IGCSE Physics (0972) — May–June 2025, Paper 21

40 questions · every question answerable online with instant point-by-point AI marking against the official mark scheme.

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Question 1 · 1 mark · Motion, forces and energy - speed-time graphs

The speed-time graph for a racing car is divided into four sections, P, Q, R and S. The car starts the race but soon crashes into a wall of tyres. (The graph shows speed on the…

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Question 2 · 1 mark · Motion, forces and energy - resultant forces

The diagram shows the four forces acting on an aircraft in flight: an upward force of 120 kN, a downward force of 60 kN, a backward (leftward) force of 40 kN and a forward…

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Question 3 · 1 mark · Motion, forces and energy - weight and density

The diagrams show two metal blocks, X and Y, suspended from identical force meters (newtonmeters reading 0-6 N). X and Y have identical dimensions. The force meter holding X reads…

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Question 4 · 1 mark · Motion, forces and energy - measurement of density

A girl has a gold necklace. Which apparatus does she need to find the density of the gold? balance measuring cylinder thermometer ruler --- --------- --------------------…

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Question 5 · 1 mark · Motion, forces and energy - Hooke's law

A spring has a length of 25 cm when a load of 2.0 N is suspended from it. The spring has a length of 35 cm when a 7.0 N load is used. What is the spring constant of the spring? A…

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Question 6 · 1 mark · Motion, forces and energy - equilibrium of forces

The diagrams E-H show a block of wood on a frictionless surface. In each diagram, the block has two forces acting on its sides. E: a 2 N force acting to the right on the top of…

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Question 7 · 1 mark · Motion, forces and energy - momentum and impulse

Which statement is not correct? A the momentum of a system is conserved in all interactions B impulse = change of momentum C force acting = change of momentum x time D momentum =…

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Question 8 · 1 mark · Motion, forces and energy - Newton's second law

A force acting on a moving ball causes its motion to change. This force stays constant. What makes the force produce a greater change in the motion of the ball? A decreasing the…

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Question 9 · 1 mark · Motion, forces and energy - pressure

A farmer has two carts. The carts have the same weight, but one has four narrow wheels and the other has four wide wheels. Which cart wheels sink less into soft ground and what is…

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Question 10 · 1 mark · Thermal physics - particle model of matter

A hot gas and a cool liquid are at the same pressure. Which row describes the separation and the motion of the particles of a hot gas compared to those of a cool liquid?…

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Question 11 · 1 mark · Thermal physics - pressure and volume of a gas (Boyle's law)

A fixed mass of gas has a volume of 1.2 m^3 and is at a pressure of 200 kPa. The gas expands at constant temperature to a volume of 1.8 m^3. What is the new pressure of the gas? A…

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Question 12 · 1 mark · Thermal physics - specific heat capacity

The specific heat capacity of solid P is greater than that of solid Q. What does this statement mean? A Less energy is needed to raise the temperature by 1 degC of unit mass of…

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Question 13 · 1 mark · Thermal physics - evaporation

When water evaporates, what escapes from the surface of the water? A individual atoms B individual molecules C individual protons D tiny drops of water

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Question 14 · 1 mark · Thermal physics - gas pressure and temperature

A sealed container of gas is heated. The pressure of the gas increases. Which statement explains this increase in pressure? A The forces of the gas particles striking the walls of…

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Question 15 · 1 mark · Thermal physics - thermal conduction

A student has a copper rod and a wooden rod. Both rods have the same dimensions. The student puts one end of each rod into a beaker of crushed ice. After a few minutes, the…

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Question 16 · 1 mark · Thermal physics - thermal radiation

The diagram shows a black object X at constant temperature. The arrows represent the absorption and emission of thermal radiation at the surface. Object Y is at the same constant…

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Question 17 · 1 mark · Waves - transverse waves

The diagram shows a cork with a weight attached so that the cork floats upright in water. Transverse waves travel across the water from X to Y. In which direction do the waves…

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Question 18 · 1 mark · Waves - converging lens (magnifying glass)

A thin converging lens is used as a magnifying glass. How does the image compare with the object? A real and inverted B real and upright C virtual and inverted D virtual and…

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Question 19 · 1 mark · Waves - reflection of light

The diagram shows two plane mirrors at 90 deg to each other. A ray of light is incident on one of the mirrors. The ray reflects off both mirrors before reaching a screen. The…

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Question 20 · 1 mark · Waves - refractive index

The speed of light in a material is 50% of the speed of light in air. What is the refractive index of the material? A 0.5 B 2.0 C 6.0 x 10^8 D 1.5 x 10^8

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Question 21 · 1 mark · Waves - dispersion of light

A beam of white light is split into a spectrum of seven colours. Which name is given to this process? A diffraction B dispersion C reflection D refraction

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Question 22 · 1 mark · Waves - electromagnetic spectrum and communications

Satellites are sometimes used to receive and re-transmit television signals. Which row shows the type of satellite and the electromagnetic waves used? type of satellite…

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Question 23 · 1 mark · Waves - sound waves

A sound wave travels through the air and strikes a solid block of steel. Some of the sound is reflected from the steel, and some is transmitted through the steel. How does the…

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Question 24 · 1 mark · Electricity and magnetism - magnetic fields

The diagram shows a bracelet containing two magnets, one at J and one at K. The arrows represent the pattern and the direction of the magnetic field due to the magnets. The field…

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Question 25 · 1 mark · Electricity and magnetism - electric fields

Which row describes an electric field and its direction? description of electric field direction of electric field --- -------------------------------…

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Question 26 · 1 mark · Electricity and magnetism - resistance and cross-sectional area

Copper wire is available in fixed lengths but in various diameters d. Each wire has a different resistance R. Which relationship between R and d is correct? A R is directly…

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Question 27 · 1 mark · Electricity and magnetism - series and parallel circuits

The diagram shows three 20 ohm resistors, R1, R2 and R3, and a switch S connected to a d.c. power supply. R1 and R2 are in parallel with each other; this parallel combination is…

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Question 28 · 1 mark · Electricity and magnetism - diodes and LEDs

The circuits shown all include a d.c. power supply, one diode and two light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Each circuit A-D has the supply at the top (positive terminal on the left,…

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Question 29 · 1 mark · Electricity and magnetism - electromagnetic induction

A wire connected to a resistor R is moved in a magnetic field between a N pole (left) and a S pole (right). A current is induced in the direction shown. Four candidate directions…

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Question 30 · 1 mark · Electricity and magnetism - a.c. generator

Which component is not found in an a.c. generator? A coil of wire B split-ring commutator C magnetic poles D slip rings

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Question 31 · 1 mark · Electricity and magnetism - magnetic field of a current-carrying wire

There is a current in a straight metal wire in the direction shown (the current flows vertically upwards, viewed from above). Which row describes the direction and the pattern of…

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Question 32 · 1 mark · Electricity and magnetism - transformers

A simple transformer contains an iron core. What is the function of the iron core in the transformer? A to conduct current from the primary coil to the secondary coil B to enable…

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Question 33 · 1 mark · Nuclear physics - alpha particle scattering

In an alpha particle scattering experiment, a beam of alpha particles is fired at a very thin piece of gold foil. Four directions of travel after hitting the foil are shown: A…

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Question 34 · 1 mark · Nuclear physics - atomic structure (nucleon and proton number)

An atom of boron contains 5 protons and 5 electrons. The nucleon number of the atom is 11. How many neutrons are there in the atom? A 5 B 6 C 11 D 16

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Question 35 · 1 mark · Nuclear physics - half-life and background radiation

A detector placed near a radioactive isotope gives a measured count rate of 800 counts/minute. The half-life of the isotope is three hours. The background count rate is 32…

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Question 36 · 1 mark · Nuclear physics - beta decay and nuclear equations

Sodium-24 is a radioactive isotope that emits beta radiation. Which nuclear equation shows how sodium-24 decays? A (24,11)Na - (24,12)Mg + (0,-1)beta B (24,11)Na - (24,10)Ne +…

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Question 37 · 1 mark · Nuclear physics - safety precautions for radiation

Which safety precautions must be taken when using a source of gamma radiation? 1 Reduce the distance between the source and the person. 2 Reduce the time of exposure to the…

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Question 38 · 1 mark · Space physics - the Solar System and time periods

A student defines three periods of time: - the time TS taken for the Earth to orbit the Sun - the time TR taken for the Earth to rotate once on its axis - the time TM taken for…

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Question 39 · 1 mark · Space physics - the Universe and redshift

Which statement about the Universe is correct? A The Universe consists of 100000 galaxies. B Redshift is a decrease in the observed wavelength of electromagnetic radiation emitted…

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Question 40 · 1 mark · Space physics - cosmic microwave background radiation

Which statement about the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMBR) is correct? A CMBR now has a frequency higher than that of infrared radiation. B CMBR has always had exactly…

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