Cambridge Past Paper Questions
Browse 23,045questions from 25 years of O-Level & A-Level exams. Click any question to practice.
A charge of 8.0 C passes through a resistor of resistance 30 Ω at a constant rate in a time of 20 s. What is the potential difference across the re...
The graph shows the variation with potential difference (p.d.) of the current in a lamp filament. [Figure 33.1] Which statement explains the shape ...
Two electrically-conducting cylinders X and Y are made from the same material. Their dimensions are as shown. [Figure 34.1] What is the ratio resis...
A power supply of electromotive force (e.m.f.) 12 V and internal resistance 2 Ω is connected in series with a load resistor. The value of the load ...
Each of Kirchhoff's laws is linked to the conservation of a physical quantity. Which physical quantities are assumed to be conserved in the formula...
The diagram shows a potential divider circuit which, by adjustment of the contact X, can be used to provide a variable potential difference between...
A constant 60 V d.c. supply is connected across two resistors of resistance 400 kΩ and 200 kΩ. [Figure 38.1] What is the reading on a voltmeter, al...
Which statement concerning α-particles is correct?
A nucleus of the nuclide ²⁴¹Pu decays by emission of a β-particle followed by the emission of an α-particle. ⁹⁴ Which nucleus is formed?
Which quantity has the same base units as momentum?
Vectors P and Q are drawn to scale. [Figure showing vectors P and Q] Which diagram represents the vector (P + Q)?
What is the approximate kinetic energy of an Olympic athlete when running at maximum speed during a 100 m race?
Physical quantities can be classed as vectors or as scalars. Which pair of quantities are both vectors?
A student is given a reel of wire of diameter less than 0.2 mm and is asked to find the density of the metal. Which pair of instruments would be mo...
Variables x and y are related by the equation y = p – qx where p and q are constants. Values of x and y are measured experimentally. The results co...
The speed of a car is calculated from measurements of the distance travelled and the time taken. The distance is measured as 200m, with an uncertai...
A science museum designs an experiment to show the fall of a feather in a vertical glass vacuum tube. The time of fall from rest is to be close to ...
The graph of velocity against time for an object moving in a straight line is shown. [Figure showing velocity-time graph] What is the corresponding...
The dotted line shows the path of a competitor in a ski-jumping competition. [Figure showing ski-jumper's path] Ignoring air resistance, which grap...
The velocity of a car changes as shown. [Figure showing velocity-time graph] What is the acceleration of the car?
A ball of mass 0.5kg is thrown against a wall at a speed of 12ms⁻¹. It bounces back with a speed of 8 ms⁻¹. The collision lasts for 0.10s. [Figure ...
Two identical, perfectly elastic spheres have the same mass m. They travel towards each other with the same speed v along a horizontal frictionless...
A 1.2kg mass is supported by a person's hand and two newton-meters as shown. [Figure showing mass supported by hand and two newton-meters] When the...
A lorry of mass 20 000 kg has a constant resultant force F acting on it. It accelerates from 6.0 ms⁻¹ to 30.0 ms⁻¹ in a time of 300 s. What is the ...
A stationary body floats in water. [Figure showing a block floating in water] Which statement about the forces acting on the body is correct?
A rigid uniform beam is pivoted horizontally at its midpoint. Different vertical forces are applied to different positions on the beam. In which di...
A picture on a wall is supported by a wire looped over a nail. [Figure showing a picture supported by a wire over a nail] The mass of the picture i...
A piston in a gas supply pump has an area of 500 cm² and it moves a distance of 30 cm during one stroke. The pump moves the gas against a fixed pre...
Trains supply coal to a power station. The table below gives quantities describing the operation of the power station. [Table with symbol and unit ...
Which row correctly describes the spacing and motion of the molecules in water and in ice when both are at a temperature of 0 °C? [Table with spaci...
Which row gives the correct description for the arrangement of atoms in the four types of material? [Table with column headers: 'atoms have no long...
What leads to the conclusion that the movement of molecules is random?
The diagram shows the force-extension graphs for two materials, of the same dimensions, loaded to fracture. [Figure showing force-extension graphs]...
Two wires, X and Y, are made from different metals and have different dimensions. The Young modulus of wire X is twice that of wire Y. The diameter...
The diagram shows two identical loudspeakers driven in phase by a common audio-frequency source. [Figure showing two loudspeakers and regions of lo...
A horizontal glass tube, closed at one end, has a layer of dust laid inside it on its lower side. Sound is emitted from a loudspeaker that is place...
Monochromatic light of wavelength 690 nm passes through a diffraction grating with 300 lines per mm, producing a series of maxima on a screen. [Fig...
The diagram shows a cathode-ray oscilloscope display of an electromagnetic wave. [Figure showing CRO display of a wave] The time base setting is 0....
A charged particle moves in a uniform electric field between two parallel metal plates. To calculate the force acting on the particle due to the el...
A single proton travelling with a constant horizontal velocity enters a uniform electric field between two parallel charged plates. In the diagram,...
The graph shows the variation with length l of resistance R for two wires X and Y made from the same material. [Figure showing R-l graph for wires ...
A cell of internal resistance 2.0 Ω and electromotive force (e.m.f.) 1.5 V is connected to a resistor of resistance 3.0 Ω. What is the potential di...
A 100 Ω resistor conducts a current with changing direction and magnitude, as shown. [Figure showing current-time graph] What is the mean power dis...
The ammeter reading in the circuit below is I. [Figure showing a simple circuit with a resistor R and ammeter A] Another circuit containing the sam...
A light-dependent resistor R has resistance of about 1 MΩ in the dark and about 1 kΩ when illuminated. It is connected in series with a 5 kΩ resist...
A material contains a radioactive isotope that disintegrates solely by the emission of α-particles at a rate of 100 s⁻¹. Which statement about this...
A different nucleus can be formed by bombarding a stable nucleus with an energetic α-particle. ²³₁₁Na is bombarded with an energetic α-particle. Wh...
Which row shows an SI base quantity with its correct unit? SI base quantity unit
A signal that repeats periodically is displayed on the screen of a cathode-ray oscilloscope. [Figure 4.1] The screen has 1 cm squares and the time ...
A micrometer screw gauge is used to measure the diameter of a small uniform steel sphere. The micrometer reading is 5.00 mm ± 0.01 mm. What will be...