Rachel Harrington, 12PJC

Unit 1 – Electricity And Quantum Physics

Electricity
1) Electric current is the rate of flow of charge:
Q = It
2) Current originates in the movement of charged particles – usually electrons around a circuit:
a) In a conductor, free electrons drift in a negative to positive direction under the influence of an
external emf (electromotive force).
b) In an insulator no current can flow, as there are no free electrons (most non-metals).
c) A semiconductor will produce limited numbers of electrons.
3) A potential difference in a circuit is the difference in voltage between two points
4) Ohm’s law:
V = IR
5) For a filament bulb, increasing the voltage across the bulb will increase the resistance of the bulb,
as the temperature of the filament increases.
6) Kirchoff’s laws for electric circuits:
a) The sum of the currents meeting at any point in a circuit is zero.
b) In a closed electric circuit, the sum of voltages in each part of the circuit is equal to the sum of
the emfs in the circuit.
emf =IR + Ir
7) All batteries have an inbuilt internal resistance due to the chemical processes taking place
8) The maximum power from a battery is obtained when the load resistance, R, is equal to the
internal resistance, r.
9) Where ρ is the resistivity of the material, with units Wm, then:
𝜌𝑙
𝑅= 𝐴
10) A potential divider is basically a division of a potential difference in a circuit. The ratio of pds
across resistors connected in series to a pd is equal to the ratio of resistances:
𝑅1 𝑉
= 𝑉1
𝑅2 2
11) The resistance of a thermistor will decrease with increasing temperature.
12) The resistance of an LDR (light dependant resistor) will decrease with increasing light intensity.
13) There are three power formulae:
P = VI
2
P=I R
𝑉2
𝑃= 𝑅
14) A voltage is the number of joules that are converted into another energy form for every coulomb
of charge supplied to the circuit.
15) For resistors in series:
R T = R 1 + R 2 + R3 + … + R n
16) For resistors in parallel:
1 1 1 1 1
= + + + ⋯+
𝑅𝑇 𝑅1 𝑅2 𝑅3 𝑅𝑛
17) For a semiconductor diode, the resistance will be close to infinity for a negative current, and will
become close to zero for a positive current. The point at which the resistance changes from very
high to very low will be the turning point on the graph, and is around 0.6V.

Quantum Physics
1) The nucleus is very small compared to the atom, about 10,000 times smaller. The diameter of an
-10 -15
atom is in the order of 10 m, whereas the diameter of the nucleus in the order of 10 m.
2)
Property Electron Proton Neutron
Charge -1 e +1 e 0
-31 -27 -27
Mass 9.11 × 10 kg 1.67 × 10 kg 1.67 × 10 kg
Relative Mass 1/1836 1.0000 1.0004
-19
where e = 1.6 × 10
 Rachel Harrington, 12PJC

Unit 1 – Electricity And Quantum Physics

3) Different atoms are distinguished by their numbers of protons and neutrons. We write the
symbols using the following notation:
𝐴
𝑍𝑋
a) A is called the nucleon number, or the mass number. It is the total number of nucleons
(protons and neutrons).
b) Z is the proton number or the atomic number, which is the number of protons. The number
of protons determines the element.
4) Isotopes have the same numbers of protons, but different numbers of neutrons.
5) Isotopes have the same physical and chemical properties.
6) The fundamental forces are: gravity, electromagnetic, strong and weak.
7) The strong nuclear force holds nucleons together in the nucleus
8) At very short ranges, below 0.5 femtometres (0.5 × 10-15 m) the strong nuclear force is repulsive.
It is attractive up to its maximum range of 3 fm (3 × 10-15 m).
9) Alpha decay occurs predominantly with heavy nuclei (Z > 82)
a) The alpha particle is a helium nucleus (NOT atom).
b) Energy is released in the decay. The energy is kinetic, with the majority going to the alpha
particle and a little going to the decayed nucleus.
c) The velocity of the alpha particle is much greater than that of the nucleus.
d) The nucleon number goes down by 4, the proton number by 2.
10) Neutron rich nuclei tend to decay by beta minus (β-) emission. The beta particle is a high-
speed electron ejected from the nucleus
n → p + β- + ve
11) Antiparticles have identical mass to their particles, but the opposite charge (or spin)
12) A photons is a packet (or quantum) of electromagnetic energy.
E = hf
13) When particles and the corresponding antiparticle collide, they annihilate each other, producing
two identical high energy photons (two are necessary to conserve momentum)
14) Pair production is when a photon with enough energy instantaneously forms a particle and its
antiparticle, eg an electron and a positron.
15) Leptons are fundamental particles which interact through the weak interaction or electromagnrtic
interaction (if charged)
16) Hadrons interact by the strong, weak, and electromagnetic force.
a) Mesons are made of a quark and an antiquark. They decay to photons or leptons.
i) Pion → π (ud), π (du), π (uu, dd)
+ - o
+ - o
ii) Kaon → K (us), K (su), K (ds, sd)
b) Baryons are made of three quarks or three antiquarks. They decay to protons.
i) Proton – uud
ii) Neutron – dud
c) Antiparticles have exactly opposite quark structures (e.g. p – uud)
17) W+, W- and Z bosons are virtual particles which mediate the weak force. Virtual means they
cannot be detected.
18) When light of a frequency above the threshold frequency (minimum frequency needed to remove
an electron from the surface of a metal) is shined on a metal, electrons on the surface are
released.
19) The maximum kinetic energy of the photoelectrons is exactly the same regardless of the intensity
of the illumination. This only affects the number of electrons released.
E =  + EK(max)
where is the work function, or minimum energy needed to remove an electron from the
surface of a metal.
20) Electrons can only exist at permitted energy levels.
21) Normally, atoms are in the ground state. When electrons hit atoms, the atoms get excited, which
means that the atoms gain energy. The atoms want to lose energy, so they get rid of the energy
in the form of a photon and return to the ground state. The maximum level that an atom can get
is when it is ionised.
22) Each line in a line spectrum represents the energy of a photon as the electron makes
a transition from a higher energy level to a lower. As only certain jumps can be made, there are
only a finite number of photons which can be emitted, each with a specific wavelength.
hf = E1 – E2
 Rachel Harrington, 12PJC

Unit 1 – Electricity And Quantum Physics

23) Both photons and electrons demonstrate wave-particle duality.
a) Electrons
i) As particles – e.g. deflection in a magnetic field (only particles can carry charge)
ii) As waves – e.g. diffraction through a crystal
b) Photons
i) As particles – e.g. the photoelectric effect
ii) As waves – e.g. diffraction through a diffraction grating.