IB Physics 1 – Practice Problems (Topics 4 & 9)

1. A wooden block is at rest on a horizontal frictionless surface. A horizontal spring is attached

between the block and a rigid support.

The block is displaced to the right by an amount X and is then released. The period of
oscillations is T and the total energy of the system is E.

X
For an initial displacement of which of the following shows the best estimate for the period
2
of oscillations and the total energy of the system?

Period Total energy

E
A. T
2
E
B. T
4
T E
C.
2 2
T E
D.
2 4
(Total 1 mark)

2. Two waves meet at a point in space. Which of the following properties always add together?

A. Displacement

B. Amplitude

C. Speed

D. Frequency
(Total 1 mark)

3. Monochromatic light travels from air into water. Which of the following describes the changes
in wavelength and speed?

Wavelength Speed
A. increases decreases
B. increases increases
C. decreases increases
D. decreases decreases
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 1
4. Light is diffracted at a single slit. Which of the following graphs best represents how the
intensity I of the diffracted light varies with the diffraction angle θ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 2
5. Plane-polarized light is incident normally on a polarizer which is able to rotate in the plane
perpendicular to the light as shown below.

In diagram 1, the intensity of the incident light is 8 W m–2 and the transmitted intensity of light
is 2 W m–2. Diagram 2 shows the polarizer rotated 90° from the orientation in diagram 1. What
is the new transmitted intensity?

A. 0 W m–2

B. 2 W m–2

C. 6 W m–2

D. 8 W m–3
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 3
6. The diagram below is a snapshot of wave fronts of circular waves emitted by a point source S at
the surface of water. The source vibrates at a frequency f = 10.0 Hz.

The speed of the wave front is

A. 0.15 cm s–1.

B. 1.5 cm s–1.

C. 15 cm s–1.

D. 30 cm s–1.
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 4
7. Diagram 1 represents equally spaced beads on a spring. The beads are 1 cm apart.

Diagram 1

A longitudinal wave propagates along the spring. Diagram 2 shows the position of the beads at a
particular instant.

Diagram 2

Which of the following is the best estimate of the wavelength?

A. 2 cm

B. 4 cm

C. 8 cm

D. 16 cm
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 5
8. Diagram 1 represents equally spaced beads on a spring. The beads are 1 cm apart.

Diagram 1

A longitudinal wave propagates along the spring. Diagram 2 shows the position of the beads at a
particular instant.

Diagram 2

Which of the following is the best estimate of the amplitude?

A. 0.4 cm

B. 0.8 cm

C. 1.6 cm

D. 3.2 cm
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 6
9. Two coherent point sources S1 and S2 emit spherical waves.

Which of the following best describes the intensity of the waves at P and Q?

P Q
A. maximum minimum
B. minimum maximum
C. maximum maximum
D. minimum minimum
(Total 1 mark)

10. The fundamental (first harmonic) frequency for a particular organ pipe is 330 Hz. The pipe is
closed at one end but open at the other. What is the frequency of its second harmonic?

A. 110 Hz

B. 165 Hz

C. 660 Hz

D. 990 Hz
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 7
11. A beam of coherent light is incident on a single slit of width b. After passing through the slit,
the light is incident on a screen at a distance D from the slit.

Which of the following changes, carried out separately, in respect of b and D will result in an
increase in width of the first diffraction maximum formed on the screen?

b D
A. decrease increase
B. increase increase
C. decrease decrease
D. increase decrease
(Total 1 mark)

12. One end of a horizontal string is fixed to a wall. A transverse pulse moves along the string as
shown.

Which of the following statements are correct for the reflected pulse compared to the forward
pulse?

I. It moves more slowly.

II. It has less energy.

III. It is inverted.

A. I and II only

B. I and III only

C. II and III only

D. I, II and III
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 8
 
13. Two waves meet at a point. The waves have a path difference of . The phase difference
4
between the waves is

π
A. rad.
8

π
B. rad.
4

π
C. rad.
2

D. π rad.
(Total 1 mark)

14. The graph shows measurements of the height h of sea level at different times t in the Bay of
Fundy.

Which of the following gives the approximate amplitude and period of the tides?

Amplitude Period
A. 6.5 m 6 hours
B. 13 m 12 hours
C. 6.5 m 12 hours
D. 13 m 6 hours
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 9
15. A string vibrates with fundamental frequency f. The wavelength of the sound produced in air is
λ. Which of the following correctly gives the frequency of vibration of the fourth harmonic of
the string and the wavelength of the sound in air?

Frequency Wavelength
f 
A.
2 4

B. 4f 4λ

f
C. 4λ
2

D. 4f
4
(Total 1 mark)

16. Unpolarized light is shone through two identical polarizers whose axes are parallel.

I
The ratio is
I0

A. 100 %.

B. 50 %.

C. 25 %.

D. 0 %.
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 10
17. Light travels from air into glass as shown below.

The refractive index of the glass is

sin 30
A.
sin 80

sin 80
B.
sin 30

sin 60
C.
sin 10

sin 10
D.
sin 60
(Total 1 mark)

18. A parallel beam of monochromatic light of wavelength λ passes through a slit of width b. After
passing through the slit the light is incident on a distant screen. The angular width of the central
maximum is


A. 2 radians.
b


B. radians.
b


C. 2 degrees.
b


D. degrees.
b
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 11
19. This question is about standing waves.

A string is attached between two rigid supports and is made to vibrate at its fundamental
frequency (first harmonic) f.

The diagram shows the displacement of the string at t = 0.

(a) Draw the displacement of the string at time

1
(i) t=
4f

(1)

1
(ii) t=
2f

(1)

(b) The distance between the supports is 1.0 m. A wave in the string travels at a speed of
240 m s–1. Calculate the frequency of the vibration of the string.

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(2)

(c) An organ pipe that is open at one end has the same fundamental frequency as the string in
part (b). The speed of sound in air is 330 m s–1. Determine the length of the pipe.

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(2)
(Total 6 marks)

IB Questionbank Physics 12
20. This question is about diffraction and resolution.

(a) A parallel beam of monochromatic light is incident on a narrow rectangular slit. After
passing through the slit, the light is incident on a distant screen.

Point X is the midpoint of the slit.

(i) On the axes below, sketch a graph to show how the intensity of the light on the
screen varies with the angle θ shown in the diagram.

(3)

(ii) The wavelength of the light is 520 nm, the width of the slit is 0.04 mm and the
screen is 1.2 m from the slit. Show that the width of the central maximum of
intensity on the screen is about 3 cm.

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................
(2)

IB Questionbank Physics 13
 (b) HL ONLY -- Points P and Q are on the circumference of a planet as shown.

By considering the two points, outline why diffraction limits the ability of an
astronomical telescope to resolve the image of the planet as a disc.

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......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(3)
(Total 8 marks)

21. This question is about simple harmonic motion.

(a) In terms of the acceleration, state two conditions necessary for a system to perform
simple harmonic motion.

1. ..................................................................................................................................

2. ..................................................................................................................................
(2)

IB Questionbank Physics 14
 (b) A tuning fork is sounded and it is assumed that each tip vibrates with simple harmonic
motion.

The extreme positions of the oscillating tip of one fork are separated by a distance d.

(i) State, in terms of d, the amplitude of vibration.

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................
(1)

(ii) On the axes below, sketch a graph to show how the displacement of one tip of the
tuning fork varies with time.

(1)

(iii) On your graph, label the time period T and the amplitude a.
(2)

(c) The frequency of oscillation of the tips is 440 Hz and the amplitude of oscillation of each
tip is 1.2 mm. Determine the maximum

(i) linear speed of a tip.

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................
(2)

(ii) acceleration of a tip.

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................
(2)
(Total 10 marks)

IB Questionbank Physics 15
22. This question is about standing waves.

(a) State two properties of a standing (stationary) wave.

1. ..................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

2. ..................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(2)

(b) The diagram shows an organ pipe that is open at one end.

The length of the pipe is l. The frequency of the fundamental (first harmonic) note
emitted by the pipe is 16 Hz.

(i) On the diagram, label with the letter P the position along the pipe where the
amplitude of oscillation of the air molecules is the largest.
(1)

(ii) The speed of sound in the air in the pipe is 330 m s–1. Calculate the length l.

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................
(3)

(c) Use your answer to (b)(ii) to suggest why it is better to use organ pipes that are closed at
one end for producing low frequency notes rather than pipes that are open at both ends.

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(2)
(Total 8 marks)

IB Questionbank Physics 16
23. This question is about standing waves.

A string that is fixed at both ends is made to vibrate in the fundamental (first harmonic) mode.

The fixed ends of the string are at x = 0 and x =L.

Each point on the string oscillates in simple harmonic motion. The displacement y of the string
at a point x at time t is given by the equation

y = Acos(500πt)

 πx 
where A = 12sin   .
 2 

In these formulae x is in metres and t is in seconds. Using this equation,

(a) explain why the amplitude of the standing wave is not constant.

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(1)

(b) calculate the frequency of the standing wave.

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(2)

(c) show that L = 2.0 m.

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(1)
(Total 4 marks)

IB Questionbank Physics 17
24. This question is about diffraction and resolution.

(a) Light from a monochromatic point source S1 is incident on a narrow rectangular slit.

After passing through the slit, the light is incident on a screen some distance away from
the slit. The graph shows how the intensity distribution on the screen varies with the
angle θ shown in the diagram.

(i) The width of the slit is 4.0 × 10–4 m. Use data from the graph to calculate the
wavelength of the light.

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................
(2)

IB Questionbank Physics 18
 (ii) HL ONLY -- An identical source S2 is placed close to S1 as shown.

The images of the two sources on the screen are just resolved according to the
Rayleigh criterion. On the graph above, draw the intensity distribution of the
second source.
(1)

(b) HL ONLY -- The Very Large Array (VLA) is used to analyse radio signals from distant
galaxies.
The combined diameter of the VLA is 36 km. A region of linear size L inside the radio
galaxy M87 emits radio waves with a frequency of 43 GHz. The galaxy is a distance
4.7 × 1023 m from Earth. The VLA can just resolve the radio emitting region.
Estimate the value of L.

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......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(3)
(Total 6 marks)

IB Questionbank Physics 19
25. This question is about simple harmonic motion and waves.

An object is vibrating in air. The variation with displacement x of the acceleration a of the
object is shown below.

(a) State and explain two reasons why the graph indicates that the object is executing simple
harmonic motion.

1. ..................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

2. ..................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(4)

IB Questionbank Physics 20
 (b) Use data from the graph to show that the frequency of oscillation is 350 Hz.

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................

......................................................................................................................................
(4)

(c) State the amplitude of the vibrations.

......................................................................................................................................
(1)

(d) The motion of the object gives rise to a longitudinal progressive (travelling) sound wave.

(i) State what is meant by a longitudinal progressive wave.

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................
(2)

(ii) The speed of the wave is 330 m s–1. Using the answer in (b), calculate the
wavelength of the wave.

...........................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................
(2)
(Total 13 marks)

IB Questionbank Physics 21
26. HL ONLY -- A radar speed gun is used to measure the speed of a car. The car is moving with
speed v away from the gun.

The radar emits microwaves of frequency f and speed c. Which of the following is the frequency
of the microwaves measured at the gun after reflection by the car?

 2v 
A. f+  f
 c 

v 
B. f+  f
c 

 2v 
C. f–  f
 c 

v 
D. f–  f
c 
(Total 1 mark)

27. HL ONLY -- Which of the following wave phenomena is associated with blood flow
measurements?

A. Polarization

B. Diffraction

C. Refraction

D. Doppler effect
(Total 1 mark)

28. HL ONLY -- During a journey an observer travels at constant speed towards, and then goes
beyond, a stationary emitter of sound.

The frequency of the sound as measured at the emitter is f. The frequency according to the
observer

A. is always greater than f.

B. is always equal to f.

C. is always less than f.

D. varies during the journey.

(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 22
29. HL ONLY -- A siren at rest emits a sound of frequency f0. The speed of sound in air is v. The
siren moves away from an observer at rest relative to the siren in a straight line with constant
speed vs.

The observer measures a frequency lower than f0 because the

A. speed at which the sound moves relative to the observer is v – vs.

B. speed at which the sound moves relative to the observer is vs – v.

vs
C. wavelength measured by the observer is smaller by a factor .
v

vs
D. wavelength measured by the observer is greater by a factor .
v
(Total 1 mark)

30. HL ONLY -- The diagram below shows two identical filament lamps separated by a small
distance. Light from the lamps is incident on a narrow slit behind a green filter. The slit is
parallel to the filament of each lamp.
A photograph is taken of the lamps through the slit. The images of the filaments on the
photograph are just resolved.

The green filter is replaced by a red filter and then by a violet filter. For each filter a photograph
is taken of the lamps through the slit. Which of the following correctly describes the resolution
of the images using a red and using a violet filter?

Red filter Violet filter

A. resolved resolved
B. resolved not resolved
C. not resolved resolved
D. not resolved not resolved
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 23
31. HL ONLY -- The images of two sources are just resolved. Which of the following is a correct
statement of the Rayleigh criterion for this situation?

A. The central maximum of the diffraction pattern of one source must coincide with the
central maximum of the diffraction pattern of the other source.

B. Light from the sources must pass through a circular aperture.

C. Light from the sources must be coherent.

D. The first minimum of the diffraction pattern of one source must coincide with the central
maximum of the diffraction pattern of the other source.
(Total 1 mark)

IB Questionbank Physics 24