P1 Revision Notes

Physics Core science revision notes P1 AQA
Abdullah Ahmed All rights reserved

Copyright 2011 2012

Infrared radiation
Every object emits infrared radiation.
The hotter an object is, the more infrared radiation it gives out.
Radio waves, microwaves, infrared radiation, visible lights,
ultraviolet waves and X-rays are all parts of the
electromagnetic spectrum.
Electromagnetic waves are electrical and magnetic waves that
travel through space.
The sun emits all types of electromagnetic radiation.
Fortunately the earth blocks most of the harmful radiation.
The earths atmosphere acts as a greenhouse made out of
glass.
In a greenhouse short wavelength infrared radiation and light
from the sun, can be passed through the glass to warm up the
objects inside the greenhouse.
Infrared radiation from these warm objects is trapped inside by
the glass. This is because the objects infrared of longer
wavelengths cannot pass through the glass.
So the greenhouse stays warm.
Gases in the atmosphere such as water vapour, methane and
carbon dioxide trap infrared radiation from the earth. This
makes the earth warmer.
If the earth becomes too warm, the polar ice caps will melt
causing sea levels to rise.
Surfaces and radiation
Light shiny surfaces emit less radiation than dark matt
surfaces.

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Dark matt surfaces are better at emitting radiation than light
shiny surfaces.
Darker surfaces absorb more infrared radiation than lighter
surfaces.
Light surfaces reflect more radiation then dark surfaces.
States of matter
Flow, shape, volume, and density are the properties used to
describe each state of matter.
When the temperature of a solid is increased, the particles
move faster.
The particles in solids, liquids and gases have different
amounts of energy. Gases have more energy than liquids. And
liquids have more energy than solids.
Conduction
Metals conduct energy better than non-metals.
Metals contain a lot of free electrons.
These electrons move at random inside the metal and hold the
positive ions together. They collide with each other and with
the positive ions. These electrons diffuse, and collide with free
electrons.
As a result these transfer kinetic energy to the electrons and
ions.
Convection
Convection happens whenever we heat fluids.
Fluids are liquids or gases.
Hot fluid rises, and cold fluid falls down or sinks.
Convection is due to convection currents.

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Most fluids expand when heated. So when they are heated
they become less dense, therefore rising. When they reach the
top they cool down and become denser, and therefore sink.
These are called convection currents.
Evaporation and condensation
Water molecules escape form the surface of the water and
enter the air. This continues until the water is evaporated.
Weak attractive forces exist between the molecules in a liquid.
Faster molecules will have more kinetic energy. These will
break away the attraction of other molecules. These escape
from the liquid. This is true for cooling by evaporation.
After they leave, the liquid is cooler because average kinetic
energy is decreased.
To increase the rate of evaporation you can:
Increase the surface area.
Increasing the temperature.
Create a drought of air.
To increase the rate of condensation you can:
Increase the surface area.
Reduce the temperature.
Energy transfer by design
The bigger the temperature difference between an object and
its surroundings, the faster the rate at which energy is
transferred.
Rate of energy transfer depends on design:
If it is in contact with another object.
The objects shape.

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The objects surface area.
Specific heat capacity
Metals heat up
Than non-metals.
Temperature rise depends on:
The amount of energy supplied to it.
The mass of a substance.
What the substance is.
The specific heat capacity of a substance is the energy needed
or energy transferred to 1kg of the substance to raise its
temperature by 1
o
C.
The unit for specific heat capacity is joule per kilogram per
o
C.
For a known change of temperature of a known mass is:
E = mc

Heating and insulating buildings
Energy transfer from our homes can be reduced by fitting:
Loft insulation
Cavity wall insulation
Double glazing
Draught proofing
E = the energy
transferred in joules.
M = mass in kilograms. C = the specific heat
capacity J/kg
o
C.
= temperature change
in
o
C.


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Aluminium foil behind radiators.
U-values are the energy per second that passes through one
square metre of material when the temperature difference is
across it is 1
o
C.
The lower the u-value, the better the insulator.
Solar heating panels do not use fuel to heat water, but are very
expensive to buy and install.
Forms of energy
Chemical energy is stored in fuel including food. The energy is
then released when chemical reactions take place.
Kinetic energy is the movement of an object.
Gravitational potential energy is the energy of an object due to
its position.
Elastic potential energy is stored in a springy object when we
stretch or squash it.
Electrical energy is the energy transferred by an electric
current.
Energy is never destroyed but can be transferred from one
form to another.
Conservation of energy
Energy cannot be created or destroyed.
This is true for all types of energy.
Useful energy
Useful energy is the energy transferred to where its wanted to
go.
Wasted energy is the energy where it is not usefully
transferred.

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Wasted energy is dissipated to its surroundings.
Energy becomes less useful the more it spreads to its
surroundings. It also makes it more difficult for further energy
transfer to take place.
Energy and efficiency
Input energy = useful energy + energy wasted.

( )
This means the greater the percentage, the more efficient the
device is.
Electrical power
The more powerful an appliance is, the faster the rate at which
energy is transferred.
We can calculate the power of an object using this:
()
( )
( )

Fuel for electricity
Burning fuel produces steam. The steam is used to turn a
turbine that turns an electricity generator.
Methane gas is an example of a biofuel.
Biofuel is obtained from a living organism, such as a plant or an
animal.
A biofuel is renewable, and in theory, carbon neutral.
The fuel in a nuclear power station is uranium and plutonium.
These fuels are normally used because their atom is very
unstable and can split in two. Energy is released when this
happens. This is called nuclear fission.

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Because there are a lot of uranium atoms the core gets very
hot.
Energy from wind and water
Wave and wind power are a renewable source.
These are carbon free to run.
Power from the sun and the earth
We can use the suns energy to heat water directly in solar
heating panels.
Geothermal energy comes from energy released by
radioactive substances deep within the earth.
Water pumped into hot rocks produce steam to drive
turbines that generate electricity.
Energy and the environment
When any fossil fuel is burnt, greenhouse gases are released
into the atmosphere. These gases cause global warming.
Burning fossil fuels can produce sulphur dioxide, this causes
acid rain.
Fossil fuels are non-renewable.
Carbon capture and storage can be used to stop carbon
dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.
Nuclear power releases no greenhouse gases. It produces more
energy than fossil fuels.
However, nuclear power stations produce radioactive waste. If
an explosion occurred, radioactive material will be released
and may affect the environment for a very long time.
(Chernobyl)
Renewable energy sources will never run out.

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They do not produce greenhouse gases or acid rain. No
radioactive material is released, they can also be used
anywhere.
However noise pollution is apparent, they are ugly, they can
destroy habitats and solar cells take a lot of space.
The national grid
Electricity supplied to our homes reaches us through the
national grid.
The national grid is a network of wires and power stations that
supply electricity to buildings and homes.
Transformers are used to increase or decrease the voltage to
make the system more efficient.
Step up transformers increase the voltage and decrease the
current. This makes the system more efficient because
transmitting electricity at high voltage reduces power loss.
Step down transformers are used at local substations and
homes or decrease the voltage, and increase the current, thus
making the electricity suitable for home or office use.
The electrical power supplied to any appliance depends on its
voltage and current.
Big energy issues
Demand for electricity is much higher in the summer.
The start-up time for each type of power station is variable.
Natural gases take the quickest to start up. Then comes oil,
coal, and then nuclear. Nuclear power stations take the longest
to start up.

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Renewable energy sources are unreliable. This is because the
amount of electricity they generate depends on these
conditions:
Hydroelectric Reservoir could dry up.
Wind; waves Winds and waves can be weak sometimes.
Tidal Height of a tidal wave varies from time to time.
Solar Solar energy is unavailable in the night.

Nuclear, oil and gas provide constant amounts of electricity.
The nature of waves
We use waves to transfer energy and information.
There are different types of waves. These can be mechanical
waves and electromagnetic waves.
Mechanical waves consist of sound waves, water waves, waves
on springs, ropes and seismic waves. These types of waves
travel through a medium.
Light waves, radio waves, microwaves are examples of
electromagnetic waves. These travel at the same speed. No
medium is needed. These can travel through a vacuum.
There are two types of mechanical waves. Transverse waves
and longitudinal waves.
Transverse waves travel up and down. They travel
perpendicular in which the waves transfer energy.
Transverse waves oscillate up and down.
Longitudinal waves travel from side to side, like a slinky.
In a longitudinal wave there are areas of compression and
rarefaction. Compression is where the waves are compressed;
close to each other hence the name. Rarefaction is the

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opposite. It is when the waves are not compressed but spread
out.
Longitudinal waves travel parallel to the direction they are
travelling.
Measuring waves
Amplitude of a wave is the height of a wave from the middle to
the top.
The bigger the amplitude the more energy and information the
waves can carry.
The wavelength of a wave is the distance from one wave crest
to the next.
The number of waves passing fixed point is known as the
frequency.
Straight waves are called plane waves.
Plane waves are waves that maintain a constant speed and a
constant distance between each wave crest.
The speed of the wave is the distance travelled by a wave crest
every second.
To work out the speed of a wave, use the formula below:
() () ()
Wave properties: reflection
A line that is perpendicular to the mirror or a medium is called
a normal.
The angle of incidence is the angle between the incident ray
and the normal.
The angle of reflection is the angle between the reflection line
and the normal.

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This means that the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of
reflection.
An image formed on a plane mirror is virtual and upright. A
virtual image cannot be projected onto a screen.
An image on a screen is described as a real image.
Wave properties: refraction
The change of direction of a wave is known as refraction.
Remember khan academy. Remember the car method.
Wave properties: diffraction
Diffraction is the spreading of the waves when they pass
through a gap or past the edges of an obstacle. Once this is
happened, these waves will diffract. This will mean that it will
spread out.
The amount that it will spread out depends on the wideness of
the gap of the certain obstacle.
The wider the gap, the less it will spread out.
The narrower the gap, the more it will spread out.
Diffraction can be a problem in optical instruments.
The lens of an optical instrument needs to be as wide as
possible to maintain the best quality of the image. This is
because the light will diffract less therefore making the image
clearer.
Ultrasonic sound waves are waves that possess sound
frequencies that are above the range of the human ear.
Sound
Any object vibrating in the air makes the layers of the air near
the object vibrate. These layers make the layers of other layers

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that are further away to vibrate. These vibrations consist of
compressions and rarefactions. This process continues until it
reaches you eardrum.
Sound waves cannot travel through a vacuum as there are no
molecules.
Echoes are a result of smooth surfaces reflecting the sound.
If there is a fabric coated wall, no echoes will be heard as it will
absorb the sound instead of reflecting it.
If the wall surface is uneven or not smooth no echoes will be
heard. This is because the uneven surface scatters the sound
and breaks it up.
The warmer the air, the greater the speed of sound.
At night you can hear a sound from a long distance due to this:
Sound waves refract back to the ground instead of going
further away from the source.
In the daytime sound is refracted upwards, not downwards
because the air nearer to the bottom is warmer than the air
higher up.
Musical sounds
Increasing the loudness of a sound increases the waves
amplitude. This means that the length of the wave will
increase.
Increasing the frequency of a sound increases the pitch. This
means that there will be more waves per second.
Electromagnetic spectrum
Electromagnetic waves are electric and magnetic disturbances
that transfer energy from one place to another.
Electromagnetic waves do not transfer matter.

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The amount of energy they transfer depends on the
wavelength of the wave.
The electromagnetic spectrum is as follows: radio waves,
microwaves, infrared radiation, visible light, ultraviolet, x-rays
and gamma rays.
The electromagnetic spectrum ascends in wavelength.
All electromagnetic waves travel at the same speed.
300000000 m/s through space. Three hundred million.
As the wavelength decreases through the electromagnetic
spectrum, the energy and frequency increase as a result.
Light, infrared, microwaves and radio waves
The hotter an object, the more infrared radiation it emits.
Infrared radiation is absorbed by the skin and damages healthy
skin and tissues.
Optical fibres in communication systems use infrared instead of
light. This is because infrared is absorbed less than light,
therefore making the quality better.
Remote controls, infrared scanners and cameras use infrared.
Microwaves are used for communications because they can
circumnavigate the atmosphere and reach the satellites above.
We also use them to beam signals from one place to another.
This is because they spread out less than radio waves.
Microwaves and radio waves are used in mobile phone signals.
Radio waves are used for radio, TV broadcasting and radio
communications
Communications
The radio and microwave spectrum is split into further bands
that differ in wavelength.

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The shorter the wavelength:
The more information they carry.
The smaller the range. This is because smaller wavelengths are
more absorbed in the atmosphere
The less they spread out. They diffract less.
Radio waves less than a metre are used for TV broadcasting
because they can carry more information than longer
wavelengths.
Radio waves of about a metre and up to 100m are used by local
radio stations and emergency services uses this wavelength
because the range is limited.
Radio waves of 100m and more are used for international and
national services because they have a longer range.
Mobile phone radiation is believed to cause cancer and brain
damage.
Optical fibres are very thin lines of glass. We use them to
transfer light or infrared radiation from one place to another.
The light rays cannot escape from the fibre because they are
reflected back when they touch the edge of the optical fibre.
Optical fibres can carry much more information. This is because
light has shorter wavelengths than radio waves.
Optical fibres are also more secure because they stay in the
fibre instead of escaping.
The expanding universe
The Doppler Effect is the change of the observed wavelength
and frequency.
The light waves are stretched out if something is moving away
from us. The wavelength of the waves is increased. We call this

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red shift because the spectrum of the light is shifted towards
the right side of the spectrum which is red.
The light waves are squashed together if something is moving
towards us. The wavelength of the waves is reduced. We call
this blue shift because the spectrum of light is shifted towards
the left which is blue.
The bigger the shift is, the more the waves are squashed
together. This means the faster the shift is. So this means that
the faster something is moving the bigger the shift.
The Doppler Effect can be seen when giving an ambulance
example.
As an ambulance approaches the sound waves that are being
sent out are squashed together, so the frequency is higher and
the wavelength shorter. Therefore there is a high pitch.
As an ambulance travels away from you the sound waves are
stretched out so there is lower frequency and a longer
wavelength. Therefore there is a low pitch.
The whole universe is expanding. This can be shown from red
shift.
The big bang
The universe is expanding. The big bang was therefore
invented to prove this. (except they flopped)
The big bang theory states that the universe is expanding from
just one big bang hence the name.
Space, time and matter were created with the big bang.
Cosmic background radiation can be only explained by the big
bang theory.
The universe will eventually head for a big yawn if the density
of the universe is under a certain amount.

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The universe will eventually head for a big crunch if the density
of the universe exceeds a certain amount. Or so they say.


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WARNING: This document is copyrighted. Any copiers will
face prosecution. All rights reserved Abdullah Ahmed

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Physics Core science revision notes P1 AQA

Abdullah Ahmed All rights reserved

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