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.
By reference to the first law of thermodynamics, state and explain the change, if any, in the internal energy of:
A dish is made from a section of a hollow glass sphere. The dish, fixed to a horizontal table, contains a small solid ball of mass 45g, as shown in...
Explain the principles of the detection of ultrasound waves for medical diagnosis.
Telephone signals may be transmitted either by means of an optic fibre or by means of a wire pair. State three advantages of the use of an optic fi...
A metal sphere of radius R is isolated in space. Point P is a distance x from the centre of the sphere, as illustrated in Fig. 7.1. The variation w...
An ideal operational amplifier (op-amp) is connected to a load resistor. The op-amp is assumed to have infinite bandwidth and zero output resistanc...
An electron is travelling at speed v in a straight line in a vacuum. It enters a uniform magnetic field of flux density 8.0 × 10⁻⁴ T. Initially, th...
The uppermost energy bands in a solid are known as the valence band (VB), the forbidden band (FB) and the conduction band (CB). A copper wire is at...
Some masses are shown in Table 12.1. [Table 12.1]
State what is meant by a gravitational force.
The transmission of signals using optic fibres has, to a great extent, replaced the use of coaxial cables. Advantages of optic fibres include great...
Define the tesla.
A coil of wire is situated in a uniform magnetic field of flux density B. The coil has diameter 3.6 cm and consists of 350 turns of wire, as illust...
White light passes through a cloud of cool low-pressure gas, as illustrated in [Figure 10.1]. For light that has passed through the gas, its contin...
An electron, at rest, has mass m_e and charge –q. A positron is a particle that, at rest, has mass m_e and charge +q. A positron interacts with an ...
The decay of a sample of a radioactive isotope is said to be random and spontaneous.
A student investigates springs made of metal wire, as shown in Fig. 1.1. [Figure 1.1] The student constructs several springs from wire of thickness...
A student investigates the discharge of a capacitor through a resistor using the circuit shown in Fig. 2.1. [Figure 2.1] The student initially clos...
A student investigates stationary waves with an elastic cord of circular cross-section attached to a load, as shown in Fig. 1.1. [Figure 1.1] When ...
A student investigates how the viscous force in a liquid varies with temperature. The student releases a ball from the surface of the liquid in a c...
A student investigates springs made of metal wire, as shown in Fig. 1.1. cross-sectional area A metal wire Fig. 1.1 The student constructs sever...
What is not a reasonable estimate of the physical property indicated?
Which quantity could have units of Nm V⁻¹?
An object is acted upon by two forces, 10 N in the vertical direction and 6 N at 40° to the vertical, as shown. [Figure 3.1] What is the resultant ...
An analogue ammeter with a range of 0-250 mA is connected into an electrical circuit. The diagram shows the ammeter's display. [Figure 4.1] What is...
Students take readings of the volume of a liquid using three different pieces of measuring equipment X, Y and Z. The true value of the volume of th...
Which graph shows the variation with time t of the velocity v of an object falling vertically downwards in a vacuum?
A projectile is fired from point P with velocity V at an angle θ to the horizontal. It lands at point Q, a horizontal distance R from P. Air resist...
Four balls are dropped at the same time from the top of a very tall tower. There is no wind blowing. Which ball hits the ground first?
A nitrogen molecule P travelling at a speed of 320 m s⁻¹ in a vacuum collides with a stationary nitrogen molecule Q. After the collision, P travels...
A charged particle is placed in a uniform field of force. The direction of the force on the particle is opposite to the direction of the field. Wha...
A disc of radius r is acted upon by two opposite forces, each of magnitude F. The forces form a couple, as shown. [Figure 12.1] What is the torque ...
A uniform square sign of weight 40 N is suspended vertically from its top edge by a horizontal hinge, as shown. [Figure 13.1] The hinge is not fric...
Each foot of an elephant has a circular cross-section with a circumference of 1.4 m. The elephant has a mass of 5400 kg. The elephant is standing s...
A stone is falling vertically through the air at a constant (terminal) velocity. Which energy change is occurring?
An object of weight 12 N rests on a platform on top of a container with two pistons, as shown. The container contains a fixed mass of gas, and the ...
A constant force F, acting on a car of mass m, moves the car up a slope through a distance s at constant velocity v. The angle of the slope to the ...
What is the definition of power?
A steel bar of circular cross-section is under tension T, as shown. [Figure 19.1] The diameter of the wide portion is double the diameter of the na...
Two guitar strings are stretched by tensile forces. String X is stretched by a tensile force F that causes an extension x. String Y is stretched by...
Two particles in a progressive wave are a distance 10 cm apart. The two graphs show the variation with time t of the displacement d of the two part...
A sound wave is detected by a microphone that is connected to a cathode-ray oscilloscope (CRO). The screen of the CRO displays a waveform, as shown...
A person stands at the side of a straight railway track. A train moves towards the person and emits sound from its whistle. The person hears a soun...
Which list shows electromagnetic waves in order of decreasing frequency?
A pipe of length L is open at one end and closed at the other end. A loudspeaker is at the open end and emits a sound wave into the pipe. [Figure 2...
Which diagram best shows how water waves diffract when they pass through a gap in a barrier?
In a two-source interference experiment, light of a single frequency is incident on a double slit. The light waves emerging from the slits are cohe...
A parallel beam of light consists of light of wavelength 420 nm and light of wavelength 630 nm. The light is incident normally on a diffraction gra...
A positively charged particle P is in an electric field, as shown. [Figure 30.1] The field lines (lines of force) are evenly spaced and parallel. W...
The diagram shows two parallel metal plates P and Q, separated by a distance of 5.0 mm. There is a potential difference of 700 V between the plates...