Cambridge Past Paper Questions

What is the change to the quark composition of a nucleus that takes place during β⁺ decay?

What is the charge, in terms of the elementary charge e, on a charm quark?

A device containing a microwave emitter and receiver is placed in front of a large metal sheet in a vacuum as shown in [Figure 4.1]. The line XY is...

A stationary loudspeaker emits sound of constant frequency. A microphone is placed near to the loudspeaker and connected to a cathode-ray oscillosc...

A cylindrical copper wire P of length 0.24 m is shown in [Figure 6.1]. The current in the wire is 0.85A. The resistance of the wire is 3.3 mΩ. The ...

An isolated stationary nucleus Q decays into nucleus R and an α-particle. The α-particle has speed 1.5 x 10⁷ms⁻¹.

The SI unit for potential difference (the volt) is given, in base units, by

A student finds the density of a liquid by measuring its mass and its volume. The following is a summary of his measurements. mass of empty beaker ...

An ion is accelerated by a series of electrodes in a vacuum. A graph of the power supplied to the ion is plotted against time. What is represented ...

The diagram shows a square-wave trace on the screen of a cathode-ray oscilloscope. A grid of 1 cm squares covers the screen. The time-base setting ...

A vector quantity V is resolved into two perpendicular components X and Y. The angle between V and component X is θ. [Figure 6.1] The angle between...

The product of pressure and volume has the same SI base units as

A small steel ball falls freely under gravity after being released from rest. Which graph best represents the variation of the height h of the ball...

The diagram shows a velocity-time graph for a vehicle. [Figure 9.1] The vehicle, moving at 4.0 m s⁻¹, begins to accelerate at time = 0. What is the...

The diagram shows two identical spheres X and Y. [Figure 10.1] Initially, X moves with speed v directly towards Y. Y is stationary. The spheres col...

Two equal masses travel towards each other on a frictionless air track at speeds of 60 cm s⁻¹ and 40 cm s⁻¹. They stick together on impact. [Figure...

Forces of 3 N, 4 N and 5 N act at one point on an object. The angles at which the forces act can vary. What is the value of the minimum resultant f...

An object, immersed in a liquid in a tank, experiences an upthrust. What is the physical reason for this upthrust?

A brick weighing 20 N rests on an inclined plane. The weight of the brick has a component of 10 N parallel with the plane. The brick also experienc...

A constant force F, acting on a car of mass m, moves the car up the slope through a distance s at constant velocity v. The angle of the slope to th...

A force of 1000 N is needed to lift the hook of a crane at a steady velocity. The crane is then used to lift a load of mass 1000 kg at a velocity o...

When ice melts, it contracts. Which row is correct for ice turning into water?

Atmospheric pressure at sea level has a value of 100 kPa. The density of sea water is 1020 kg m⁻³. At what depth in the sea would the total pressur...

A spring is compressed by a force. The graph shows the compressing force F plotted against the length L of the spring. [Figure 19.1] What is the sp...

Which graph represents the force-extension relationship of a rubber band that is stretched almost to its breaking point? [Figure 20.1]

In stress-strain experiments on metal wires, the stress axis is often marked in units of 10⁸ Pa and the strain axis is marked as a percentage. This...

The diagram shows a steel wire clamped at one end and tensioned at the other by a weight hung over a pulley. [Figure 22.1] A vibration generator is...

Diagram 1 shows a ripple tank experiment in which plane waves are diffracted through a narrow slit in a metal sheet. Diagram 2 shows the same tank ...

Electromagnetic waves from an unknown source in space were found to be significantly diffracted when passing through gaps of the order of 10⁻⁵ m. W...

Using monochromatic light, interference fringes are produced on a screen placed a distance D from a pair of slits of separation a. The separation o...

Two oppositely-charged parallel plates are arranged as shown. [Figure 26.1] An electron is released from rest from the surface of the negatively-ch...

In the diagram, the shaded area represents a uniform electric field directed away from the observer (at right-angles into the plane of the paper). ...

The diagram shows two points P and Q which lie, 90° apart, on a circle of radius r. A positive point charge at the centre of the circle creates an ...

Which row describes the circumstances under which forces act on a charged particle in a uniform electric field?

The resistance of a thermistor depends on its temperature, and the resistance of a light-dependent resistor (LDR) depends on the illumination. Unde...

In terms of energy transfer W and charge q, what are the definitions of potential difference (p.d.) and electromotive force (e.m.f.)?

In each arrangement of resistors, the ammeter has a resistance of 2 Ω. Which arrangement gives the largest reading on the ammeter when the same pot...

A source of e.m.f. of 9.0 mV has an internal resistance of 6.0 Ω. It is connected across a galvanometer of resistance 30 Ω. What will be the curren...

The resistors P, Q and R in the circuit have equal resistance. [Figure 34.1] The battery, of negligible internal resistance, supplies a total power...

What is the unit of resistivity?

The grid shows a number of nuclides arranged according to the number of protons and the number of neutrons in each. A nucleus of the nuclide ⁷₃Li d...

The following represents a sequence of radioactive decays involving two α-particles and one β-particle. ²¹⁷₈₅At → α → V → α → W → β → X What is the...

What are the correct descriptions of a γ-ray and a β-particle?

What is not conserved in nuclear processes?

Stress has the same SI base units as

To check calculations, the units are put into the following equations together with the numbers. Which equation must be incorrect?

In making reasonable estimates of physical quantities, which statement is not correct?