A level PHYSICS and interactive simulations !

1.1  Motion:

1. Scalars           Vectors-phet        Addition         Parallelogram  rule        Tip to tail rule        Subtraction         Resolving a vector            The choice of frame

2. Position vector        Position-time graph           Displacement vector         Total displacement            Distance           Velocity as derivative          Distance and speed           Average  speed 

3. Velocity-time graph           Displacement as integral        Average speed          Average velocity             Acceleration as gradient 

4. Acceleration-time graph         Speed up is acceleration         Slow down is deceleration        Velocity as integral          

5. Two  dimensional  s.u.v.a.t             Projectile motion 

1.2  Forces:

1. Contact push       Tension is pull force          Spring force          Weight            Normal / Reaction force             Friction          Viscous drag          Upthrust/Buoyancy        Lift force

2. Free body diagram         Net force             

3. Zero net force          Velocity         Galileo Galilei        Invisible forces        

4. Cause and effect concept            Net force and acceleration            Terminal velocity

5. Inclined plane

6. Newton realization for action / reaction         on/by convention       Many bodies dynamics

1.3  Momentum:

1. Newton's second law via momentum            Changing mass            **Relativistic momentum           

2. Impulse of constant and time dependent force           Momentum and impulse

3. Variable force and average force         Average force via momentum            Impact force    

4. Systems          Total momentum         Condition for the conservation of the total momentum of a system                       Internal forces         Net external force           Collisions           Center of mass

5. Completely inelastic collisions

6. Explosions            Particle decay             Rocket motion            

1.4   Energy:    

1. Work       W= F|| * d         Positive and negative work      Scalars     Total work         Work of  position dependent force          WA,B      work done  on the body A  by  the force B    

2. Kinetic energy         Work energy theorem - change of the kinetic energy of a body  is equal to the total work done on it          Work is also  energy in transfer       ( WA )total   is positive  then body A is gains  kinetic energy    ( WA )total  is negative  then body A loses kinetic energy           Elastic collisions

3. What is a conservative force            Potential energy for conservative force   ( Uf -Ui ) = - W conservative force            Conservation of the mechanical energy       Emech = Ki +Ui = Kf +Uf     or      (Kf-Ki ) + (Uf-Ui) = 0         Gravitational potential energy         GPE = m*g*h        Energy skate park        Work of a non-conservative force          Non conservation of the  mechanical energy         Kf +Uf  =Ki +Ui + Wnon conservative          Isolated systems and conservation of the  total energy

4. Mechanical power    P = F * v      Engine has one input power and two types of  output power ( useful and waste )     Efficiency      ( eff ) * Pinput = Puseful 

5. **Potential energy as mutual energy       W1,2  +    W2,1    =  -   {Change of the mutual potential energy}

1.5   Circular motion:

1. Angle     degree      radian        grad      arc minute       arc second       Counter clockwise (positive)    Clock-wise(negative)             

2. Kinematics of uniform circular motion          x(t)       v(t)       a(t)       phi(t)     w(t)

   • Position vector           Angular displacement 

   • Angular speed     w=2*pi/T          Linear speed    v = w * R          Linear velocity

   • Centripetal acceleration      a = w^2 * R         Direction

3. Centripetal force     Conical pendulum         Banked motion          Artificial gravity

4. Non-uniform circular motion - angular speed is changing

5. Questions - angular kinematics Questions- circular dynamics

1.6   Statics:

1. Rigid body       Center of mass         Translational velocity       Moment/torque        Choosing   axis  for torque calculation       + & - Moments         Right hand rule           Couple

2. Static equilibrium for free body

   • Zero net force      and       No initial translational velocity

   • Zero net torque / moment       and      No initial spinning          

3. Three coplanar forces         Triangle of forces           Common intersection point         Ladder       Beam under tension       

4. Body with fixed  pivot axis         Net force is always zero and translational velocity is automatically zero

5. Force amplification      Lever      Fulcrum         Balance

1.7  Materials:

1. Static effect of a force on a body    Stress is force per unit area (pressure) Absolute deformation    Percent deformation (strain)

2. Tensile force is a stretching force.    Tensile force causes extension.   Tension is the response force accordingly to the Newton`s 3rd law. A tensile force creates a tensile stress. Loosely speaking if a tensile force is applied a body is under tension.

3. Compressive force is contracting/shrinking  force.    Compressive force causes compression. A body under compressive force will fight back by...    Tension  must not be used for compressive forces 

4. Shear force    Bending force

5. Stress-strain curve (force-extension graph)

   • Elastic region (deformation is reversible)

     • 1. Proportionality region    and    Hooks Law 

       2. Young modulus 

       3. Stiffness constant

   • Elastic limit

   • Yield point

   • Plastic region - deformation is permanent  ( dashed line is representing the unloading curve ) 

     • 1. If plastic region between Yield point(dashed line is almost vertical) the breaking point is big then the material is Malleable (easy to deform under hammering) and also  Ductile (easy  to deform under pressure)  

       2. Brittleness - very small plastic region before braking

Hardness is ability not to deform or how difficult is to make permanent surface deformation (indentation or scratch) (In a sloppy way  height of elastic limit)

5. • • 3. Toughness is ability to absorb energy (area of stress-strain curve)

   • Braking stress (UTS)

1.8  Fluids:

1. Density         Pressure        Upthrust force          Archimedes`  principle

5.1  Electric fields:

1. Electric charge        What neutral means?         Conservation of the charge          Charging  a dielectric by rubbing       Charging a conductor by induction       Coulomb's law

2. Definition of electric field          Units   for the magnitude          Direction

   • Motion of positive or negative charges in uniform electric field

   • Net force on a dipole 

   • Net torque on a dipole

3. Electric field  of point charges         Superposition principle

4.  Visualization of vector field by electric field lines - density and orientation

   • Sphere - radial field

   • Infinite  plane - uniform field

   • Electric dipole - dipole field

5. Metals           Surface charge density       Curvature          Faraday cage

6. Polarization of matter

5.2  Electric potential:  

1. Electric work         Definition of voltage        WA,B  / q =  VA,B         Calculations for uniform field       V = E * d

2. Electric potential of a point charge           Two charges on a line          Potential of many point charges     Potential of a sphere

3. Reason one: U = q * V         Electrostatic potential energy        (Change of K) + (Change of U) = 0         | change of K | = | q * pd |

4. Reason two:    E = - (gradient of the V )             Visualization of scalar  field by equipotential lines         Equipotential lines are perpendicular to the field lines      E is always in the direction  of the decreasing potential                Equipotential lines for uniform field            Positive and negative equipotential lines for point charge       Equipotential lines for a physical dipole       

5. **Electric work is path independent      Electric potential and reference point      VA = VRef  - ( WRef , A   / q )    Theorem: voltage is equal to potential difference    VA,B = VA - VB      Potential is relative, voltage/pd is absolute

5.3  Capacitor: Capacitor-phet

1. Metals        Charging by electron transfer       What is a capacitor?         Charge per unit voltage      Capacitance

2. Capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor         E is uniform         Disconnected capacitor - electric field  does not depend on the separation b/w the plates          Connected  capacitor           Energy of a capacitor      E = 0.5 Q * V

3. Discharging a capacitor

4. Charging a capacitor

5.4 Lorentz force:

1.  Direction and magnitude  of the magnetic force       F = q * ( v x B ) 

2. Motion in uniform magnetic field          m * v = q * B * r

3.  Magnetic work        Velocity selector        v =  E  / B              Mass spectrometer

4. Cyclotron                       

5.5 Magnetic force on a wire:

1. Magnitude of the magnetic force on a straight current carrying wire  in uniform magnetic field       F = (I*L ) x (B )        Right hand rule       Definition of Tesla unit 

2. Magnetic force between straight wires

3. Right hand rule for current and magnetic moment of a loop          Magnetic force on a  loop in a uniform magnetic field             DC motor with commutator and brushes

4. *Hall effect - edex  

5.6 Sources of the magnetic fields and visualization by field lines:

1. Magnetic field of a horseshoe magnet              Field lines start at north and end at south pole

2. Grip rule for the magnetic field of straight current carrying wire          Circular field       

3. RHR for the current and magnetic field of a loop           RHR for magnetic dipole      Dipole field           Bar magnet          

4. Magnetic field of solenoid          Grip rule for current and magnetic field            B = (mu) * n * I

5.7  Electromagnetic induction:

1. Magnetic flux      Flux linkage         Magnitude of the induced emf       The meaning of positive and negative emf        Normal to a surface and boundary orientation          Faraday's law

2. Changing magnetic field

   • Moving magnet

   • AC current

3. Changing area

   • Rail gun

4. Changing orientation

   • Rotating coil in uniform magnetic field          Maximum flux       Maximum emf   

   • AC generator with brushes 

   • DC motor  and back emf                 

5. Lenz's law - nature opposes  the changing flux        Lenz's law vs right hand rule        Two loops

6. Eddy currents          Magnetic braking         Heating by induction         

7. Transformer      V2 / V1 = N2 / N1       Efficiency and eddy currents         ( eff ) * P1 = P2

8. AC voltage and current        <P> = Irms  *   Vrms          Self-induces emf

7.1 Photoelectric effect

1. What wave theory can not explain

2. Photoelectric effect    and   Plank's constant 

3. Intensity of monochromatic  light: wave vs particle aspect             Colour vision

4. Wave particle duality of light - Einstein

7.2 The Atom:

1. What atoms are made of?         Nucleus - mass and charge       Electrons       Ions          Specific charge

2. Planetary model of the atom - phet            Bohr Model              Energy levels and spectra           Ionization energy and ground state

3. Discharge tube and excitation by collisions        De-excitation and emission spectra

4. Excitation by light - phet           Absorption spectroscopy

5. Landscape of the micro world

7.3 Matter waves:

1. Wave particle duality of matter - Louis de Broglie

Q:   Is the matter infinitely divisible        A:   At 2023 answer is unknown but the progress is remarkable      Powers of Ten 

9.1 The natural world

1. Chemistry and atoms

2. Electron (0.511)     Photon  (0)     Proton (938.3) Neutron (939.6)     Positron(0.511) Neutrino(?) Muon(106) Pions(140)          Kaons(500) Eta (550)            Lambda (1115)        Sigma (1190)     Delta (1230)     Ksi(1320)         Omega(1672)   .... and many more

9.2 Intrinsic properties of the elementary  particles or invariants:

• Point-like objects

• Mass     No pattern     Huge range

• Spin     0     +1/2     +1

• Electric charge:      -1     -2/3     -1     0     1/3     2/3     1

• Color:     red     green     blue      anti-red     anti-green     anti-blue ;     no color

• Weak charge      

9.3 Fundamental  matter particles have spin=1/2   aka  fermions:

• Lepton family - no color:         Masses         Charge        Lifetime      Generations             Lepton numbers          Anti leptons

• Quark family - have color:       Flavor           Charge        Masses         Generations            Anti quarks

9.4 Exchange particles  have  spin=1   aka  gauge bosons:

• Electromagnetic force:      photon

• Strong nuclear force:     gluons      ( outdated - pions)             

• Weak nuclear force:     W+  W-   Z    

9.5 Composition of hadrons:

1. Baryons     Mesons     Baryon number     Electric charge

9.6 Decays and collisions:

1.  Decays   and  conservation laws

   • Charge         Baryon number      

   • Lepton number           Electroness        Muoness         Tauness

   • Strangeness is conserved only in strong interactions

   • More mass before          Mass-energy

   • Momentum       

   • Spin

2.  Collisions         Redistribution of elementary particles           Mass and kinetic energy          Creation & annihilation of particles 

9.7 Fundamental interactions:

Relative strength of the fundamental forces 

Vector gauge  bosons

• Photon:     Electromagnetic force     Electric charge      U(1) 

•  W+  W-   Z:      Weak force      Weak charge       SU(2)

• Gluon:       Strong nuclear force       Color     SU(3)     

Scalar boson

• Higgs boson     Mass generation     

 Basic Feynman diagrams

• Emission of exchange particle

• Absorption of exchange particle

• Pair production

• Pair annihilation

More complicated Feynman diagrams

3.1 Celestial mechanics:

1. Mass and gravity         Gravitational force between two masses-phet     Magnitude     Direction

2. Gravitational forces among three masses in a plane     Geometrical approach

3. Motion under gravity       Circular orbits          Speed  & radius         Period & radius       Geostationary orbit          Dark matter      

4. Copernican Revolution - different coordinate systems

3.2 Gravitational field strength:

1. Definition  gravitational field strength g          Units

2. Gravitational field of a point particle        Gravitational field of a sphere (somewhere uniform and somewhere radial)

3. Gravitational field strength of many bodies         Superposition        Two planets

4. Visualization  of g by field lines (orientation and density)        Uniform and radial fields 

3.3  Gravitational potential:

1. Defining gravitational potential  V by  gravitational work              Units            GPE = mass * V      

2. Gravitational potential of a point particle          Gravitational potential of spherical body

3. Escape velocity      Black holes           vcircular = sqrt (gravitational potential)        vescape = sqrt(2)*vcircular

4. g = - ( gradient of V )        V(x) and g(x) for 3 planets 

5. Visualization of gravitational potential  by equipotential lines

Medical physics       Hodder

11.1 OCR    Imaging with X-rays:

1.  X-ray tube

2. Attenuation

3. Computerized axial tomography

AQA Imaging with X-rays:

1. Production of X-rays

2. Rotating anode X-ray tube

3. Image contrast enhancement

4. Absorption of radiation

5. X-ray filters

6. Factors affecting the radiographic image

7. Beam size incident on patient

8. Scattered radiation

9. The intensifying screen

10. The image intensifier

11. Flat panel detector

12. CT scans 

11.2 OCR Diagnostic methods:

1. Medical tracers

2. PET scanning /   positron emission tomography

3. Gamma camera

AQA  Radionuclide imaging and therapy

1. 1. 1. 1. 1.  Imaging techniques

            2. Positron Emission Tomography (PET)

            3. Gamma cameraPhysical, biological and effective half-lives

            4. Use of high energy X-rays in therapy

            5. Radioactive implants in therapy 

11.3 OCR  Ultrasound scans:

1. Transducer

AQA  Non-ionising imaging

1. Optical fibres and endoscopes

2. Ultrasonics

3. Production of ultrasound waves

4. Reflection of ultrasound

5. Methods of scanning tissues 

11.4 Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

11.5 The eye       Structure         Colour vision  

11.6      The ear The outer ear The middle ear The inner ear Mechanism of hearing Sensitivity and logarithmic response

11.7 Biological measurement Simple ECG machines and the normal ECG waveform 

Engineering

13.1 Rotational dynamics:

1. Concept of moment of inertia

2. Rotational kinetic energy

3. Flywheels

4. Angular displacement, velocity and acceleration

5. Torque and angular acceleration 

6. Angular momentum

7. Work and power

8. Analogy between translational and rotational motion 

13.2  Thermodynamics and engines:

1. First Law of Thermodynamics

2. Non-flow processes

3. The p-V diagram

4. The Second Law and engines

5. Engine cycles

6. The reversed heat engine 

Resolution of a  measuring device is the smallest step or increment or the distance between two divisions.

A physical quantity is specified  by the measured value and  absolute uncertainty

Absolute uncertainty of a measurement:

• Single measurement

  • • For analog meter the absolute uncertainty = half the resolution

    • For a digital meter the absolute uncertainty = resolution

    • Improvement of poor resolution by measuring  N  items at once   - ->  this will improve the absolute uncertainty

• Many measurements

  • •  absolute uncertainty = Half the spread    or  Maximum distance from the  mean

The quality of the measurement is specified by percentage uncertainty:

• It can be improved  if physical  quantity is way bigger than the resolution of the meter.  At least 10 times. 

• Choose the smallest possible range consistent with the measured value.

Precision is relevant only for many measurements:

• It is about the  spread

• Half the spread is the absolute uncertainty

• Increasing the absolute  uncertainty corresponds to decreasing    the precision

Accuracy:

• Accuracy is the deviation of the mean from the true value

• Single measurement    [ Measured  - True] OVER  [ True]

• Many measurements   [ Mean - True] OVER  [ True]

• Accuracy can be view as the number of correct significant figures

Sources of random error:

• Random error will change the mean

• Noise

• Real things are never identical.         Truly identical are only the elementary particles    

• Manufacturing process  variation     

• Fluctuation of temperature      

Reducing random error:    

• If there is no systematic error then averaging will  improve  the mean - consequently the accuracy        Averaging improves the accuracy not the precision

• Improvement by discarding   anomalous readings  

• Reducing random error by Larger or Longer or Bigger quantities

• If measurement is accurate but not precise then there is random error

Types of systematic errors:

• Parallax error     

• Zero error      

• Miscalibration

Properties of systematic errors:

• Systematic errors are directional

• Systematic error will shift the mean 

• If measurement is precise but not accurate then there is systematic error

Dealing with systematic error: 

•  Resetting           

• Use gradient

Time:        Stopwatch         Light-gate        Data logger for fast measurements

    Systematic error:   Reaction time      

Distance:  

• Ruler - 0.5mm        Vernier calliper - 0.1 mm          Micrometre -0.01 mm

• Systematic error:  Parallax error

Volume of liquid :  

• Graduated beaker

Mass:           

• • Digital scale         Balance      

  • Random error:  Variation of earth g - field 

  • Systematic error:  Buoyancy force    

Temperature: 

• Thermometer

• Systematic error: Time lag of thermometer      Leakage of heat          Gradient of the temperature

• Temperature can affect other physical quantities

Radioactivity:

• GM counter

• Systematic error: Dead time

• Random error:    Background radiation                

• Different types of radiation have different attenuation coefficients

If the thing measured is not a constant, spatial or time variation then performing many measurements leads to better estimation of the range and consequently to the absolute uncertainty.

Range of  a meter is about the minimum  and maximum value.

Sensitivity or the minimum detectable signal

Error propagation

Parallel and perpendicular lines: set triangle

Vertical line: plumb line / weight on vertical string