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SAT Subject Test: hysics

Subjects : sat, science, physics
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. A particle - identical to an electron. Beta particles are ejected from an atom in the process of beta decay.






2. A rough approximation of how gases work - that is quite accurate in everyday conditions. According to the kinetic theory - gases are made up of tiny - round molecules that move about in accordance with Newton's Laws - and collide with one another and






3. The center of an atom - where the protons and neutrons reside. Electrons then orbit this nucleus.






4. A measure of force per unit area. Pressure is measured in N/m2 or Pa.






5. The study of the properties of visible light - i.e. - the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum with wavelengths between 360 and 780 nm (1 nm = m/s).






6. A principle derived by Werner Heisenberg in 1927 that tells us that we can never know both the position and the momentum of a particle at any given time.






7. Two quantities are directly proportional if an increase in one results in a proportional increase in the other - and a decrease in one results in a proportional decrease in the other. In a formula defining a certain quantity - those quantities to whi






8. The distance between successive wave crests - or troughs. Wavelength is measured in meters and is related to frequency and wave speed by = v/f.






9. Two materials are in thermal equilibrium if they are at the same temperature.






10. In the graphical representation of vectors - the tip of the arrow is the pointy end.






11. When an object is held in circular motion about a massive body - like a planet or a sun - due to the force of gravity - that object is said to be in orbit. Objects in orbit are in perpetual free fall - and so are therefore weightless.






12. For a gas held at constant pressure - temperature and volume are directly proportional.


13. The property by which a charge moving in a magnetic field creates an electric field.






14. A neutrally charged particle that - along with protons - constitutes the nucleus of an atom.






15. The process by which a gas turns directly into a solid because it cannot exist as a liquid at certain pressures.






16. The amount of heat necessary to transform a solid at a given temperature into a liquid of the same temperature - or the amount of heat needed to be removed from a liquid of a given temperature to transform it into a solid of the same temperature.






17. A vector quantity - - that reflects the change of angular displacement with time - and is typically given in units of rad/s. To find the direction of the angular velocity vector - take your right hand and curl your fingers along the particle or body






18. A pendulum consists of a bob connected to a rod or rope. At small angles - a pendulum's motion approximates simple harmonic motion as it swings back and forth without friction.






19. The points of maximum displacement along a wave. In traveling waves - the crests move in the direction of propagation of the wave. The crests of standing waves - also called anti-nodes - remain in one place.






20. The two shorter sides of a right triangle that meet at the right angle.






21. The state of a nonrotating object upon whom the net torque acting is zero.






22. A scale for measuring temperature - defined such that 0K is the lowest theoretical temperature a material can have. 273K = 0ºC.






23. A pulley is a simple machine that consists of a rope that slides around a disk or block.






24. The force involved in beta decay that changes a proton to a neutron and releases an electron and a neutrino.






25. The stable position of a system where the net force acting on the object is zero.






26. The principle by which the displacements from different waves traveling in the same medium add up. Superposition is the basis for interference.






27. In the Bohr model of the atom - the state in which an electron has the least energy and orbits closest to the nucleus.






28. A property of a metal - the minimum frequency of electromagnetic radiation that is necessary to release photoelectrons from that metal.






29. The motion of a body in a circular path with constant speed.






30. The force that binds protons and neutrons together in the atomic nucleus.






31. Done when energy is transferred by a force. The work done by a force F in displacing an object by s is W = F · s.






32. A coefficient that tells how much a material will expand or contract lengthwise when it is heated or cooled.






33. Atoms of the same element may have different numbers of neutrons and therefore different masses. Atoms of the same element but with different numbers of neutrons are called isotopes of the same element.






34. For a gas held at a constant temperature - pressure and volume are inversely proportional.


35. A vector quantity - commonly denoted by the vector s - which reflects an object's change in spatial position. The displacement vector points from the object's starting position to the object's current position in space. If an object is moved from poi






36. A constant - - not to be confused with wavelength - that defines the speed at which a radioactive element undergoes decay. The greater is - the faster the element decays.






37. A quantity that possesses a magnitude but not a direction. Mass and length are common examples.






38. The phenomenon by which light traveling from a high n to a low n material will reflect from the optical interface if the incident angle is greater than the critical angle.






39. A coefficient that tells how much the volume of a solid will change when it is heated or cooled.






40. The point of a mirror or lens where all light that runs parallel to the principal axis will be focused. Concave mirrors and convex lenses are designed to focus light into the focal point. Convex mirrors and concave lenses focus light away from the fo






41. The mass difference between a nucleus and the sum of the masses of the constituent protons and neutrons.






42. States that the net work done on an object is equal to the object's change in kinetic energy.






43. A unit for measuring angles; also called a "rad." 2p rad = 360º.






44. A small particle-like bundle of electromagnetic radiation.






45. A device made of two coils - which converts current of one voltage into current of another voltage. In a step-up transformer - the primary coil has fewer turns than the secondary - thus increasing the voltage. In a step-down transformer - the seconda






46. A back-and-forth movement about an equilibrium position. Springs - pendulums - and other oscillators experience harmonic motion.






47. A machine that operates by taking heat from a hot place - doing some work with that heat - and then exhausting the rest of the heat into a cool place. The internal combustion engine of a car is an example of a heat engine.






48. A vector quantity defined as the product of the force acting on a body multiplied by the time interval over which the force is exerted.






49. In an interference or diffraction pattern - the places where there is the least light.






50. Relates the angle of incidence to the angle of refraction: .