (much as with any wave striking any flat
surface). It is important to note, however, that the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of
reflection. If the angle of incidence increases, so does the angle of reflection etc. We could say:

i=r

i=r

This simple idea is used in a number of applications, for example periscopes. In a periscope two
mirrors are angled to deflect the light that enters the device. The first reflects the light at a 90o
angle, and the second mirror reflects the light back another 90o.
A periscope

When you look at a plane mirror you see an image which appears to be behind the mirror. The
images you see is caused by beams of light striking an object in the room you are standing in,
reflecting off the mirror and into your eye.

The virtual image you see appears to be behind the mirror

Your brain interprets the image you see as coming from behind the mirror. Images like these,
through which light beams do not actually pass, are called “virtual images” Images which are
created by beams of light passing through them are called “real images”. An example of a real
image is a cinema screen.

Activity:

What is the angle of incidence in the diagram below?

Activity:

What is the angle of reflection in the below illustration?

Answer to Activity:
B is the angle of incidence. C is the angle of reflection.

Answer to Activity:

The angle of incidence is 60o, the angle of reflection, therefore, is also 60o.

Note that the angle of incidence will be 90o – 30o = 60o in the illustration.

Refraction is the bending of light which occurs when it passed from one substance to another
with a different refractive index. Refraction is the phenomenon of apparent distortion of an
object submerged in water.

Refraction appears to change the shape of an object in water

If we consider a beam of light entering a glass block, we can see that the light changes direction
as it enters the glass, and again as it leaves.

As the light enters the glass, it bends towards the “normal” plane, and then bends away from it
again as it leaves the glass.

The angle of incidence (i) is the same for the beam both entering and leaving the glass.

The angle of refraction (r) is the same as well.

These are illustrated below:


A beam of light entering a block of glass

As noted earlier, not all substances refract light to the same degree. This can be illustrated by
looking at the differences between water and glass below:

Refractive differences between water and glass

You can easily demonstrate refraction experimentally by shining a light through a piece of glass.
If the light source and glass are on a piece of paper, then the directions of the beams can be
traced onto the paper and the angles measured.
Experiment to illustrate refraction through glass

This experiment could be repeated, in the same way, using a prism or a semi-circular block.

Refractive index

You can experimentally determine the refractive index of glass by performing the experiment
detailed above and marking out the path of the light on a piece of paper. You can draw the line
through the glass by removing the block of glass and joining the lines that entered and exited the
glass.

Once you have drawn the relevant lines on the paper, you can measure the relevant angles i and
r.

Measure the angles i and r with a protractor

The refractive index can then be calculated by using the following equation:

For example, if the angle i = 60o and the angle r = 45o the refractive index would be:

1. n = sin 60/sin 45

2. Therefore: n = 0.866/0.707

3. So: n = 1.22
Refractive index of a number of substances

Total internal reflection and the transmission of information

You will understand by now that when a beam of light passes from an optically denser material
(e.g. glass) into an optically less dense material (e.g. air), the majority of the light beam will be
refracted away from the normal line.

A small amount of the light sill, however, is reflected from the boundary of the glass (the
boundary to the air) back into the glass block.

Total internal reflection

The amount of light that is internally reflected depends on the angle of incidence of the beam to
the barrier surface.

This can be illustrated experimentally by using a semi-circular block of glass and varying the
angle of incidence of the light beam.

By using a semi-circular block and moving the light source to change the angle of incidence, you
can ensure that there is no refraction of the light when entering the glass, because it always
enters the glass at 90o to the boundary, therefore along the normal line. No refraction is
possible.

Critical angle: C

As the angle of incidence in the more dense material increases, so does the angle of refraction.
This is true until the critical angle is reached where the angle of refraction is 90°.

If the angle of incidence is increased again, then all the light will be internally reflected and none
will be refracted beyond the glass.

The value of the critical angle (c) depends upon the medium through which the beam of light is
travelling. It can be calculated using the following formula:

Activity:

Calculate the critical angle for diamond.

Use the formula provided, and the refractive index for diamond found in the table above (2.42).

1. So: Sin c = 1/2.42

2. Therefore: Sin c = 0.413

3. So: c = sin-1 (0.413)

4. Therefore: c = 24.39o

One of the most important applications for internal reflection is in the transmission of
information through optical cables. Optical fibre is a very thin cable comprising of two different
types of glass. There is a central core of glass with a high refractive index, around which is a
sheath of glass with a lower refractive index. As the cables are very narrow, the light that enters
the central glass area always hits the sheath of glass at an angle greater than the critical angle,
therefore the light reflects f from the fibre rather than being refracted outside of it.

Application of internal reflection

In telecommunications, electrical signals from telephone conversations are converted to light


energy by lasers. These lasers send pulses of light down the optical cables which are detected by
a light sensitive detector at the receiving end and converted back into an electrical signal, which
then flow into the telephone receiver.

Prisms and dispersion

You can investigate the dispersion of light experimentally by using a prism.

If you shine white light through a prism at the correct angle, the beams of light that emerge from
the prism are divided according to wavelength. That is, they are separated into their component
colours.

White light refracting through a glass prism

The process of separating light in this way is called dispersion. Dispersion occurs because the
different wavelengths of light travel through the glass at slightly different speeds, and are
therefore refracted at slightly different angles.

The white light (which contains all of the wavelengths of light in the visible spectrum) is
therefore separated into its constituent wavelengths.
Lesson 14: Analogue and Digital Signals
Communication occurs because of waves. If we speak to another person, then the sound is
transmitted via waves. Light waves, radio waves or microwaves can be used as communication
with people further away using different technologies.

Information that is transmitted via a telephone cable, for example, must first be transferred into
a series of electrical pulses (or light pulses if the technology permits). These pulses can be in one
of two basic forms.

Analogue vs Digital

With an analogue signal, the information is converted into electrical form and becomes a series
of pulses of current or voltage down a cable. These pulses are then captured and analysed by the
receiver of the message.

Analogue signals

Analogue signals are the older of the two methods but are still used for a great many
applications.

Information sent by a digital signal is first converted into a binary code. Binary is a way of
representing numbers by only using the numbers 1 and 0.
Binary

Look for a moment at the table corresponding to the binary code.

1100

This is a binary sequence that represents the number 12. The first “1” in the sequence
represents 8. The second “1” represents 4, and there are two 0’s that follow representing 0.

8 + 4 = 12

The binary sequence can be as long as required and can therefore produce any number required.

The binary number is then converted into a series of electrical pulses that are transmitted,
received and decoded to receive the message.

The digital signal is transmitted as either a pulse, (representing 1) or no pulse (representing 0).
Digital and analogue signals

There are numerous advantages of digital signals over analogue. All signals are degraded as they
are sent and travel over great distances. They then need to be regenerated to be read properly.
Digital signals can be easily regenerated (amplified) forming an exact and accurate copy of the
original. When analogue signals are amplified, however, a certain amount of interference (noise)
is also generated. Sometimes the level of noise in an analogue signal drowns out the original
message completely. Digital signals can carry far more information than analogue signals
because much more information can be encoded in binary than in an analogue message.

The effect of noise: digital signals are still detectable and therefore the message gets through in
full.

Sound waves

Sound waves are produced by objects vibrating. Sound waves are vibrations of pressure in the
medium of air.
Sound waves

In the above illustration, the black dots represent air molecules. As the speaker on the left
vibrates, it causes the air molecules to vibrate in a particular pattern, represented by the wave
part of the illustration. These vibrations are detected by the ear and translated into sound.

The air molecules themselves do not travel from the speaker to the ear. In fact, they move very
little as the vibration is propagated longitudinally. This is much like the longitudinal wave in the
slinky spring we discussed earlier. Sound waves are much like this; they are longitudinal in
nature. They can also be reflected, refracted and diffracted.

Frequency of human hearing

Sound can be produced over a great range of frequencies, not all of which are audible to human
ears.

Activity:

What is the unit of measurement of frequency?

Answer to Activity:

The unit of measurement of frequency is the Hertz (Hz).

There is a frequency range in which humans can perceive sound. It is possible to hear sounds at
a higher or lower frequency, but some form of technology would be required.

Assuming your hearing is working well, humans can hear sound in the frequency range 20Hz to
20,000 Hz. It is rare, but possible, for humans to hear down to 15Hz, but for the purposes of the
exam, the range should be considered as 20-20,000Hz.
Frequency range of human hearing

Some animals can hear a range that is slightly different from ours; bats and elephants for
example.

Not all animals hear in the same frequency range

Measuring the speed of sound in air

The speed of sound can easily and quickly be measured. If you stand at a measured (but quite
large) distance from a friend and bang two pieces of wood together, your friend can time on a
stopwatch how long it takes for the noise generated by the wood to reach them.

This will work because the speed of light is considerably faster than the speed of sound,
therefore, you will see the wood being banged together before you hear the impact.
Activity:

What are the disadvantages of this method?

Answer to Activity:

This method is very inaccurate. Firstly, it does not take into account the speed of light or the
reaction time of the observer. The result obtained is highly unlikely to be close to the real value
for the speed of sound.

This experiment does demonstrate very well, however, that the speed of sound is much slower
than the speed of light.

Accurate measurement of the speed of sound using an oscilloscope

A much more accurate method would be to use an oscilloscope. Set up a sound source, whose
frequency you can control at a specific level radio, on a bench and connect two microphones to
an oscilloscope. Place the microphones next to each other, the same distance away from the
sound source.

The oscilloscope will display two different waves on the screen, one detected by each of the
microphones, as illustrated below.

An oscilloscope displaying two waves

If you fix one microphone in position, but move the other further away from the source of the
sound, one of the two waves on the oscilloscope will also move position.

Continue to move the microphone away from the source of the sound until the second wave on
the oscilloscope has moved one full wavelength from its original position. The two patters on the
screen will be exactly the same when this happens (as they were when you started).

You can then measure the wavelength of the sound by measuring the distance between the two
microphones.

Given that you now know both the frequency of the sound and the wavelength, you can
calculate the speed of the sound waves by using the formula:

v=fxλ

We noted that the sound source in the above experiment should emit sound at a given
frequency; this can also be measured on the oscilloscope screen. We know that frequency is the
number of waves per second, so the number of peaks can be measured against the background
grid (remember, for example, 50 waves per second = frequency 50Hz). This can be calculated
manually, but in modern oscilloscopes the frequency will be displayed as the calculations will be
done for you (displayed in the bottom left of the below illustration).

Frequency measured on an oscilloscope

Pitch, frequency and amplitude

Different objects (musical instruments for example) produce sounds of a different frequency.
These different frequencies can be heard at a different pitch.

Consider a violin, for example. The strings of a violin vibrate quickly and produce a sound wave
with a high frequency; these are heard as noted of a high pitch.

A double bass is a much larger instrument whose strings vibrate more slowly producing a low
frequency sound. These can be heard as a noise with a low pitch.
As the length of the string increases, the frequency of the noise it produces decreases and the
pitch decreases.

Stringed instruments

An oscilloscope can be used here too. Look at the wave patterns below to see the differences in
frequency and pitch that different instruments can produce.

Variations in frequency and pitch

The wave pattern at the top is high frequency, and therefore the noise heard will be a high -
pitched noise. The wave pattern at the bottom is low frequency, and the noise will be heard as a
low pitch noise.

The loudness of a sound depends upon the amplitude of the wave. Sound waves that have a
high amplitude are carried by air molecules that are tightly compressed. This compression
contains a great deal of energy that we hear as a louder sound.

The amplitude of a sound wave indicates the amount of energy it is transferring, thus its
loudness.
Volume relates to amplitude. Pitch to frequency.

Lesson 15: Energy Resources and Energy Transfer


Units

- Kilogram (kg) – unit of measurement of mass

- Joule (j) – unit of measurement of work or energy

- Metre (m) – unit of measurement of distance

- Meter/second (m/s) – unit of measurement of speed

- Meter/second/second (m/s2) – unit of measurement of acceleration

- Newton (N) – unit of measurement of force

- Second (s) – unit of measurement of time

- Watt (W) – unit of measurement of power

We will look at energy generation as part of this unit


Energy Transfer

It is an interesting thought that without energy, and therefore without energy transfer, nothing
in the universe would happen.

The energy transfers that we will consider in this course involve the following:

- Thermal (heat)

- Light

- Electrical

- Sound

- Kinetic

- Potential (elastic and gravitational)

- Chemical

- Nuclear

Energy can come in a great many forms, including (but not limited to) those in the list above.

Every animal eats food which contains chemical energy. The body breaks down the food and
converts the chemical energy into other forms of energy, including heat that keeps us warm. Our
muscles and limbs also convert this chemical energy in food into kinetic energy (movement
energy). We also convert some of the chemical energy of food into sound energy as we speak.

We do this in our cars too; the chemical energy of petrol is converted into kinetic energy to drive
a car forwards. It is also converted to light (headlights), thermal (heaters) and sound (radio).
Some of this is via a transfer to electrical energy first.

We convert chemical energy into a range of other types of energy in engines

In our daily lives, we also use devices that convert electrical energy into thermal energy to heat
our homes and light energy so we can see.

We regularly convert electrical energy to light and thermal energy

In power stations, we convert nuclear energy to thermal energy and then into electrical energy
which ultimately is converted again in our homes and businesses.

We also convert potential energy into electrical energy at a hydroelectric dam, for example.
Water stored at a high level contains gravitational potential energy that is converted to kinetic
energy as it falls; this kinetic energy then turns turbines and is converted into chemical energy.

The thermal energy stored within the earth (geothermal energy) can be converted to electrical
energy, and then into other forms in our homes too.

Finally, there is elastic potential energy in a catapult made of an elastic band. This potential
energy can be transferred to kinetic energy easily.
Catapults can contain elastic potential energy

Forms of kinetic energy


Forms of potential energy

Some basic energy transformations


Law of conservation of energy

The law of conservation of energy tells us that:

Energy can never be created or destroyed. It is just converted into other forms.

This means that the total amount of energy in the universe is constant, and has always been so.

In a closed system like the one in the illustration below, energy in = energy out. Systems are not
this simple however.

Energy in = energy out

Efficiency

Not all processes are 100% efficient in converting one type of energy into another.

Activity:

Give an example of an everyday energy transfer system that is not 100% efficient.

Answer to Activity:

Think about a light bulb for example. Electrical energy is primarily intended to be converted into
light, but a significant amount of heat is also generated.

In fact, a proportion of the energy input in any energy transfer system is always wasted by being
converted into other (unwanted) forms.

We can calculate the efficiency of an energy transfer system by the following formula:
Efficiency can be worked out this way or as a percentage as follows:

Activity:

What do you think are the units of measurement of efficiency of an energy transfer system?

Answer to Activity:

This is not an obvious question, but there are no units for efficiency as it is a ratio.

If we look at an example of a calculation now:

If we have an 80W bulb that uses 80J or energy per second and is 12% efficient; how much
useful light would it emit per second?

So:

Therefore, after manipulating the equation:

The output is = 9.6 J per second

Activity:

What is the efficiency of a bulb whose output is 15 J per second and whose input is 120 joules
per second?

Answer to Activity:

Again use the formula:


Therefore:

So: Efficiency = 12.5%

Sankey diagrams

Sankey diagrams are a simple way of illustrating the energy transfer in a system. They show both
the energy input and the different types of energy output, both direct and waste.

Sankey diagram for the energy transfer in a traditional bulb

Compare the above illustration with that for an energy saving bulb below:

Sankey diagram for the energy transfer in an energy saving bulb

Conduction, convection and radiation


Thermal energy is generally transferred from a hotter place to a colder place. There are three
main transfer methods that we will look at separately.

Conduction, convection and radiation

Conduction is the transfer of thermal energy through a substance without that substance itself
moving.

Think about a metal handle attached to a cooking pan. As you heat the pan, the handle will
gradually become hotter as thermal energy is moved along the handle by conduction. The
handle itself, of course, does not move as a result of the transfer.

If the handle were replaced with a plastic or wooden one, the heat transfer would be much less
rapid as these substances are insulators (rather than metal which is a conductor).

Convection is the transfer of thermal energy through a fluid by means of the upwards movement
of warmer, less dense regions of the fluid.

Remember that fluids can be either liquids or gases.

Convection is the thermal transfer process that will cause water to boil in a pan. It can also be
used in a heating system to heat a room, an oven, or in a lava lamp.
Convection heaters can be very effective heating rooms

The heater releases warm air which is less dense that cold air and therefore rises. It circulates
around the upper part of the room and as it cools descends to ground level. The colder air is
then drawn back into the heater, heated and the process starts again.

Radiation is the third process of thermal energy transfer that we will look at. Examine the
diagram below and imagine sitting in front of a heat source (like the wood burning stove). You
will feel heat coming from the stove, but neither convection nor conduction can explain why.

Convection would not work quickly, especially not in air which is a poor thermal conductor.
Conduction will heat the stove and the chimney, but not the space between it and you.

The only explanation is that there is a third method of heat transfer – radiation. With this
mechanism, heat is transferred by infra-red radiation, and this is the thirds of our definitions.

Radiation is the transfer of thermal energy by infra-red radiation .

The methods of energy transfer


Activity:

Can this radiation be directed?

Answer to Activity:

Yes, if you position silver foil behind the heat source, the radiation will bounce off it and head in
the desired direction. Electric fires do this to push as much heat energy out into a room as
possible, rather than some heating the wall behind the heater.

Heat loss in homes and humans

Some of the heat generated in a home is lost to the surroundings and therefore wasted. As you
can see in the simple illustration below, thermal energy is lost in every direction, but the
majority being through the walls and roof.

Heat loss in homes

Heat loss can be reduced by properly insulating your home. Cavity walls can be filled with an
insulating material. Loft spaces can also be filled with insulation to prevent convection currents
transferring heat into the loft space and then into the atmosphere. Windows can also be double
glazed to reduce another major element of energy loss.

Insulating panels are made from material that is a good insulator, but they are also often coated
with a reflective surface to bounce radiation back into the house, thus reducing its loss to the
surrounding environment.

The human body also loses heat to the surroundings; this is very noticeable on a cold day if you
are not wrapped up properly.

This is why, when the weather is colder we need to wear more layers, or thicker layers. These act
as insulation to prevent the heat from the body escaping to the surroundings.
Lesson 16: Work and Power
Work, force and distance moved

In this section, we are not terribly interested in what energy is, but rather what it can do. Energy
can be defined easily in this regard:

- Energy is the ability to do work

We now need to define work of course:

Work done is equal to the amount of energy that is transferred in the activity, and is measured in
joules.

Activity:

Calculate the work done by lifting a weight from ground level to a height is 3.3m. Assume the
force acting on the weight is 250N.

Answer to Activity:

1. Use the formula: W = F x d

2. So: W = 250 x 3.5

3. Therefore: W = 875J

Activity:

Calculate the work done by lifting a weight from 2m above the ground to 3.5m above the
ground. Assume a force acting on the weight of 450N.

Answer to Activity:

1. Use the formula: W = F x d

2. So: W = 450 x 1.5

3. Therefore: W = 675J
Note in this activity that the distance travelled is only 1.5m and therefore the work done was
less, even though the force was higher.

Gravitational potential energy

In the previous example of lifting a weight, we know that energy must have been transferred
from one form to another because we know there was work done (you calculated it) and we
know that work done = the amount of energy transferred.

Activity

Think about the act of lifting a weight. What types of energy are transferred?

Answer to Activity

Firstly, the person lifting the weight takes in food, this is chemical energy. Some of this chemical
energy is transferred to thermal energy in the person’s body, but the remainder is transferred to
the object being lifted; this must be the case because the object is at a greater height at the end
of the activity that at the beginning. The object (by being at a greater height) has gained
gravitational potential energy.

When an object is at its highest point, its gravitational potential energy is at the maximum and
its kinetic energy is a minimum (remember this is the energy of movement).

As the object falls the GPE decreases, but the KE increases.

The relationship between gravitational potential energy and kinetic energy

When the object hits the ground, all the kinetic energy is transferred into other forms of energy,
typically thermal and sound.
The change in gravitational potential energy of an object can be measured by:

1. Change in GPE = mass x gravity x distance raised against gravity

2. Units are: J = kg x N/kg x m

3. Shorthand: GPE = m x g x h

Note that the change in GPE will increase if an object is raised higher than its current location. It
will decrease if it is lowered.

Activity:

Calculate the change in GPE as an 80kg person falls 2m under a gravitational field of 10 N/kg.

Answer to Activity:

1. Use the formula: GPE = m x g x h

2. So: GPE = 80 x 10 x 2

3. Therefore: GPE = 1600J

Kinetic energy

The amount of energy possessed by an object that is moving depends upon its speed and mass.

Remember that the energy of movement is called kinetic energy. It can be calculated as follows:

- Units: KE = J

- Mass = kg

- Velocity = m/s

The primary difference between potential energy and kinetic energy can be illustrated as follows:
Potential energy and kinetic energy

Activity:

Calculate the kinetic energy of a car weighing 1200kg and travelling at 46 m/s.

Answer to Activity:

1. Use the formula: KE = ½ mv2

2. Therefore: KE = ½ x 1200 x 462

3. So: KE = 1,269,600 J

4. or 1.269 MJ

GPE, KE and work

These concepts relate in several ways:

Work transfers energy to an object.

The weight of an object takes into account its mass and the force of gravity acting upon it. The
force acting on that object is also calculated by the following formula:

If an object is raised from a set height, to a level somewhere higher up. The work done on that
object is:

This calculation also equals the gain in gravitational potential energy (GPE).
When an object is released from a height it will lose GPE as it falls, but it will gain kinetic energy
(KE) as it gains in speed. When the object reached the ground, all the initial GPE that the object
possessed will have been converted to KE. Remember that:

Potential energy is converted to kinetic energy

Power

The unit of power is the Watt (W) and is the rate of transfer of energy.

- 1 Watt = 1 Joule per second

This can be put into the following formula:

Lesson 17: Energy Resources and Electricity Generation


In this section, we will look at the energy transfers involved in generating electricity from the
following sources:

- Wind

- Water

- Geothermal resources

- Solar heating systems

- Solar cells

- Fossil fuels

- Nuclear power

Wind

Wind has been used for centuries as a source of energy. Historically, it was used to grind corn;
today windmills are generally used to turn turbines and generate electricity.

Wind turbines ultimately transfer the Sun’s thermal energy into electrical energy. Wind is
generated by differences in temperature of the air, and thus ultimately from the Sun’s thermal
energy.

Water

Water can be used in various ways to generate electricity. With hydroelectric power, gravitational
potential energy is transferred to kinetic energy as it falls from one level to a lower level; the
kinetic energy turns a turbine and is transferred to electrical energy.
Hydroelectric power generation

Tidal power is another method of using water to generate electricity. The tides are created by
the gravitational pull of the moon and sun, therefore gravitational energy is transferred to kinetic
energy in the water (the water moved in and then out). The tides moving over a turning first turn
it in one direction generating energy, and then turn it again as the tide flows out. Gravitational
energy is, therefore, transferred to kinetic energy and then electrical energy.

Another method of capturing tidal energy would be to use a form of underwater windmill as
illustrated below. The energy transfer would be the same however.

Tidal generation systems are positioned close to the mouth of a tidal river.

One method of capturing tidal power

Wave power is similar to tidal but is positioned off shore, rather than at the mouth of a river.
These power plants generate electricity from the constant action of waves passing over turbines.

Waves are generated partly by the gravitational effect of the sun and moon, but also partly
because of the thermal energy of the sun heating the water whilst also creating winds.

In tidal generation, gravitational energy and thermal energy are transferred to kinetic energy in
the water and then electrical energy as it passes over the turbines.

The first Wave power plant

Geothermal energy

Geothermal energy is the name given to energy that we can take from beneath the ground. The
Earth’s core is extremely hot, but you do not need to drill down quite that far to find a rise in
temperature. The heat within the earth was generated whilst the earth was forming and in the
millions of years since, by the radioactive decay of elements like uranium. It can be extracted by
pumping water into the Earth’s crust; it heats up and is then pumped back to the surface.

The energy transfer, therefore, is radiation that is transferred to thermal heat which can then
either be transferred to electricity, or can be used simply as hot water to heat homes.

Geothermal energy

Solar heating

Often called solar thermal, it involves capturing the Sun’s energy and using it to heat water. This
water can be used in heating systems or to heat water for cooking and cleaning. This is becoming
increasingly common in homes.

Solar cells

Often called photovoltaic cells, they also use the sun but turn the thermal radiation from the sun
and transfer it to electrical energy.

Fossil fuels

These are the most traditional power source and have been exploited heavily since the industrial
revolution. All the energy sources we have discussed so far can be called “renewable”. Fossil
fuels, however, are not; they have a finite life and will eventually run out.

Fossil fuels include:


- Coal

- Oil

- Gas

They can all be burned to produce heat which can heat water, turning it to steam; this in turn
can be used to turn a generator to produce electrical energy.

Fossil fuels, therefore, involve the transfer of chemical energy to thermal energy and then into
electrical energy.

Schematic representation of a coal fired power station

Nuclear power

The final energy generation method we must look at is nuclear power. Nuclear power is similar
in that the heat source (this time a radioactive isotope) is used to turn water into steam, which
in turn turns a turbine to generate electricity. Nuclear energy, therefore, is transferred to
thermal energy and then into electricity.
Nuclear power station schematic

Advantages and disadvantages of renewable and non-renewable energy

Paper Two

Renewable energy has the great advantage that it is indeed renewable. It essentially is limitless
(or virtually so). If it can be harnessed efficiently we should have a ready supply of energy at all
times. It is non-polluting and does not add to the greenhouse effect. Unfortunately, it is often
not terribly efficient (although the technology is improving all the time). Some can consider it an
eye sore, for example wind turbines, although many think they are elegant too. It is typically
more expensive to generate energy in this manner, and most methods do not work all of the
time. For example, wind turbines obviously do not work if it is not windy.

With non-renewable sources (fossil fuels), the technology is well understood. It is cheap and we
already have a significant infrastructure using fossil fuels (i.e. a lot of existing power stations).
The disadvantages are that it is a significant polluter releasing massive amounts of greenhouse
gasses into the atmosphere. It is also a finite resource as there is a limited amount of any of
these resources in the world and they will run out eventually (sooner than you think too). As
they become rarer, the cost will increase significantly.

Things to consider include:

- Cost of installation/ building

- Pollution

- Disposal of waste

- Visual effect on the environment

- Land required for use

- Noise

- Power production per installation

- Damage to wildlife habitats

- Start-up time

- Reliability of the energy source

- Cost of the energy generated

- Location of energy generation compared to where the energy is needed.


Lesson 18: Density and Pressure
Units

In this unit, we will use the following units:

- Celsius (oC) – unit of measurement of temperature

- Kelvin (K) – unit of measurement of temperature, but starting from absolute zero

- Kilogram (kg) – unit of measurement of mass

- Kilogram/meter cubed (kg/m3) – unit of measurement of density

- Meter (m) – unit of measurement of distance

- Meter squared (m2) – unit of measurement of area

- Meter cubed (m3) – unit of measurement of volume

- Meter/second (m/s) – unit of measurement of speed

- Meter/second/second (m/s2) – unit of measurement of acceleration

- Newton (N) – unit of measurement of force

- Pascal (Pa) – unit of measurement of pressure

- Joule (J) – unit of measurement of energy

Density is a fundamental property of any object. It can be calculated if you know the mass and
the volume of an object by using the following formula:

Activity:

Calculate the density of a solid that has a mass of 1300g and a volume of 3.75m3.

Answer to Activity:

Use the formula:

1. Density = Mass/Volume

2. So: Density = 1.3/3.75


3. Therefore: Density = 0.347 kg/m3

Note in the above calculation, mass must be in kg, not in grams.

Activity:

Calculate the mass of an object whose density is 1300 kg/m3 and a volume of 2.56m3.

Answer to Activity:

Again, use the formula:

Density = Mass/Volume

Rearrange it to make mass the subject:

1. Mass = Density x volume

2. So: Mass = 1300 x 2.56

3. Therefore: Mass = 3328 kg

Density can be calculated by using the above formula for any substance, all you need to do is
first measure the mass of the substance and its volume.

You can measure the volume of an irregular object by measuring the amount of water it
displaces.

Measuring volume of irregular objects

Regular shapes can be measured more easily.


Measuring the volume of regular shapes

Pressure

Pressure is the force exerted by an object per unit area. This means that the pressure will be
greater if the area that it is acting upon is smaller. This makes sense if you consider trying to push
a stake into the ground in your garden. If the end is at a point it will go in much easier than if the
end is blunt (and therefore has a larger area).

The formula for calculating pressure is:

Pressure = Force/Area

Shorthand: P = F/A

Units: Pascals (P) = Newtons (N) Square metres (m2)

Activity:

Calculate the pressure exerted by car weighing 15000N and whose tyres cover an area of
0.12m2.

Answer to activity:

Use the formula:

1. Pressure = Force/Area

2. Therefore: Pressure = 15000/0.12

3. So: Pressure = 125,000 Pa

Pressure in liquids and gases


The pressure exerted by a stationary liquid (i.e. one not subject to tides etc.) acts equally in all
directions simultaneously. If you have a bag filled with water and several holes are punched in
the bag (of the same size), then water will flow out all the holes equally.

Also, the pressure on a submerged object will be the same in every direction simultaneously.

This is also true for gases. When at rest, they exert a pressure equally in all directions. Think
about atmospheric pressure acting on you all the time. It does not act more strongly on one part
of you than any other part; but acts equally in every direction simultaneously.

Pressure acting in all directions simultaneously

Pressure and depth

The situation can be more complex however as pressure increases with depth.

Pressure increases with depth

This is because the force acting upon the water at the bottom of the container is greater than
the force acting on the water at the top because of the greater weight of the water in the
column at the bottom. The force acting upon the water at the bottom is equal to the weight of
the volume of water above it. The force acting on the water half way down the cylinder is also
equal to the weight of water above that point.

The formula for calculating the force acting is:

Force = Area of the base of the column x height of the column x density x gravity

The formula for calculating the pressure is the same, but divided by area:

Lesson 19: Change of State


There are three basic states of matter that we will consider in this course:

- Solid

- Liquid

- Gas

All matter is made up of particles, and the way these are arranged, as well as the way they move,
determines the properties of that matter (including the state).

Melting & evaporation

A substance can change state from a solid to a liquid by melting – think about an ice cube for
example.

A substance can change from a liquid to a gas by evaporation – think about the steam coming off
boiling water for example.
Changing states

Properties of the states

In each of these three states that we are looking at, the particles are arranged differently and
this arrangement fundamentally makes an impact upon the physical characteristics of the
material.

Solids liquids and gases have different arrangements of particles

Consider, for example, the following: you can freely walk through air, and you can wade through
water (though with a little more difficulty), but you cannot walk through a wall. This is all
because of the arrangement of the particles within the material in question.

In solids, the particles are closely packed together; very frequently in an ordered and structured
manner so that they are as closely packed as possible. These particles do not generally move
freely, other than through vibration. For example, the particles in a solid will not rearrange
themselves around you if you attempt to walk through them.

In liquids, the particles are quite close together, but not as tightly packed as in solids. They have
some freedom of movement, more than in solids but less than in gasses. Liquids are frequently
less dense than solids for this reason: the particles are packed together less densely. You can
move (though with a little difficulty) through a liquid because the particles have some scope for
movement and will move around you as you progress through them.

In gases, the particles are much further apart and have a far great freedom of movement. There
is virtually no attractive force keeping them together and you can, therefore, move freely
through a gas. For this reason, gases also generally have the lowest density because of the space
between the particles.

Remember that the more particles can move, the more energy they have.

Lesson 20: Ideal Gas Molecules


Considering gases for a moment; this random motion exerts a force on any container that it is in.
It also, therefore, exerts a pressure as a result. It is important to remember that increasing the
temperature of the gas gives each particle (molecule or atom) more energy and they will move
around faster because of this.

Brownian motion

All particles within gases and liquids are moving in random directions. They will continue to
move in that direction until they impact upon another particle or a solid surface. At this point
they will change direction and move in the new direction until they hit other particles again, and
so forth.
Particles travel in random directions until they hit other particles

Considering gases for a moment; this random motion exerts a force on any container that it is in.
It also, therefore, exerts a pressure as a result. It is important to remember that increasing the
temperature of the gas gives each particle (molecule or atom) more energy and they will move
around faster because of this.

Activity:

What do you think would happen to the pressure inside a container if the amount of gas was
increased?

Answer to Activity:

The pressure would increase inside the container. There would also be far more impacts as
particles hit each other (because there would be more particles in the same space).

Absolute zero

Absolute zero is the temperature at which all particle movement stops. It is defined as:

Absolute zero = -273oC

It can be determined (by extrapolation) experimentally by measuring the volume of a fixed


amount of a gas as a range of different temperatures. These results can then be plotted on a
graph.

A similar experiment could be conducted and the pressure of a fixed volume of gas can be
measured at a range of different temperatures and the results plotted.

In both cases the line can be extrapolated back to the point at which it crosses the X axis:
absolute zero.

Extrapolation of the results on a graph to find absolute zero


Kelvin

There are two basic temperature measuring scales that we will consider in this course:

1. Celsius

2. Kelvin

They are similar, but the Kelvin scale starts at absolute zero, whilst the zero point of the Celsius
scale is the freezing point of water.

The Kelvin and Celsius scales

Temperature in K = Temperature in oC + 273

Temperature in oC = Temperature in K - 273

Kelvin temperature is proportional to average kinetic energy

We know that if the molecules of a gas are heated they gain kinetic energy and move around
more quickly (generating more collisions too of course).

We also know from the graph above that both the pressure and volume increase at a predictable
rate as the temperature increases.

We can say that the Kelvin temperature of the gas is proportional to the average kinetic energy
of its molecules.
Looking more closely at the following graph, we can conclude a relationship between pressure
and temperature for a fixed mass of gas:

Relationship between pressure and temperature

Pressure against temperature in an ideal gas

We can say that:

Activity:

If the pressure of a gas at 30oC is 75Pa, what would be the pressure at 62oC

Answer to Activity:

Use the formula:

Rearrange the formula to make P2 the subject:

So:

Therefore:
Relationship between pressure and volume

Pressure is also proportional to volume in an ideal gas. If the pressure increases, the volume of
the gas decreases.

The relationship between the pressure and volume of a fixed mass of gas at constant
temperature can be calculated with the following formula:

So, the pressure x volume of an ideal gas at point 1 = the pressure x volume of that gas at point
2.

Activity:

If the volume of an ideal gas at 87 Pa pressure is 1.25m3, what would be its volume at 104 Pa

Answer to Activity:

Use the formula:

Rearrange to make V2 the subject:

So:

Therefore:

Lesson 21: Magnetism


Units

In this unit, we will use the following units:

- Ampere (A) – unit of electrical current

- Volt (V) – unit of electrical potential, potential difference or electromotive force


- Watt (W) – unit of measurement of power

Attraction and repulsion

Magnets can attract objects made from magnetic materials such as iron, steel, cobalt and nickel.

Magnets will also either attract or repel other magnets.

The strongest part of a magnet is called the pole. Every magnet will have two poles, north and
south. Two similar poles will repel each other, but two opposite poles will attract each other.

Opposite poles attract, same poles repel

Hard and soft magnets (PAPER 2)

Permanent magnets, like those illustrated above, are made from magnetically hard material,
such as steel. Once a magnetically hard material has been magnetised, it will remain
magnetised.

Temporary magnets are made from magnetically soft material, such as iron. These materials lose
their magnetism relatively quickly and are suitable only for temporary magnets.

Both hard and soft magnets can be created by leaving a material in a magnetic field for a period
of time.

Magnetic field lines

Every magnetic object, from the smallest magnet to the earth, exerts a magnetic field. This is an
area in space where magnetism from the magnetic material can be detected. This magnetic field
is not visible to the naked eye, but we can make it visible as is illustrated by an experiment with
iron filings.
Iron filings arrange themselves in a magnetic field along the field lines

If some iron filings are sprinkled on a piece of paper, and a magnet is placed on top of them,
they will arrange themselves along magnetic field lines.

Around any magnet, the magnetic field can be displayed by a series of magnetic field lines that
leave the north pole and loop round the magnet to enter the south pole.

Magnetic field lines around a magnet

It is these lines that the iron filings are organising themselves along in the above experiment.

When two opposing poles are close to each other they attract as already noted:

Opposite poles attracting

When two similar poles are close they repel. This can also be illustrated with the magnetic field
lines.
Similar poles repel

Activity:

Sketch the magnetic field lines you would expect to occur when two bar magnets are placed
alongside each other.

Answer to Activity:

Depending on which way round you drew the matches (opposite poles near each other, or
opposing poles near each other); your sketch of the magnetic field lines should look something
like this:

Magnetic field lines

Inducing Fields (Paper 2)


When we place some materials in a magnetic field, they themselves become magnetised; a field
is induced in them.

One way of making a magnet is to take a bar of iron (of the hard -magnetic type) and stroke it
repeatedly in the same direction with a magnet.

This will induce a magnetic field in the magnet that will remain permanent.

Another method is to place the iron bar inside a coil of wire carrying a current.

Again this will induce a field in the bar.

Lesson 22: Electromagnetism

When an electrical current is passed through a wire, a magnetic field will form around that wire.
This simple phenomenon is called electromagnetism. If you repeat the experiment with the iron
filings you will find that the magnetic field lines are circular around the wire.

Magnetic field around a cable with a current applied to it: electromagnetism


The field always travels in the same direction, depending on the direction of flow of the current.
The direction of the field can be determined by using the right - hand grip rule (for fields).

The right hand grip rule

Point your thumb in the direction of the flow of the current, and your fingers will always point in
the direction of the magnetic field that it generates.

The magnetic field round a flat coil would look like the following:

Magnetic field around a flat coil

Construction of electromagnets

If we have a coil instead of a straight wire, the magnetic field would look like that in the
illustration below:
Magnetic field around a coil

A coil of wire like this can be called a solenoid. The direction of the magnetic field around a
solenoid can be determined by using the right - hand grip rule (for fields). The thumb points
towards north.

The right-hand grip rule (for poles)

The strength of field around a solenoid can be increased by:

- Increasing the current flowing through the coil.

- Increasing the number of turns on the coil.

- Wrapping the coil around a magnetically soft core (like iron). This combination of solenoid and
core is called an electromagnet
Basic Diagram of an electromagnet

Force in a wire

A charged particle which is moving through a magnetic field experiences a force, as long as its
motion is not parallel to the field. If we pass a current through a wire that is held at right angles
to a magnetic field, the force that acts on the wire will cause it to move. The movement is
caused by overlapping magnetic fields around the wire and the magnet.

You can easily determine the motion of the wire by applying Fleming’s left hand rule.

The left-hand rule

Point your indicated fingers in the directions of the magnetic field and the current in a wire, and
the thumb points in the direction of motion in the wire.
Application of the left-hand rule

Speakers

We already know that, when a current passes through a wire, a magnetic field is generated. If
the wire is placed between the poles of a magnet, then the fields will overlap. In some areas, the
fields will be in the same direction and therefore act to reinforce each other producing a
stronger magnetic field. In areas where the fields are in opposite directions, they will produce a
weaker field overall. The force exerted on the wire pushes it from the weaker field to the
stronger field. This effect is called the motor effect.

This effect can be used to produce sound in a loudspeaker:

A loudspeaker

The overlapping fields are continually changing because of the varying input, and a rapidly
varying force is therefore produced. This changing force causes the speaker cone to vibrate
which produces a sound.
A DC motor

The same principle of movement can be applied to create an electric motor. An electric motor
also uses magnets to create motion. So, if you have two bar magnets with their ends marked
"north" and "south," then the north end of one magnet will attract the south end of the other.
On the other hand, the north end of one magnet will repel the north end of the other (and
similarly, south will repel south).

If you set this up inside an electric motor, these attracting and repelling forces create rotational
motion.

Below you can see the two magnets: the armature (or the rotor) is an electromagnet, while the
magnets are permanent.

An electric motor

Activity:

How do you think we could increase the rate at which the motor turns?

Answer to Activity:

We can increase the rate at which the motor turns by:

- Increasing the number of turns on the wire

- Increasing the strength of the magnetic field

- Increasing the current in the wire


The magnets are normally curved

In real electric motors, the magnets tend to be curved and the central wire is typically a tightly
packed coil to generate the maximum turning force.

Lesson 23: Electromagnetic Induction


There is a fundamental difference between motors and generators:

- Electric motors use electricity to produce movement.

- Generators make electricity from movement.

If we hold a wire across a magnetic field at right angles to it, a voltage is induced in the wire. If
the wire is part of a complete circuit, then a current will flow around that circuit.

Voltage induced in a wire

The size of the induced voltage can be increased by:

- Moving the wire more rapidly.

- Increasing the magnetic field strength.

- Wrapping the wire into a coil.


We can also generate a voltage and a current by pushing a magnate inside of a coil of wire. In
this case, the size of the voltage and current can be controlled by:

- Moving the magnet quickly.

- Using a stronger magnet.

- Increasing the turns on the coil.

- Using thicker wire in the coil.

Electromagnetic induction

Pushing the magnet inside of the coil will produce a current. Removing it again will stop the
current.

Faraday’s Law of Electromagnetic Induction states that:

- The size of the induced voltage across the ends of a wire (or coil) is directly proportional to the
rate at which the magnetic lines of flux are being cut.

Note: the direction of the induced current depends upon the direction of motion. If the motion
is reversed, the direction of current will also be reversed.
Michael Faraday

Transformers

When an alternating current is passed through a coil, the magnetic field around the coil
continuously changes. You should know by now that as the current increases, the magnetic field
grows. As the current decreases, the field collapses.

If a second coil is placed close to the first, the changing magnetic field created by the alternating
current will pass through it. As the magnetic field cuts through the wires of the second coil, a
voltage is induced across that coil.

A transformer

The size and direction of the induced voltage changes as the voltage that is applied to the first of
the coils changes.

An alternating voltage across the first coil, therefore, produces an alternating voltage across the
secondary coil. This combination of two linked coils is called a transformer.

The relationship between the voltages across each coil can be described by the equation:

A transformer that is used to increase voltage is called a step-up transformer. One that is used to
decrease voltage is called a step-down transformer.

A sub-station transformer

If a transformer was 100% efficient, then:

The voltage or current in either the primary or secondary coil can be calculated by using the
formula:

Note: p and s refer to primary and secondary coils.

Lesson 24: Radioactivity


Units

In this unit, we will use the following units:


- Becquerel (Bq) – unit of radioactivity

- Centimeter (cm) – unit of measurement of distance

- Hour (h) – unit of measurement of time

- Minute (min) – unit of measurement of time

- Second (s) – unit of measurement of time

We will look at radioactive decay in this section

Atomic structure

The structure of atoms is simple, particularly small atoms for example hydrogen. They consist of
a nucleus in the centre of the atom which contains the neutrons and protons; surrounding this
are electrons that orbit the nucleus, as illustrated below:

Atomic structure

Atoms are incredibly small. They certainly cannot be seen by the naked eye, and not even
through the most powerful microscope, but let us put that in a different context so we can
understand it. If the nucleus were the size of the spot in the centre of a football field, then the
electrons would be orbiting around the top tier of seats in the stand. This indicates that there is
a great deal of space between the nucleus and the electrons. As atoms become larger, they
contain more electrons, protons and neutrons.

Atoms get progressively larger as the atomic and mass numbers increase

Protons, neutrons and electrons are all rather different particles. Their physical characteristics
are as follows:

Particle Charge Mass Location

Protons + 1 Nucleus

Neutrons None 1 Nucleus

Electrons - 1/1836 Orbiting Around Nucleus

The diagram below shows more clearly where the charged particles are in a carbon atom.

Illustration of the carbon atom

Activity:

How many electrons would be needed to equal the mass of one proton?

Answer to activity:

The mass of an electron is 1/1836 and therefore you would need 1836 electrons to equal the
weight of just one proton.

There are two fundamental values associated with every atom:

- Atomic Number

- Mass Number

Helium with associated mass and atomic number

The mass number and the atomic number can sometimes be presented in different places in the
Periodic Table. In the above figure, the mass number is shown above and the atomic number is
shown below. They can also sometimes be the opposite way around (i.e., atomic number on
top). Remember, however, that the mass number is always greater than the atomic number
(except in the case of hydrogen, where both are 1).

- The Atomic Number is the number of protons in the nucleus.

- The Atomic Number is also the number of electrons.

- The Mass Number is the number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus.

Every element in the periodic table has a different atomic number. If you found an unidentified
atom which had 12 protons, you would be able to work out that the atomic number was
therefore 12 and so the atom must be magnesium.

Isotopes

Isotopes are atoms with the same atomic number but a different mass number as the element;
this means that isotopes vary in the number of neutrons they have in the nucleus. Isotopes have
the same number of electrons and protons; therefore, the electrical charge of the isotope is no
different from the normal atom.

Consider carbon: its normal mass number is 12, therefore, normal carbon is sometimes called
‘carbon 12’. The isotope illustrated in the diagram below is called ‘carbon 14’ (there is also an
isotope called ‘carbon 13’). There will be more on isotopes to follow.
Carbon 12 and the Carbon 14 isotope

Ionising radiation

When unstable nuclei decay, they give out ionising radiation. Ionising radiation has the effect on
other atoms of causing them to either gain or lose electrons, thus becoming ions. This is
illustrated below.

The decay of unstable nuclei is random. It is not possible to predict, in a sample of material,
which nuclei will decay at any given moment, or when a given nuclei will decay.

Ionising radiation hits an atom and caused an electron to be lost, leaving a positively charged ion

There are three basic types of ionising radiation:

- Alpha (α)

- Beta (β)

- Gamma (γ)
There are three types of ionising radiation

Alpha particles

Alpha particles are helium nuclei; that it to say formerly helium atoms that have had their
electrons stripped during the decay process. They are fast moving particles and have a high
mass. They have a charge of +2 as they have two protons (which are each positively charged)
and no electrons (which are negatively charged). Alpha particles have a short range. The range of
ionising radiation is how much matter they can penetrate. Alpha particles can only travel a few
centimetres in air, and only millimetres through paper. Their range is limited because they are
large and interact freely with other particles they encounter causing ions to form, but giving up
their own energy in the process.

Beta particles

Beta particles are electrons that have been ejected during radioactive decay. They are very fast
moving, have very little mass, and are negatively charged. These electrons are produced by a
neutron in a decaying atom splitting to form a proton and an electron, the latter of which is
ejected. Given the small size, beta particles interact with matter in their path less frequently and
thus have a greater range, as well as being less ionising than alpha particles. They can travel long
distances through the air, and have a more penetrating power than alpha particles. They can
easily pass through paper, but will be stopped by 1 or 2mm of aluminium.

Gamma rays

Gamma rays are electromagnetic waves with a very short wavelength. They are emitted in bursts
of energy called a photon. Given that they are waves, they have no mass and no charge. They
only occasionally interact with matter in their path and are therefore weakly ionising. They also
have a very long range and can pass through all but very dense material with ease. They will be
stopped by several centimetres of lead, or 100cm of concrete.
Penetration of the three particles

Radioactive decay

As noted earlier, alpha decay involves the loss of a helium nucleus. An example of alpha decay is
that of plutonium to uranium

Alpha decay. You must understand the effect of decay on the atomic and mass numbers.
Note in the illustration above that Plutonium has a:

- Mass number = 240

- Atomic number = 94

It emits a helium nucleus which has:

- Mass number = 4

- Atomic number = 2

Resulting in the formation of:

- Mass number = 236

- Atomic number = 92

Energy is also produced during radioactive decay.

This can be illustrated also by looking at the decay of radium to radon:

The decay of radium to radon

The general formula for alpha decay is:

General formula for alpha decay

In this formula:

- X = Parent (the atom undergoing decay)


- Y = daughter (the product of the decay)

- He = Helium nuclei

- Q = Energy

- A = Mass number

- Z = Atomic number

Beta decay only has an effect on the atomic number, not on the mass number. This is because
beta decay involves the loss of an electron, which has a negligible mass. If we look at the beta
decay of caesium to barium, we can see the effect on the mass and atomic numbers.

Beta decay; note the impact on the mass and atomic numbers

We can see that the mass number is not changed, but the atomic number increases by 1.
Remember that beta decay involved a neutron splits to form a proton and an electron, the latter
of which is ejected.

Gamma decay, as you will recall, involved the emission of a high energy electromagnetic wave
which has no mass and no charge. There is no effect on mass number or atomic number
therefore.

Detecting ionising radiation

There are two methods for detecting ionising radiation that you need to understand:

- Photographic film

- Geiger-Müller tube

Radioactivity can be detected by using photographic film. If film is exposed to radiation it


becomes cloudy in appearance, thus confirming the presence of radiation. People working with
radiation sometimes wear a badge containing a small piece of film that is examined periodically
to see if the individual has been exposed. There are also, however, much more advanced
methods of measuring exposure in nuclear power stations.

A Geiger-Müller tube is a glass tube with an electrically conducting material painted on the inner
surface. The tube has a thin mica window at one end and the interior consists of a mixture of
low pressure gases. An electrode is in the centre of the tube, and insulated from the coating on
the inside of the glass. The electrode is connected to a high voltage supply. If radiation enters the
tube, the gas is ionised and a pulse of current will flow; this can be detected.

A Geiger-Müller tube

Background radiation

There is a certain amount of low level background ionising radiation that is always present. This
radiation has numerous sources, including:

- Radon gas

The ground and buildings

- Artificial sources

- Cosmic rays

- Food and drink


The sources of background radiation

Activity:

Do any of these sources surprise you? If so, which and why?

Radioactive decay

We noted earlier that radioactive decay was a random event and could not be predicted. We do
know, however, that a radioactive material will decay into something else eventually. This
process of decay can take millions of years or it can be very rapid.

When we looked at alpha and beta decay earlier, you will have realised that as a radioactive
substance decays, a new substance is created. This might in turn also be radioactive, but it might
not.

The rate at which decay occurs is called the half-life. Half-life can be defined as:

The half-life of a substance is the time it takes for half of the mass to decay into something
new.

If we start with 100g of a radioactive material, for example, the half-life is the time it takes for
only 50g of that material to remain, the rest will have decayed into another material.
Half-life

In this example, draw a line from 50g (half of the original mass) to the curve, and then to the x
axis to find the time. The half life of this material is just over 7 minutes.

Note also, however, that activity of a radioactive source decreases over a period of time.

The unit of radioactivity is the becquerels (Bq). The becquerel is a measure of how many
unstable nuclei are decaying per second. One Becquerel means that one nucleus is decaying per
second.

Half-life is different for every radioactive isotope:

Half-life of some different isotopes


Measuring activity

To measure the half-life of a radioisotope (radioactive isotope), we must measure the activity of
the sample at regular intervals and plot that activity on a graph, as above. Activity is plotted on
the Y axis, time on the X axis.

Activity:

If a sample of material has an activity of 500 Bq and a half-life of 30 minutes:

1. What is the activity after 30 minutes?

2. What is the activity after 90 minutes?

3. What is the activity after 3 hours?

Answer to activity:

1. The half-life is 30 minutes, so after 30 minutes: Activity = 500 x ½

1. Therefore: Activity = 250 Bq

2. 90 minutes is 3 half-lives: Therefore: Activity = 500 x ½ x ½ x ½

1. So: Activity = 62.5 Bq

3. 3 hours is 6 half-lives: Therefore: Activity = 500 x ½ x ½ x ½ x ½ x ½ x ½

1. So: Activity = 7.81 Bq

Uses of radioactivity

Medical tracing

Radioactive tracing is a technique used commonly in hospitals (medical tracing). This is when a
radioactive isotope is either injected or swallowed by the patient. The isotope emits gamma
radiation (which you will remember is highly penetrating and easily escapes the body) and can,
therefore, be traced around the body by tracking the emissions. The purpose is to help identify
diseased or damaged organs. Different isotopes are used for different tasks.

The half-life of the isotopes is important in this context, as it is desirable that the radioactive
emissions decline to negligible levels in a couple of days. Injecting an isotope into the body, that
would remain there emitting radiation for years, would be very dangerous to long term health.

Treatment
Radiation is also useful in the treatment of diseases (radiotherapy). Low doses of radiation can
have little to no effect on the body; medium doses can cause cell mutations which result in
cancer, whilst high doses can kill cells. High doses can, therefore, be used to kill unwanted cells
(like cancer cells) if the radiation is properly directed. Radioactive iodine 131 is also used in the
treatment of certain thyroid conditions.

Sterilisation

Ionising radiation kills living tissue, especially if it is in high enough doses. By exposing medical
instruments to high levels of ionising radiation they will be sterilised destroying all harmful
bacteria and viruses. This technique is called irradiation.

Some food items are treated in the same way, particularly those which are intended to have a
long life. Again, the intention is to kill bacteria which might otherwise cause the food to decay in
time.

Non-medical tracing

Using the same concept as medical tracing, non- medical tracing uses radioisotopes to track the
flow of liquids in industrial processes. For example, if a complex system of pipes has a leak at
some point, a radioisotope can be introduced and tracked to pinpoint the leak without having to
have teams of peoples inspecting hundreds of miles of pipelines.

Radiocarbon dating

This method of dating measures the amount of the radioactive C-14 isotope in an organic
sample.

All living organisms take into their bodies this radioactive isotope of carbon, but as soon as an
organism dies this uptake ceases. As time passes, this radioactive carbon decays and the amount
of the isotope therefore declines.

The half-life of C-14 is 5600 years, which as you know, means that every 5600 years the mass of
the isotope in the sample decreases by half. The amount of C-14 in a sample can be found by
measuring the activity of the sample. This amount is then compared with the amount that would
have been present in the organism when it was alive. It is, therefore, possible to make an
estimate of when the organism died.

This method is only used on samples up to around 50-60,000 years old. This is because after 10
half-life periods, the amount of C-14 is too small to measure with sufficient accuracy.

Dating rocks

The carbon dating technique cannot be used on inorganic material, like rocks, because they do
not absorb C-14 through any natural process. Other methods, therefore, must be employed.

To date rocks, we need to measure the amount of various parent and daughter isotopes. If one
or more of these radioactive isotopes is present, then the activity can be measured and the age
calculated based upon historical levels of the parent isotopes.

Parent Daugter Half-life

Potassium-40 Argon-40 1.25 billion years

Rubidium-87 Strontium-87 48.8 billion years

Thorium-232 Lead-208 14 billion years

Uranium-235 Lead-207 704 million years

Uranium-238 Lead-206 4.47 billion years

Carbon-14 Nitrogen-14 5730 years

Dangers of ionising radiation

We have already noted that radiation can, in medium level doses, cause mutations to living cells
which can result in cancer. High doses can kill cells completely. The three issues to remember
are:

- Radiation can cause mutations in living organisms.

- Radiation can damage cells and tissue.

It is also difficult to dispose of radioactive waste. This waste can be high level and very
dangerous from, for example, the core of a nuclear reactor. It can also be low level medical
waste, which poses very little actual risk from radiation to the public, but under current
legislation, still needs to be treated as radioactive waste.
Disposing of radioactive waste is problematic

Lesson 25: Particles


Geiger and Marsden experiment

In 1909, in the Rutherford laboratory in Manchester, Hans Geiger and one of his undergraduate
students, Ernest Marsden, conducted an experiment whereby they fired a series of alpha
particles at a piece of gold foil.

The Geiger and Marsden experiment

The detecting screen is a screen coated by zinc sulphide which emits sparks of light when hit by
alpha particles. These sparks of light are called scintillations. The location of the scintillations on
the zinc sulphide screen indicated to the observers what happened to alpha particles as they
impacted with the gold screen.

The gold foil was very thin, thinner than a sheet of paper (which earlier we told you would be
enough to stop alpha particles). What they discovered was that most of the alpha particles
passed straight through the gold foil to strike the zinc sulphide, but some were deflected back off
the foil. The proportion that bounced back was small, only around 1 in 8000 particles.

Rutherford speculated from these results that most of a gold atom must be empty space, and
therefore the alpha particles pass through uninterrupted. He knew that atoms had mass,
however, and he realised that most of this mass must be located in a very small nucleus in the
centre of the atom. He further realised that the deflection of the particles that passed through
the foil was due to the repulsive force from the positive charges in the nucleus. The amount of
deflection depends upon:
- The speed of the alpha particles.

- The charge on the nucleus.

- The proximity of the alpha particles to the nucleus.

Deflection depends, in part, on how close the alpha particles come to the nucleus

The radius of the nucleus is 1/10,000th of the radius of the whole atom. It is therefore easy to
see why most alpha particles pass straight through without being repelled back towards the
alpha source.
The radius of the nucleus is 1/10,000th of the radius of the atom.

Splitting U-235

Electricity can be generated through the splitting (fission) of a radioactive atom. In nuclear
reactors, the atom of choice is uranium-235. This is because it is a fissile material and therefore
undergoes fission relatively easily. In the fission of U-235, first a slow - moving neutron is
absorbed by the U-235 creating U-236. U-236 is highly unstable and splits in two creating two
daughter atoms: krypton-89 and Barium-144. This decay also produced a huge amount of
gamma radiation and three neutrons, as illustrated below.

Fission of U-235

The three neutrons resulting from this reaction are then free to impact with another U-235 atom
causing the process to repeat. The number of protons released causes a chain reaction of the
decay of U-235.
U-235 decay chain reaction

Along with the gamma radiation that is released, there is a massive amount of kinetic energy
generated in the movement of the products as well as heat.

Control rods in a reactor

In a nuclear reactor, the massive amount of heat generated by the chain reaction of the fission of
U-235 is used to heat water, turning it to steam which then turns a turbine generating electricity.

The basic process in a nuclear reactor.

In the illustration above, you can see several control rods in the reactor. These control rods are
made from either boron or cadmium and their role is to absorb excess neutrons, removing them
from the fission process entirely. The control rods can be either fully inserted into the reactor,
thus absorbing almost all neutrons and virtually stopping the nuclear reaction, or they can be
fully removed allowing the chain reaction to run unhindered. Obviously, they can also be
inserted at any point in between too, to control the rate of reaction inside the reactor.

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