Unit 5 Physics from creation to collapse

Thermal energy

Investigate recognize and use the expression

E=mc

Specific heat capacity is the quantity of energy needed to raise the temperature of
material, per kilogram per degree rise in temperature.
Specific heat capacity can be calculated

using this equation ,

Giving the c the units

Measuring specific heat capacity:
1. Weigh a block of aluminum to find its mass m and then place it in the
lagging.
2. Add a small amount of cooking oil to ensure good thermal contact when the
heater and thermometer and inserted
3. Take the initial temperature of the block. Switch on the power supply and
start the stopwatch record the current and potential difference
4. After three minutes switch of the power supply and record the highest steady
temperature reached.
5. You can than find the specific heat capacity using the equation

Explain the concept of internal energy as the random distribution of potential and kinetic
energy amongst molecules

In gas the molecules have Kinetic energy due to their random motion. In addition
molecules that are made from two or more atoms have kinetic energy due to
rotation and vibration.
In an ideal gas the internal energy is entirely the random kinetic energy of its
molecules
Ideal gas assumptions:
1. The intermolecular forces are negligible except in collision
2. That the collisions between molecules and with the wall are elastic
3. Just before a collision molecules have kinetic energy the closer the
molecules get the larger the repulsive force so K.E is transferred to potential
Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

energy as a result of work being done to overcome resistive force so the

molecule is temporarily stationary
4. Time spent in collision is 0 compared to time spent out of collision
Hot bodies have a higher concentration of internal energy compared to cold
bodies.
Heat is the random interchange of energy between two bodies in thermal contact.
Energy can be transferred between two bodies in the form of work irrespective of
temperature difference
Explain the concept of absolute zero and how the average kinetic energy of molecules is
related to the absolute temperature

A temperature of 0K is called absolute zero because it is the lowest temperature

that can theoretically be reached.
Its value on the Celsius scale is -273.15 degrees
At temperatures close to 0K matter exhibits quantum effects such as
superconductivity and super fluidity
A superconductor is a material that will conduct without any resistance when
cooled to a certain temperature
There is a catch to superconductors: a lot of energy is needed to maintain very low
temperatures and this is not always ideal.
For example the large Hadrons collider needs 96 tones of liquid helium to maintain
a temperature of 1.9K which is -271 degrees.
Recognize and use the expression m<c2> = 3/2 kT

is the mean squared and can calculated by squaring all the speeds and
divide by the number of speeds.
T is temperature measured in Kelvin
is the average Kinetic energy of a molecule
The average Kinetic energy of molecules is proportional to the absolute
temperature of the gas
Use the expression pV = NkT as the equation of state for an ideal gas

N is the number of molecules of gas

Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

Investigating the relationship between Pressure and Volume for a fixed mass:

The volume of a fixed mass of air under test can be given by the length of the tube
x the cross sectional area. Therefore if the tube is uniform then V is proportional to
L
The total pressure can be read off the pressure gauge.
Open valve so air starts at atmospheric pressure then increase the pressure using
a foot pump.
Record pressure and volume.
Allow air to reach thermal equilibrium
P is proportional to 1/V
PV=constant is Bayles law
Investigating the relationship between Pressure and Temperature of a fixed mass of gas
and a constant volume:

Start by putting ice in a beaker to get the temperature as low as possible, at this
temperature measure the pressure on the pressure gauge and record both.
Increase the temperature by 10 degrees each time and record the corresponding
pressure until boiling point is reached.
Allow a few minutes before taking results to allow an equilibrium temperature to be
reached.

Oscillations
Recall that the condition for simple harmonic motion is F = -kx, and hence identify
situations in which simple harmonic motion will occur

In oscillation the motion is repetitive about a fixed position with the object at rest at
either extremes and has maximum speed at midpoint
For an oscillation the force acting on the oscillating body and therefore its
acceleration must be proportional to the displacement
The force and therefore acceleration always act in opposite directions towards the
Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

equilibrium position
F=-kx
An object whose motion satisfies the above conditions is said to have SHM
Recognize and use the expressions a = - 2x, a = -A2 cost, v = A sin t, x = Acost
and T = 1/f = 2/ as applied to a simple harmonic oscillator

Finding the spring constant of a spring from Hookes law:

Suspend a 100g mass hanger from a vertical spring

Use a set square against a meter rule to measure the initial height
Add extra masses in 50g increments until 300g.
After each mass is added record the extension
Plot a graph of F against X the graph should be a straight line and the gradient will
be the spring constant

Finding the spring constant using simple harmonic motion

Set up apparatus similar to that for the previous experiment.

This time measure the time taken for the masses to make 10 oscillations
To help judge the start and stop of an oscillations put a marker at the centre of an
oscillation, e.g. a pin secured to a vertical ruler using blue tack

Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

Plot a graph of against

this should give a straight line through the origin.
The gradient will give you the value of k
Equations of simple harmonic motion:

In perfect simple harmonic motion the frequency of the oscillation does not depend
on the amplitude of oscillation
If t=0 at one end of the motion x at that time will be = to the Amplitude. The
Solution is equal to
For the above equation the graph will be a cosine graph (displacement-time ) the
gradient of this will be the velocity
The velocity can therefore be found by differentiating the above equation which
will give us
. This means that the velocity time graph looks like
a negative sine wave

Obtain a displacement time graph for an oscillating object and recognise that the
gradient at a point gives the velocity at that point.

A card is attached to masses to give a good reflective surface.

Data logger set to record for 10 seconds at a sampling rate of 100 per second.
Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

Computer can be programmed to give graphs of displacement, velocity and

acceleration against time.
Rotary sensor

A pendulum is connected to a rotary sensor. This measures the rotational motion

and in the case of a pendulum is measures the angular displacement.

Recall that the total energy of an undammed simple harmonic system remains constant
and recognize and use expressions for total energy of an oscillator

Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

As the pendulum swings there is a continuous change of Kinetic energy to

Potential energy.
At either extremes the Kinetic energy is 0 and G.P.E is max

Distinguish between free, damped and forced oscillations

A free oscillation is one where there are no external forces acting on the oscillating
system apart from the force causing the oscillation
The above is rarely achievable because there is air resistance and other frictional
forces
An oscillating system does work against the external forces acting on it and so
uses up some of its energy. This transfer of energy from the system to the internal
energy of the surroundings slows the oscillating object down until it eventually dies.
This is known as damped oscillation.
Forced oscillation- When an object is force to vibrate by another object, usually at
the same frequency as the vibrating source.
Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

Investigate and recall how the amplitude of a forced oscillation changes at and around
the natural frequency of a system and describe, qualitatively, how damping affects
resonance
Investigating damped oscillations

Set up equipment like in diagram.

Initially find the period T of the pendulum without the cup by measuring 10
oscillations twice and then finding the average
Pull back the pendulum s that the initial amplitude is 1.00m
Let go and record the amplitude at each end of the swing

Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

The heavy dense bob is pulled back and released

This pendulum will oscillate at it natural frequency f0, determined by its length and
given by the equation

All other light pendulums are coupled to this diver pendulum by a string so they will
experience a forced oscillation = in frequency to that of the driving pendulum
Pendulums closer to the driving pendulum absorb more energy because there
natural frequency is closer to the natural frequency of the driving pendulum. They
will oscillate with large amplitudes
Oscillations of large amplitudes is called resonance
For a system will little or no damping the resonant frequency occurs at the natural
frequency
For a system which has been damped the resonant frequency is lower than its
natural frequency
Explain how damping and the plastic deformation of ductile materials reduce the
amplitude of oscillation

Damping is important in designs of machines and building to prevent unwanted

vibrations
The shape of the lathe is designed so that the resonant frequency is nowhere
near the frequency of the rotation of a lathe
Latest technology is to coat turbine blades with ductile material. (A material that
can be plastically deformed without fracture) which means that it can absorb a lot
Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

of energy.
If a ductile material feels vibrations it goes through hysteresis loops each
vibration.

Astrophysics and cosmology

Use the expression F = Gm1m2/r2

Newton proposed that every particle in the universe attracts every other particle
with the Force F.
G is the gravitational constant
M1 M2 is the product of the masses of the two particles and r is the distance
between them
Derive and use the expression g = -Gm/r2 for the gravitational field due to a point mass

Recall similarities and differences between electric and gravitational fields

Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

Differences:

Gravitational force affects all particles with a mass, but electrostatic force only
affects particle with charge
Gravitational force is always attractive whereas electrostatic force can be attractive
or repulsive
It is not possible to shield mass from gravitational field but it is possible to shield a
charge from an electrostatic field
Recognize and use the expression relating flux, luminosity and distance F = L/4d2
application to standard candles

I light year is the distance travelled by light in one year

Luminosity, L is used to describe the total output power of a star, units

W
The electromagnetic wave energy per second per unit area from a star
Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

reaching us on earth is called the radiation flux, F

Radiation flux is also known as light intensity
F and L are linked by the inverse square law

Standard candles

The problem with using

to measure the distance between earth
and a star is that it is too far so it wont exhibit parallax.
A Cepheid star change luminosity with time
The maximum luminosity L of Cepheid star is related to the period T of
its luminosity variation
Supernova explosions can be used as standard candles to find the
distance to even more distant galaxies

Recognize and use a simple Hertzsprung- Russell diagram to relate luminosity and
temperature. Use this diagram to explain the life cycle of stars.

The Hertzsprung- Russell diagram is a plot of stellar luminosity and surface

temperature
On the horizontal axis the temperature goes from High temperatures on the left to
low temperatures on

Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

Life cycle of the star

Once a star is formed it adopts a position on the main sequence and spends most
of its life at a fairly constant surface temperature and luminosity
More massive stars spend a shorter time on the main sequence compared to less
massive stars
1. It was formed from a cloud of hydrogen and helium
2. It joined the main sequence about 5 billion years ago and it will leave the
main sequence 5 billion year from now
3. After leaving the main sequence its will expand and become a red giant and
after losing about 50% of its mass it will become a white dwarf
4. It will cool slowly for billions of years and effectively die

Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.

Recognize and use the expression: maxT = 2.898 x 10-3 m K (Wiens law) for black body
radiators

The sun is a yellow star but stars that are hotter than the sun appear white
Wiens law maxT = 2.898 x 10-3 m K tells us that max and T are inversely
proportional
Only applies to black body radiators
All stars act as black body radiators which means they absorb any
electromagnetic radiation falling on them
Recognize and use the expressions z = / f/f v/c for a source of electromagnetic
radiation moving relative to an observer and v = Hod for objects at cosmological
distances

Dept of science/physics/Unit5/Notes/grade 12//2015.