O Level Physics Flashcards

Power and Energy

• Watt: Defined as the power to convert 1 joule of energy per second.
• Power: Refers to the rate of doing work or the rate of energy transfer.

Thermometry Concepts

• Quicker Response: Measures how fast a thermometer registers temperature changes.
• Sensitivity: Indicates the change in a thermometric property in response to temperature variations.
• Linearity: Ensures equal thermometric changes correspond to equal temperature rises.
• Range: Denotes the minimum and maximum temperatures measurable by a thermometer.

Heat Transfer Mechanisms

• Conduction: Heat transfer through matter without overall movement of the material.
• Convection: Heat transfer in fluids caused by the movement of the fluid itself.
• Radiation: Heat transfer via electromagnetic waves.

Phase Changes and Latent Heat

• Evaporation: Liquid molecules escaping from the surface due to sufficient energy overcoming intermolecular attractive forces.
• Melting: Solid to liquid phase change occurring at constant temperature.
• Boiling: Liquid to gas phase change occurring at constant temperature.
• Solidification: Liquid to solid phase transition at constant temperature.
• Condensation: Gas to liquid phase change occurring without temperature change.
• Specific Latent Heat of Fusion: Heat needed to change unit mass from solid to liquid at constant temperature.
• Specific Latent Heat of Vaporisation: Heat needed to change unit mass from liquid to gas at constant temperature.

Gas Laws and Physical Quantities

• Boyle's Law: Pressure inversely proportional to volume for a fixed mass of gas at constant temperature.
• Pressure Law: Pressure directly proportional to absolute temperature for fixed mass at constant volume.

Quality of Measurements

• Physical Quantity: Any measurable quantity.
• Scalar Quantity: Described fully by magnitude and unit alone.
• Vector Quantity: Described by magnitude, unit, and direction.

Motion and Forces

• Displacement: Distance measured from a fixed point.
• Speed: Distance traveled per unit of time.
• Velocity: Rate of change of displacement.
• Acceleration: Rate of change of velocity.
• Gravitational Field: Area in space where gravitational forces act on bodies.
• Gravitational Field Strength: Gravitational force per unit mass at a point.
• Weight: Gravitational force acting on an object.
• Mass: Amount of substance in a body, independent of gravity.
• Density: Mass per unit volume of a substance.

Newton's Laws and Motion

• Newton's 3rd Law of Motion: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction between two bodies.
• Terminal Velocity: Constant velocity reached by a falling object when air resistance equals its weight.
• Thinking Distance: Distance a car travels from seeing a hazard to the driver applying brakes.