Unit 5 Revision Checklist

Unit 5: Check List Thermal Energy – Heat and Temperature: 

Understand what is specific heat capacity

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Remember the equation linking energy change and specific heat capacity:

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Remember the units for specific heat capacity

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Experiment on how to measure the specific heat capacity for both solid and liquid

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Understand the difference between heat and temperature

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Understand the concept of absolute temperature scale

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Understand what is absolute zero

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How to convert Kelvin to degrees Celsius and vice versa

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Understand what is internal energy

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Understand the difference between heating and working

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Understand and draw graphs of substances being heated and know from the graph where change of state is occurring

Thermal Energy – Gas Laws and Kinetic Theory: 

Understand the concept of pressure

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Equation of pressure for any fluid and pressure as force acting per unit area

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Understand Boyle’s Law as it links pressure with volume and remember the equation for it

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Remember the graphs for Boyle’s Law

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Condition for Boyle’s Law

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Understand the Pressure Law and how it connects pressure with temperature and remember the equation for it

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Condition for the Pressure Law

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Remember the graphs for the Pressure Law

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Know the difference between ideal gas and real gas

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Understand how Boyle’s Law and Pressure Law is combined to make the equation of state for an ideal gas

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Know that the equation of state is the same as the ideal gas equation

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Understand that the internal energy of an ideal gas is the sum of the kinetic and potential energy of the particles within it

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Understand the speed distribution curve for gases and how it depends on the temperature of the gas

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Explain what happens to the particles when the temperature increases (three points to cover)

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Know that the random distribution of the speed of gas particles means their kinetic energy are also randomly distributed

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Understand the distribution depends on temperature

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Equation for the kinetic energy of particles in a gas

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Explain why the kinetic energy is average

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Know that the average kinetic energy is proportional to the absolute temperature and how to derive it

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Understand how the kinetic energy, absolute temperature and internal temperature are linked

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Unit 5: Check List Nuclear Physics – Radioactivity: 

Explain what is background radiation

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Name the sources of background radiation

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Explain the cause of radioactivity

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Explain what are the meaning of “spontaneous” and “random” to describe the nature of radioactivity

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Remember the symbol, constituents, relative charge, relative mass of alpha, beta and gamma particles

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Remember the ionising power, speed, penetrating power of alpha, beta and gamma radiations

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What happens to alpha and beta particles due to their different ionising properties and how this can be used

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Remember the equations for alpha and beta decay

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Understand what is an isotope

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Understand what is meant by the activity of an isotope

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Know the formula for activity and its units

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Explain what is the decay constant

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Learn the definition for half-life

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Formula for half-life

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Graph for activity vs. Time

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Know the equations for decay

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Know the uses for radioactive isotopes

Nuclear Physics – Nuclear physics: 

Explain the concept of binding energy

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Explain the concept of mass defect

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Understand how mass defect and binding energy are inter-related using mass – energy equivalence equation

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Explain the significance of binding energy per nucleon

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Interpret the graph for binding energy per nucleon vs. mass number

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Explain why ultimately all unstable nuclei turn into iron nuclei

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Explain the process of fission and how it is initiated

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Explain the process of fusion and how it is initiated

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Explain how nuclear fission reactors work

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Explain the mechanism of a fusion reactor and the need for high densities of matter and high temperature to bring it about and maintain it

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Unit 5: Check List Oscillations – Simple Harmonic motion: 

Define simple harmonic motion (SHM) in terms of acceleration and displacement

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Understand there is always a restoring force pulling or pushing the object back towards the midpoint

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Understand the size of the restoring force depends on the displacement and the force makes the object accelerate towards the midpoint

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Understand that the restoring force makes the object change its potential and kinetic energy

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Explain the energy changes during simple harmonic motion

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Explain the graph of energy against displacement for an object undergoing SHM (PE + KE)

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Explain the graph of energy against time for an object undergoing SHM (PE + KE)

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Understand and explain the equations for simple harmonic motion in terms of angular frequency and time

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Draw the graphs for displacement, velocity and acceleration against time graphs for a body undergoing SHM

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Understand that the frequency and period does not depend the amplitude

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Know the time period and formula for a mass – spring system as a simple harmonic oscillator

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Know the time period and formula for a simple pendulum as a simple harmonic oscillator

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Understand that T does not depend on the mass and amplitude of the simple pendulum

Oscillations – Free, damped and forced oscillations: 

Define the terms: free, damped and free oscillations

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Define the conditions for : free, damped and free oscillations

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Define driving and driven system

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Define resonance

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Define the condition for resonance

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Understand, explain and draw the graph of amplitude against driving frequency

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Explain the effects of different amounts of damping: light, heavy, critical and overdamping

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Explain how damping affects resonance and draw the different curves of amplitude to driving frequency graphs

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Unit 5: Check List Astrophysics and Cosmology – Universal Gravitation: 

Understand that masses in a gravitational field experience a force of attraction

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Know the equation relating Newton’s Law of Gravitation

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Understand what is a uniform gravitation field

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Know the equation for gravitational field strength

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Understand that the gravitational field strength “g” varies from place to place

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Understand how the field strength varies with distance away from a point mass

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Understand the similarities and differences between gravitational and electric fields

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Understand that energy is transferred when a mass or charge moves between equipotentials in a field

Astrophysics and Cosmology – Astrophysics: 

Know the different methods to determine astronomical distances

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Define what is a parallax

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Understand and explain the trigonometric parallax method to measure stellar distances

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Understand the concept of standard candle and know what is a Cepheid variable

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Understand the standard candle method of measuring astronomical distances

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Define the AU (astronomical unit) ,the light-year and the parsec

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Understand how the luminosity of a star depends on its temperature and surface area given by the Stefan – Boltzmann relationship

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Understand what is a black body

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Recall what is absorption spectra and how gases absorb particular wavelengths

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Understand how the peak wavelength gives the temperature of the star given by Wien’s law

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Know how to interpret the Hertzprung – Russell diagram

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Understand that the Hertzprung – Russell diagram is a luminosity vs. temperature curve for stars

Astrophysics and Cosmology – Cosmology: 

Explain the life cycle of stars

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Explain what is a main sequence star and know the different stages of stellar evolution

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Understand that main sequence stars become red giants when they run out of fuel

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Understand that low mass stars produce white dwarfs

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Understand and explain how high mass stars may have different terminal life stages

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Know what is a neutron star and its properties

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Explain how neutron stars and supernova are produced

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Explain how the Doppler Effect is used to find the distance of galaxies and age of the universe

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Understand the Hubble’s Constant

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Use the Hubble’s constant to find the age of the observable universe

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Understand that the expanding universe gives rise to the Big Bang theory

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Know the different possible outcomes of how the universe will be depending on the critical density

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