PHYSICS

THE SYLLABUS IS ARRANGED IN SIX SECTIONS, VIZ:

1. PHYSICAL MEASUREMENT AND UNITS

2. MECHANICS

3. THERMAL PHYSICS AND KINETIC THEORY

4. WAVES AND LIGHT

5. ELECTRICITY AND MAGNETISM

6. THE PHYSICS OF THE ATOM

PHYSICAL MEASUREMENT AND UNITS

Physics is the study of matter and energy.

 FUNDAMENTAL QUANTITIES

In Physics five (5) quantities are taken as being BASIC or FUNDAMENTAL quantities. The fundamental
quantities are measured in standard units commonly called S.I. units. The list of fundamental quantities
and the respective S.I. units are as follows:

Fundamental Quantities S.I. Units

Name Symbol Name Symbol
Length l Metre m
Mass m Kilogram kg
Time t Second s
Temperature T Kelvin K
Current I Ampere A

Fundamental Quantities can be defined as those five (5) quantities which all other quantities are derived.
Physical Quantities are express as the product of a number and a unit e.g. 5Kg, 10s.

 DERIVED QUANTITIES AND UNITS

All quantities other than the five fundamental quantities are called Derived Quantities. Examples of
derived quantities are speed, area, volume, pressure, force, etc. Derived quantities are measured in units
derived from the fundamental units. These derived units are formed as a result of multiplication and/or
division of two or more fundamental units.

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For example, if speed equals distance/time calculate the speed of an object if it travels a distance of 12m
in 4s.
Speed = distance/time
= 12m/4s
= 3m/s the derived unit is m/s or ms-1
-1
= 3ms

Some derived units are too complicated to be written in terms of the basic units, as such, these derived
quantities have been given units named after famous scientists. Examples of these complicated units that
have been renamed are:

Quantity Unit Special Name (Unit)

-2
Force Kgms Newton (N)
Pressure Kgm-1s-2 Pascal (Pa)
Work Kgm2s-2 Joule (J)
Power Kgm2s-3 Watt (W)

Exercise 1

Determine the derived units for the following derived quantities

Derived Quantity Formula Derived Unit

Area = length(m) × width(m)

Volume = area ×height(m)

Speed = distance(m)/time(s)

Velocity = displacement(m)/time

Acceleration =velocity/time

Momentum = mass* velocity

Force =mass*acceleration

Pressure =force/area

 STANDARD FORM

This is a systematic and neat way of writing numbers especially if they are large or small. The format of
writing in standard form is such that only one non-zero digit is before the decimal, followed by
exponential notation (×10power) where the power can be positive or negative. Example

a. 500 012 = 5.00012 ×105

b. 1 000 000 = 1.0×106
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 c. 0.000 023 4 = 2.34×10-5
d. 0.04901 = 4.9×10-2
Steps to follow
1) Identify the decimal point in the given number
2) Count the number of places the decimal needs to move until only one non-zero digit to the left of
the decimal point is obtained
3) The number of times the decimal point moves is the value of the exponential power
4) If the decimal point moves to the right the sign of the power is negative (-ve); if the point moves
to the left the power is positive (+ve).

Exercise 2
Write the following in standard form
1. 235 000
2. 780 101
3. 82 000
4. 5 000 000
5. 65 000 000 000
6. 0.0023
7. 0.001 001
8. 0.987
9. 0.504
10. 480.30

Exercise 2.5
Write the following in normal form
1. 1.3 × 10-3 km
2. 4.2 × 105 m
3. 7.3 × 100
4. 1.01 × 10 4
5. 6.6 ×10 -2
6. 1.23 × 10 4
7. 2.3 × 10 7
8. 4.2 × 10 -5
9. 5.4 × 10 -6
10. 4.04 ×10 -4

 SIGNIFICANT FIGURES
By writing numbers in significant figure we can show how certain we are about the accuracy of a
measurement; the significant digits are the digits in a measurement that are known to be precise. To
determine the number of significant digits, we follow certain rules.
1) Non-zero digits are always significant e.g. 1,2,3,4,…9
i) 2.1 has two (2) significant digits
ii) 48.3 has three(3) significant digits
2) Leading zeros i.e. zeros at the start of a number are never significant
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 i) 0.671 has three (3) significant digits
ii) 0.00023 has two (2) significant digits
3) Confined zeros i.e. zeros that appear between non-zero digits are always counted as significant
digits
i) 2004 has three (4) significant digits
ii) 380001 has six (6) significant digits
4) Trailing zeros i.e. zeros at the end of a number are significant ONLY if the number contains a
decimal point.
i) 265.00 has five (5) significant digits
ii) 26500 has three (3) significant digits
iii) 33.100 has five (5) significant digits

Exercise 3
Determine the number of significant digits in each number
1. 4787
2. 2350
3. 8018
4. 67100
5. 50001
6. 0.004
7. 0.034
8. 0.00950
9. 0.9020
10. 10.0

Multiplication and Division of Numbers

In multiplication and division, the final answer must not contain any more significant digits than the least
number of significant digits in the numbers used in the multiplication or division.
Example, 22.23×2.15 = 47.7945
Since, 22.23 has 4 significant digits and 2.15 has 3 significant digits, the least significant digits are three
(3). Therefore the final answer has to be three significant digits. So the initial answer of 47.7945 has six
(6) significant digits, it follows then that the final answer should be 47.8. However, at times, it is not as
clear cut in changing from a number that has a great number of significant digits to a number that has a
lesser number of significant digits and vice versa.

Exercise 4
Write each number to (i) 2 significant digits
(ii) 3 significant digits

1. 23456
2. 5780
3. 12.23
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 4. 0.03331
5. 3297.023
6. 0.00100
7. 18.9

 PREFIXES

Prefixes are used to express very large (multiple) or very small (sub-multiple) units. The prefixes that are
commonly used are:
Prefix Value Symbol
Multiples Mega 1 000 000 = 1×106 M
3
Kilo 1 000 = 1×10 k
Sub-Multiples Nano 0.000 000 001= 1×10-9 n
Micro 0.000 001 = 1×10-6 µ (mu)
-3
Milli 0.001 = 1×10 m
Centi 0.01 = 1×10-2 c

Example
a. 1 000 000m = 1×106 m
= 1Mm
b. 40 000 Hertz = 4.0×104 Hz
= 40kHz
c. 0. 000 000 001s = 1×10-9 s
= 1ns
-6
d. 30µg = 30×10 g
= 0.000 03g

Exercise 5
Use appropriate multiples/sub-multiples to express the following numbers
1. 1×106 Metres
2. 5.0×10-9 Seconds
3. 2.3×106 Bytes
4. 0.49×103 Grams
5. 5.1×106 Hertz
6. 0.000 002 Seconds
7. 17 000 Grams
8. 0.008 Metres
9. 2 000 Newton’s

Conversion

It is of vital importance that one can convert from one prefix to another. The prefixes of concern,
however, are the milli (metre, grams), centi (metre, grams), and Kilo (metre, grams).

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RECALL
milli (metre,grams, litre, …)
centi(metre,grams, litre, …)
deci(metre,grams, litre, …)
(metre,grams, litre, …)
deca (metre,grams, litre, …)
hecto (metre,grams, litre, …)
kilo (metre,grams, litre, …)

Exercise 6
Convert
I. 10mm = _________m
II. 15mm = __________cm
III. 0.012Km = _________mm
IV. 2m = _______ mm
V. 30m = ________cm
VI. 7Km = _______m
VII. 33cm = _______m

*Show that 1m2 = 10 000 cm2 or 1cm2 = 0.000 1 m2

When converting from cm3 to m3 you divide by 1,000,000

Example
69,000,000 cm3 = x m3
x= 69,000,000 / 1,000,000 = 69 m3
When converting from m3 to cm3 you multiply by 1,000,000

Example
7m3 = xcm3
x= 7 ×1,000,000
x= 7,000,000 cm3
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 What if I was converting from mm2 to m2?
When converting from mm to m2 you divide by 1,000,000
2

When converting from m2 to mm2 you multiple by 1,000,000

When converting from g/cm3 to Kg/m3

1000g = 1kg
1,000,000 cm3 = 1m3
1000/1,000,000 g/cm3 = 1/1 Kg/m3
1/1000 g/cm3 = 1 kg/m3
1000 × (1/1000) g/cm3 = 1000 kg/m3
1g/cm3 = 1000 kg/m3

Example
3 g/cm3= x kg/m3
x= 3×1000
x= 3000 kg/m3

When converting from kg/m3 to g/cm3 you divide by 1000

When converting from m/s to km/hr you multiply by 3.6

When converting from km/hr to m/s you divide by 3.6

Example
Convert the following
36km/hr = x m/s
x= 36/3.6
x=10 m/s

 SCALES

The scale reading of an instrument is meaningless unless that instrument or its scale has been calibrated.
Calibration essentially involves the checking of the scale of an instrument against some accepted standard
to ensure accuracy of its readings.

Linear and non-Linear Scales

A linear scale is one in which equal changes in the value of the physical quantity being measured are
indicated by equal changes on the scale of the measuring instrument. A non-linear scale is one in which
equal changes in the value of the physical quantity being measured are indicated by unequal changes on
the scale of the measuring instrument.

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Analogue and Digital Scales
An analogue scale is one in which a pointer continuously deflects over a calibrated scale. A digital scale
is one in which has a digital decimal light emitting diode (LED) or liquid crystal display (LCD). The
reading on a digital scale cannot change continuously from one to the next but does so by making small
“jumps” from one to the next.

Criteria for choosing suitable instruments

 Accuracy is “the extent to which errors inherent in the apparatus or procedure adopted are
appreciated and reduced in the final result”.
 Precision is “the intention to make observation with the greatest exactitude”.
 Sensitivity is “the response of an instrument to a unit change in input. The larger the response, the
more sensitive the instrument”.
 Range is “the interval between the maximum and minimum values of a quantity that the
instrument can measure”.

 DENSITY

Assignment: Describe an experiment on how to find the volume of an irregular object using the
displacement method.

One often hears the expression “as light as a feather” and as “heavy as lead”. Similarly, in everyday
language lead is said to be heavier than wood. This is because a certain volume of lead is always heavier
than the same volume of wood. In Physics, we refer to the lightness or heaviness of different material by
the use of the word density. The density of an object is measured using a beam balance or a lever balance.
Density is defined as the mass per unit volume of a substance. (Mass is the measure of the amount of
matter in it; and volume can be defined as the space an object occupies).
Density = Mass/ Volume, the S.I. unit of density is the Kg/m 3. Another unit is gcm-3. The symbol
for density is the Greek letter rho (ρ).

Exercise7
QUESTION:
1. Calculate the density of a piece of metal of mass 500 Kg and volume of 2m 3.
2. If an object has a volume of 15m3 and a mass of 110 Kg, calculate its density.
3. What is the density of a ball that has a mass of 600 g and a volume of 6 cm 3.
4. Calculate the density of a wooden cube of length 5cm and mass of 100g.
i) Express the answer in units of g/cm3.
ii) Express the answer in units of Kg/m3.
5) If the density of an object is 12 Kg/m3 and its mass is 300 Kg, what would its volume be?

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Relative Density.
A difficult but closely related concept to density is the concept of “relative density”. As its name
suggests, relative density is a quantity which compares the density of a substance with that of another
common substance, water (Density of water is 1000 Kgm -3 or 1 gcm-3). Thus relative density is a measure
of how many times the substance is as dense as water and is defined by the equation,

Relative Density, RD = Density of substance/Density of water

Also = Mass of substance/Mass of water if Vs = Vw

Relative density has no unit. Any substance that has relative density of one (1) or less is able to float in
water. If R.D. is greater than one (1) the substance will sink in water.
Exercise 8
QUESTION:
1. If the density of a body is 4 gcm-3 and that of water is 1 gcm-3, what is the relative density of the
body?
2. The relative density of a substance is 0.76, what is the density of the substance? Would the
substance sink or float in water?
3. When a stone is thrown into some water it sinks. Qualitatively explain why the stone sinks in the
water.

 GRAPHS
1. Choosing the correct axis
a. The first variable mentioned goes on the ‘vertical’ axis. Example, if told to plot a graph of ‘a’
against ‘b’, then ‘a’ is plotted on the y-axis. The independent variable is plotted on the x-axis.
2. Choosing a suitable scale for each axis.
a. Scales are chosen to ensure that the graph occupies as much of as the graph page as it can
without making the scale awkward to use.
b. A scale which is not awkward is easy to read and makes points easy to plot and read-off.
c. Broken scales may be used unless an intercept has to be found.
3. Labeling
a. The title of the graph must be given.
b. Each axis must be labelled with quantity/ unit. Example, force/ Newton
c. Axes should have scale markings every 2 cm or less
4. Plotting
a. All recorded readings must be plotted
b. Point must be FINE circle dots
c. Plotted readings must not be rounded off
5. Best fit
a. To obtain the best curve or straight line from a scatter of points, the line is to be drawn so that
PERPENDICULAR DISTANCE of points on one side of the line when added (by inspection)
gives the same total as those taken from the other side.
b. The best fit line need not pass through any of the plotted points.
c. A thin line must be drawn.
6. Gradient
a. A large triangle must be drawn (where hypotenuse must be greater than half the length of the
line).
b. The gradient is calculated from (change in vertical/ change in horizontal).
c. Gradients have units. If both axes have the same unit, the gradient is a pure number.
d. The read-off must be from the graphs and not from the table.
e. The read-off must be to the same number and significant digits as the plotted readings.

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7. Intercept.
a. The intercept is read directly off the graph.
b. Do not use a broken scale if intercept has to be found.
c. Intercepts have units which are the same as those for the axis cut.
d. The read-off must be to the same number of significant digits of the plotted readings.
e. The intercept must not be calculated from the equation y = mx + c
8. Interpretation of graphs
a. The measured quantities are DIRECTLY PROPOTIONAL: a straight line pass through the
origin is produced.
b. There is a linear relationship, BUT NOT PROPOTIONALITY: a straight line which cuts an
axis is produced.
c. There is a NON-LINEAR relationship: a curve is produced.

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