Cambridge & Pearson Edexcel Past Paper Questions
Browse 35,704 questions from Cambridge O-Level & A-Level and Pearson Edexcel IGCSE & IAL exams. Click any question to practice.
A nucleus of uranium ²³⁸₉₂U decays to thorium by emitting an alpha-particle. What is the resulting thorium nucleus?
A car of mass 800 kg is travelling at a speed of 25 m/s along a straight, horizontal road.
Fig. 2.1 shows a bed that folds away against a wall during the day. [Figure 2.1] When it is horizontal, the bed is supported on one side by a hinge...
A large power station burns oil to heat water in a boiler.
A lamp is positioned at the bottom of a small pool of water. The critical angle for light passing from water into air is 49°.
Fig. 5.1 shows a loudspeaker inside a glass bell-jar that contains air. [Figure 5.1] The loudspeaker produces a sound of frequency 2200 Hz.
Two flexible iron strips, WX and YZ, are placed close to each other inside a solenoid (long coil). The end W of WX and the end Z of YZ are held fir...
The a.c. mains electricity system in a house consists of three wires: the live, the neutral and the earth.
Sodium-24 and sodium-23 are two of the isotopes of sodium. Sodium-24 is a radioactive isotope that emits beta-particles and gamma-rays as it decays.
(a) The primary coil of a transformer is connected to the 230 V a.c. mains supply.
A particular type of cooking oil is a liquid at room temperature.
A skier sets off from rest and accelerates uniformly at 3.4m/s² in a straight line for 5.0s.
A skateboarder of mass 45 kg is at the top of a ramp. Fig. 2.1 shows the skateboarder and the ramp. [Figure 2.1]
When the lid of a freezer is opened, it pivots about the hinge at the back of the freezer. The handle is at the front. Fig. 3.1 is a side view of t...
Fig. 4.1 shows a kettle containing water placed on the burner of a gas cooker. [Figure 4.1] The gas burner is lit at time t = 0. At t = 250s the te...
Gas is trapped in a syringe by a piston. Fig. 5.1 shows that the narrow end of the syringe is sealed. [Figure 5.1] When the gas is at a pressure of...
In a cathode-ray oscilloscope (c.r.o.), a beam of electrons is produced by a filament at one end of an evacuated glass tube. The electrons are then...
Plutonium-238 is a radioactive isotope that decays by alpha-particle emission. It also emits gamma-rays. The nuclide notation for plutonium-238 is ...
A spring is taken from a drawer in a physics laboratory. (a) Fig. 8.1 is the extension-load graph for the spring. [Figure 8.1]
A vertical solenoid (long coil) with an iron core is held in a wooden clamp above a laboratory bench. The solenoid is connected in series with a ba...
A laser produces a beam of red light. (a) The red light from the laser has a frequency of 4.3 × 10¹⁴Hz.
A manufacturer measures the three dimensions of a wooden floor tile using three different instruments. The approximate dimensions of the tile are s...
The speed-time graph represents a short journey. Which distance-time graph represents the same journey?
An object travels for 20s with a constant speed of 10m/s. For the next 10s, it accelerates uniformly to 20 m/s. What is the total distance travelle...
A skydiver falls at terminal velocity. He then opens his parachute. Which row gives the direction of the resultant force on the skydiver and the di...
The diagram shows two objects on a beam balance. The beam balance is in equilibrium. Which quantities may be different?
A metal wire is suspended from a support and loads of different mass are attached to the lower end. The table shows how the extension of the wire d...
The diagram shows a mercury manometer connected to a gas container. The density of mercury is 14000 kg/m³. The gravitational field strength g is 10...
An astronaut on the Moon drops a tool box of mass 3.0 kg. It falls from rest and its kinetic energy as it hits the surface is 0.96 J. At which spee...
A car travels a distance of 200 m in 20 s. The engine of the car provides a driving force of 1000 N. What is the power output of the engine?
A gas is heated in a closed container of constant volume. What happens to the molecules of the gas?
Scientists believe that some lakes are shrinking because of evaporation. What increases the rate of evaporation?
Solid wax is melted in a boiling tube and then allowed to cool. The graph shows the cooling curve. What is happening between points X and Y?
During boiling and during melting, a substance either takes in energy or gives out energy. Which row gives the energy transfer corresponding to the...
The temperature of a 50g mass of a metal is raised by 40°C. The specific heat capacity of the metal is 0.40 J/(g°C). How much thermal energy is sup...
In which substance is the conduction of thermal energy mainly due to the movement of electrons?
Four similar metal plates are the same distance from a heater that emits infra-red radiation. The plates are painted dull black, dull white, shiny ...
A wave is travelling in water in a glass-sided tank. The diagram shows a side view of the wave at one instant. What are the amplitude and the wavel...
An earthquake wave travels through the solid surface of the Earth from east to west. The solid surface vibrates in a north-south direction. How can...
A solid plastic cylinder is immersed in a liquid of refractive index 1.4. Light travelling in the plastic cylinder strikes the inside surface at an...
What is the name and shape of the lens used to correct short sight?
An object is placed in front of a converging lens. The lens forms a magnified image of the object on a screen. Which statement is correct?
A type of electromagnetic radiation possesses the following properties. • It is ionising. • Its frequency is higher than the frequency of microwave...
Which row gives the speed of sound in air, in water and in steel?
As a sound wave travels from one medium to another, its wavelength increases. What happens to the frequency and to the speed of the sound?
The diagram shows the pattern and the direction of the magnetic field between two magnetic poles X and Y. Which types of pole are X and Y?
The diagram shows a sensitive device surrounded by a shield that prevents the magnetic field from reaching the device. How does the shield protect ...
A polythene rod is charged by rubbing it with a cloth. Which statement explains why the cloth is charged?
What is electromotive force (e.m.f.)?
In a circuit, a voltmeter is used to measure the potential difference across a lamp. An ammeter is used to measure the current in the lamp. Which d...