required practicals

• Force and extension experiment

  1. Setup: Position the spring and attach a RULER beside it for measuring extension

  2. Initial Measurement: Record the spring's length without any added mass, which is its ORIGINAL LENGTH

  3. Adding Mass: Place a 100 g mass hanger on the spring, which will extend due to the added weight

  4. Recording Data: Note the mass in kilograms (convert grams to kilograms by dividing by 1000) and the extended length from the ruler in centimetres (convert to metres by dividing by 100)

  5. Incremental Increases: Continue to add 100 g increments to the mass hanger, each time recording the new total mass and the extension

  6. Repetition for Accuracy: Remove the masses and repeat the process SEVERAL TIMES and find an AVERAGE
• light gate divides the length of the card by the time the signal is interrupted for and calculate the speed
• effect of force on acceleration

  1. Mark a STARTING LINE at a fixed distance from the light gate.  
  2. Release the trolley from the top of the runway.
  3. As the card passes each light gate a timer turns on and off.
  4. The data logger calculates the velocity of the trolley at light gate A and at light gate B.
  5. The data logger calculates the acceleration using the two velocities
  6. Repeat steps 1 to 5 using different masses HANGING off the table
  7. Plot a graph of ACCELERATION against FORCE and draw a LINE OF BEST FIT.
• effect of mass on acceleration

  1. Mark a STARTING LINE at a fixed distance from the light gate.  
  2. Release the trolley from the top of the runway.
  3. As the car passes each light gate a timer turns on and off.
  4. The data logger calculates the velocity of the trolley at light gate A and at light gate B.
  5. The data logger calculates the acceleration using the two velocities.
  6. Repeat steps 1 to 5 using different masses added on the TROLLEY
  7. Plot a graph of ACCELERATION against 1/MASS and draw a LINE OF BEST FIT.
• frictional forces can be reduced by

  sloping the ramp

  using a glider and air track
• Measuring the frequency - ripple tank

  1. Start a STOPCLOCK when the first wave passes a fixed point

  2. Count the number of waves that pass this point within a set time frame

  3. Divide the set time by the number of waves to find the time for one wave, known as the TIME PERIOD (T)

  4. The FREQUENCY (f) can be calculated
• Measuring wavelength- ripple tank

  1. Use a CAMERA to capture an image of the waves to "freeze" them

  2. With a METRE RULER, measure the distance between two wavefronts

  3. COUNT how many waves between those wavefronts

  4. Divide the total distance by the number of waves to get the WAVELENGTH (λ)
• Measuring speed- ripple tank

  1. Determine a mean value for the FREQUENCY and WAVELENGTH

  2. TIME how long it takes for one wavefront to travel the distance of the white card

  3. Measure the LENGTH of the card

  4. The SPEED (v) is calculated
• measuring waves on a string

  1. Set up your equipment with a SIGNAL GENERATOR and VIBRATION GENERATOR. Switch on the signal generator to make the string vibrate.
  2. Tweak the FREQUENCY of the signal generator to get a clear WAVE PATTERN on the string. The right frequency depends on the string's length and the weight attached.
  3. Measure the WAVELENGTH. It's most accurate to measure multiple wavelengths at once. Then divide the total LENGTH by the NUMBER of wavelengths to find the FULL wavelength.
  4. The FREQUENCY is simply the setting on the SIGNAL GENERATOR.
  5. Calculate the SPEED of the wave
• Refraction of light

  1. Place the glass block on a sheet of paper, and carefully draw around the block using a pencil

  2. Switch on the ray box and direct a beam of light at the side face of the block

  3. Mark on the paper: A point on the ray close to the ray box, The point where the ray enters the block, The point where the ray exits the block, A point on the exit light ray which is a distance of about 5 cm away from the block

  4. Draw a dashed line normal (at right angles) to the outline of the block where the points are

  5. Remove the block and join the points marked with three straight lines

  6. Replace the block within its outline and repeat the above process for a ray striking the block at a different angle
• infrared radiation

  
  

  1.Align the infrared detector with one side of the Leslie Cube, 20cm away from the side, and take the initial temperature of the surface.

  2. Heat one side of the Leslie Cube by pouring hot water onto the surface.

  3. Measure and record the temperature of the surface every 30s for five minutes.

  4. Rotate the cube and repeat the experiment for a different surface.

  5. Plot temperature (plot on y-axis, measured in ℃) against time (plot on x-axis, measured in seconds) for each different surface.