Chapter 1: Introduction to PhysicsPhysical quantities

QUANTITIES that are measurable

Base quantities
PHYSICAL QUANTITIES that cannot be defined in terms of other physicalquantities but has
its own definition
Derived quantities
PHYSICAL QUANTITIES that are derived from base quantities by multiplication ordivision or
both
Scientific notation/standard form
POWERS of the base number 10 to show a very large or small number
Prefixes
GROUP OF LETTERS placed at the beginning of a word to modify its meaning,which act as
multipliers
Scalar quantity
QUANTITY which has only magnitude or size(time, temperature, mass, volume, distance,
density, power)
Vector quantity
QUANTITY which has both magnitude or size and direction(force, velocity, displacement,
acceleration, momentum)
Error
DIFFERENCE between actual value of a quantity and the value obtained inmeasurement
Systematic errors
CUMULATIVE ERRORS that can be corrected, if the errors are known.(zero error, incorrect
calibration of measuring instrument)
Random errors
ERRORS that arise from unknown and unpredictable variations in condition, andwill produce a
different error every time. Random errors are caused by factorsthat are beyond the control of
observers.(human limitations, lack of sensitivity, natural errors, wrong technique)
Zero error
ERROR that arises when the measuring instrument does not start from exactlyzero
Parallax error
ERROR in reading an instrument because the observer’s eyes and the pointer arenot in a line
perpendicular to the plane of scale
Measurement
PROCESS of determining value of a quantity using a scientific instrument with astandard scale
Consistency
ABILITY to register the same reading when a measurement is repeated(improve – eliminates
parallax error, greater care, not detective instrument)
Accuracy
DEGREE to which a measurement represents the actual value(improve – repeat readings, avoid
parallax/zero error, high accuracy instrument)
Sensitivity
ABILITY to detect quickly a small change in the value of a measurement(thermometer – thin
wall bulb, narrow capillary)
Inferences
EARLY CONCLUSION that you draw from an observation or event usinginformation that you
already have on it
Hypothesis
GENERAL STATEMENT that is assumed to be true regarding the relationshipbetween the
manipulated variable and responding variable

Chapter 2: Forces and MotionDistance

how far a body travels during motion
Displacement
CHANGE IN POSITION of an object from its initial position in a specified direction
Speed
RATE OF CHANGE of distance
Velocity
RATE OF CHANGE of displacement
Mass
MEASURE of an object’s inertiaAMOUNT of matter in the object
Acceleration
RATE OF CHANGE of velocity
Inertia
PROPERTY of matter that causes it to resist any change in its motion or state of rest
Momentum
PRODUCT of mass and velocity
Force
pulling or a pushing ACTION on an object
Impulsive force
LARGE FORCE which acts over a very short time intervalRATE OF CHANGE in momentum
Gravity
FORCE originated from centre of the Earth that pulls all objects towards the ground
Free fall
FALLING of an object without encountering any resistance from a height towardsthe earth with
an acceleration due to gravity
Forces inequilibrium
An object is said to be in a state of equilibrium when forces act upon an object andit remains
stationary or moves at a constant velocity
Resultant force
SINGLE FORCE which combines two or more forces which act on an object
Work
Work is done when a force causes an object to move in the direction of the force.
Energy
CAPACITY of a system to do work
Gravitational Potential Energy
ENERGY STORED in the object because of its height above the earth surface
Elastic Potential energy
ENERGY STORED in the object as a result of stretching or compressing it
Kinetic energy
ENERGY possessed by a moving object
Power
RATE at which work is done or energy is changed and transferred
Efficiency
ABILITY of an electrical appliance to transform energy from one form to anotherwithout
producing useless energy or wastage
Elasticity
PROPERTY of an object that enables it to return to its original shape and dimensionsafter an
applied force is removed
Spring constant
FORCE needed to extend a spring per unit length
Elastic limit
MAXIMUM STRETCHING FORCE which can be applied to an elastic material before itceases to
be elastic
PRINCIPLEHooke’s Law
Hooke’s law states that the force, F applied to a spring is directly proportional tothe spring’s
extension or compression, x ,provided the elastic limit is not exceeded.
Principle ofconservation ofenergy
Principle of conservation of energy states that total energy in an isolated system isneither
increased nor decreased by any transformation. Energy cannot be creatednor destroyed, but it
can be transformed from one kind to another, and the totalamount stays the same.
Principle ofconservation ofmomentum
The principle of conservation of momentum states that, in any collision orinteraction between
two or more objects in an isolated system, the totalmomentum of the system will remain
constant; that is, the total initial momentumwill equal the total final momentum.
Newton’s firstlaw of motion
Newton’s first law of motion states that a body will either remain at rest orcontinue with
constant velocity unless it is acted on by an external unbalancedforce.
Newton’ssecond law ofmotion
Newton’s second law of motion states that the acceleration a body experiences isdirectly
proportional to the net force acting on it, and inversely proportional to itsmass.
F =ma

Newton’s thirdlaw of motion

Newton’s third law of motion states that to every action there is an equal butopposite reaction.

Chapter 3: Forces and PressurePressure

FORCE acting normally on a unit surface area
Gas pressure
FORCE per unit area exerted by the gas particles as they collide with the walls of their
container (due to the rate of change of momentum)
Buoyant force
NET FORCE acting upwards due to the difference between the forces acting onthe upper
surface and the lower surface
PRINCIPLELaw of Flotation
Law of floatation states that the weight of an object floating on the surface of aliquid is equal
to the weight of water displaced by the object.(weight of object = weight of water displaced)
Pascal’s Principle
Pascal’s principle states that a pressure applied to a confined fluid is transmitteduniformly in all
directions throughout the fluid.
Archimedes’principle
Archimedes’ principle states that the buoyant force on a body immersed in a fluidis equal to the
weight of the fluid displaced by that object(buoyant force = weight of water displaced)
Bernoulli’sprinciple
Bernoulli’s principle states that the pressure of a moving fluid decreases as thespeed of the
fluid increases, and the converse is also true
Chapter 4: HeatTemperature
DEGREE of hotness of an object
Thermometricproperty
PHYSICAL PROPERTY of a substance which is sensitive to and varies linearly with
thetemperature change
Thermalequilibrium
A STATE when heat transfer between the two objects are equal and the net rate of heat
transfer between the two objects are zero
Heat capacity
HEAT ENERGY required to raise its temperature by 1°C or 1 K
Specific heatcapacity
HEAT ENERGY required to produce 1°C or 1 K rise in temperature in a mass of 1 kg.
Latent heat
HEAT ABSORBED OR RELEASED when a substance changes its state without achange in
temperature is called the latent heat of the substance
Specific latentheat of fusion
HEAT ENERGY required to change 1 kg of a substance from solid state to liquidstate, without a
change in temperature
Specific latentheat ofvapourisation
HEAT ENERGY required to change 1 kg of a substance from liquid state to gaseousstate,
without a change in temperature
PRINCIPLEBoyle’s Law
Boyle’s Law states that the pressure of a fixed mass of gas is inversely proportionalto its
volume provided the temperature of the gas is kept constant(PV = k)
Pressure Law
The pressure law states that the pressure of a fixed mass of gas is directlyproportional to its
absolute temperature (in Kelvin), provided the volume of the gasis kept constant(P/T = k)
Charles’ Law
Charles’ law states that the volume of a fixed mass of gas is directly proportional toits absolute
temperature (in Kelvin), provided the pressure of the gas is keptconstant(V/T = k)

Chapter 5: LightRefraction
PHENOMENON where the direction of light is changed when it crosses theboundary between
two materials of different optical densities as a result of achange in the velocity of light.
Apparent depth
d , DISTANCE of the image from the surface of water (or the boundary betweenthe two
mediums involved)
Real depth,
D ,DISTANCE of the object from the surface of the water (or the boundarybetween the two
mediums involved)
Total internalreflection
TOTAL REFLECTION of a beam of light at the boundary of two mediums, whenthe angle of
incidence in the optically denser medium exceeds a specific criticalangle
Critical angle
GREATEST ANGLE OF INCIDENCE in the optically denser medium for which theangle of
refraction, r = 90°
Power of lens
MEASURE OF ITS ABILITY to converge or diverge an incident beam of light
PRINCIPLELaws of Reflection
-the angle of incidence, i, is equal to the angle of reflection, r (i = r)
-the incident ray, normal and reflected ray will all lie in the same plane
Law of Refraction
-The incident ray and the refracted ray are on the opposite sides of thenormal at the point of
incidence, all three lie in the same plane
-Obey snell’s law
Snell’s Law
The value of sin i/sin r is a constant.
IMAGE CHARACTERISTICS
Virtual
an image which cannot be projected (focused) onto a screen
Real
an image which can be projected (focused) onto a screen
Laterally inverted
an image which left and right are interchanged
Upright
an image which in vertical position
Diminished
image formed is smaller than the object
Magnified
image formed is larger than the object

Chapter 1 – WavesWaves
A TYPE OF DISTURBANCE produced by an oscillating or vibrating motion in which a point or body moves
back and forth along a line about a fixed central point produces waves.
Wavefront
LINE OR PLANE on which the vibrations of every points are in phase and are at the same
distance from the source of the wave.
In phase =
same direction, same displacemen

Transverse Wave
WAVE in which the vibration of particles in the medium is
perpendicular
to thedirection of propagation of the wave(water waves, light waves, electromagnetic waves)
Longitudinal Wave
WAVE in which the vibration of particles in the medium is
parallel to
the direction of propagation of the wave(sound waves, ultrasound)
Amplitude
MAXIMUM DISPLACEMENT form its equilibrium positionMEASURE of height of the wave crest or
depth of the wave trough.
Period
TIME TAKEN to complete an oscillation, from one extreme point to the other and backto the
same position.
Frequency
NUMBER OF COMPLETE OSCILLATIONS made by a vibrating system in one second
Wavelength, λ
DISTANCE between
successive points
of the same phase in a wave
Damping
DECREASE in the amplitude of an oscillating system is called damping.(Internal damping:
extension and compression of moleculesExternal damping: frictional force/ air resistance)a ↓ ; f =
Resonance
Resonance occurs when a system is made to oscillate at a frequency equivalent to its
natural frequency
by an external force. The resonating system oscillates at itsmaximum amplitude.
Natural frequency
FUNDAMENTAL FREQUENCY of which an object vibrates. It is the frequency of a
systemwhich oscillates freely without external force
Reflection of wave
Reflection of wave occurs when a wave strike an obstacledirection ≠ ; f = ; a = ; λ =
Refraction of wave
Refraction of wave occurs when a wave travel from one medium to anotherf = ; v ≠ ; λ ≠ ;
direction ≠
Diffraction of waves
PHENOMENON in which waves spread out as they passed through an aperture or rounda small
circlef = ; λ = ; speed = ; v ≠ ; direction ≠

Interference ofwaves
SUPERPOSITION of two waves originating from two
coherent
sourcescoherent =
same frequency, amplitude and in phase

Constructiveinterference
Constructive interference occurs when the both crests or both troughs of both wavescoincide
to produce a wave with crests and troughs of maximum amplitude
Destructiveinterference
Destructive interference occurs when the crest of one wave coincides with the troughof the
other wave, thus cancelling each other with the result that the resultantamplitude is zero

Antinode
POINT where constructive interference occurs.
Node
POINT where destructive interference occurs.
Electromagneticwaves
PROPAGATING WAVES in space with
electric
and
magnetic
components. Thesecomponents oscillate at right angles to each other and to the direction of
propagationof wave.
Monochromaticlight
LIGHT with only one wavelength and colour
PRINCIPLEPrinciple ofsuperposition
Principle of superposition states that at any instant, the wave displacement of thecombined
motion of any number of
interacting
waves at a point is the sum of thedisplacements of all the
components
waves at that point

Chapter 2 – ElectricityCharge, Q
WORK DONE to move a unit of voltage in a circuit
Current, I
RATE of flow of charge
Potentialdifference, V
WORK DONE in moving one coulomb of charge from one point to another in an electric field
Electric field
A FIELD in which electric charge experiences an electric forceA FIELD in which electric force
acts in a particle with electric charge
Circuit
CLOSED LOOP through which charge can continuously flow
Resistance, R
RATIO of the potential difference across the conductor to the current flowing through
itMEASURE of the ability of the conductor to resist the flow of an electric current through it
Superconductor
CONDUCTOR in which its resistance will suddenly become zero when it is cooled below acertain
temperature called the critical temperature
Electromotiveforce (e.m.f.)
TOTAL ENERGY supplied by a cell to move a unit of electrical charge from one terminal
to theother through the cell and the external circuit
Power rating
RATE at which it consumes electrical energy.
PRINCIPLEOhm’s Law
Ohm’s law states that the electric current,
I
flowing through a conductor is directlyproportional to the potential difference across the
ends of conductor, if temperature and otherphysical conditions remain constant. That is,
V directly proportional to I .

Chapter 3 – ElectromagnetismElectromagnet
DEVICE in which magnetism is produced by an electric currentTEMPORARY MAGNET which
acts as a magnet when the current is switched on and ceasesto be a magnet when the current is
switched off
Magnetic field
REGION in which a magnetic material experiences a force as the result of a magnet
or acurrent-carrying conductor
Radial field
MAGNETIC FIELD with the field lines pointing towards or away from the centre of a circle.
Electromagneticinduction
PRODUCTION of an electric current by a changing magnetic field (conductor cuts across
amagnetic flux –OR– a change of magnetic flux linkage with a coil)
Root mean squarecurrent/ voltage
VALUE of a steady current/ voltage, which would produce the same heating effect in
a givenresistor.
Transformer
EQUIPMENT to raise or lower the potential difference of an
alternating current
supply
PRINCIPLEFaraday’s Law
The magnitude of the induced electromotive force (e.m.f.) is directly proportional to therate of
change of magnetic flux linkage with the solenoid or the rate at which a conductorcuts through
the magnetic flux.
Lenz’s Law
Lenz’s law states that an induced electric current always flows in such a direction so as tooppose
the change (or motion) producing it

Chapter 4 – ElectronicsThermoionicemission
EMISSION of electrons from hot metal surface
Work function
MINIMUM ENERGY required to eject electrons from surface
Cathode ray
Fast moving ELECTRONS travel in a straight line in vacuum
Cathode rayoscilloscope
measuring and testing INSTRUMENT used in study of electricity and electronics
ConductorSemiconductorInsulator
MATERIAL which allows current to flow thorugh themMATERIAL whose resistance is
between good conductor and insulatorMATERIAL which does not conduct electric current
Junction voltage
POTENTIAL DIFFERENCE acting from n-type to p-type material of a diode across
the depletionlayer
Rectification
CONVERSION of a.c. to d.c. by diode
Smoothing
PROCESS where output is smoothed by connecting a capacitor across load that acts as
areservoir and maintains potential difference across load
Logic gates
ELECTRONIC SWITCHES with one or more inputs and one output
Chapter 5 – RadioactivityAtom
An atom consists of a nucleus which is made up of protons and neutrons, withelectrons orbiting
the nucleus.
Nuclide
TYPE of nucleus with particular proton number and nucleon number
Proton number
NUMBER of protons in the nucleus of an atom
Nucleon number
NUMBER of protons and neutrons in an atom
Isotopes
ATOMS of an element which have the same proton number but different nucleonnumber(similar
chemical properties but differs in physical properties)
Radioactivity
SPONTANEOUS DISINTEGRATION of
unstable
nucleus into a more
stable
nucleuswith the emission of energetic particles or protons
Radioactive decay
PROCESS where an unstable nucleus becomes a more stable nucleus by emittingradiations
Radioisotope
ISOTOPE that has unstable nucleus that tends to undergo radioactive decay
Half life
TIME TAKEN for the activity of atoms to fall to half its original valueTIME TAKEN for half
the atoms in a given sample to decay
Nuclear fission
PROCESS involving the splitting of a heavy nucleus into two nuclei of roughly equalmass and
shooting out several neutrons at the same time.
Nuclear fusion
PROCESS involving the fusion of two or more small and light nuclei come togetherto form a
heavier nucleus.
PRINCIPLEEinstein’s Principle ofMass-Energy Conservation
The change of energy is linked to the change of mass by the equation
E=mc2