CAMBRIDGE INTERNATIONAL AS & A LEVEL PHYSICS: WORKBOOK

Exam-style questions and sample answers have been written by the authors. In examinations, the way marks are awarded
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Workbook answers
Chapter 12
Exercise 12.1 Basic terms 4 a 2.4 cm

and wave diagrams b 2.5 Hz

 he diagrams show answers for part a

1 a–d T c 0.40 s
(labels for amplitude, wavelength, period d

Displacement
and 1/frequency), part b (label B), part
c (label C) and part d (label D).
0 1 2 3 4 5Distance / cm
A wavelength B
Displacement

amplitude 5 a 2.5 s

D Distance b 0.40 Hz
C c 40 cm
d 
Displacement
Displacement

period and 1/f amplitude

0 1 2 3 4 5Time /s
Time

2 a missing words: parallel and perpendicular Exercise 12.2 More about phase
b Type of wave Longitudinal or
difference
transverse 1 a A and E
radio waves transverse
b A and D; B and E
ultrasound waves longitudinal
c i A moves up
microwaves transverse
ultra-violet waves transverse ii B moves down
waves on a rope transverse 2 a One whole wave is 360° = 4 × 90°.

c  ove the spring backwards and forwards

M So, the distance for one whole wave is
along the direction of the spring. 4 × 25 = 100 cm.

d  ove the spring at right angles to the

M b 75 cm
length of the spring. 360
c 15 × = 54°
3 wavelength = 32 cm 100

v = fλ = 64 cm s−1

1 Cambridge International AS & A Level Physics – Sang & Jones © Cambridge University Press 2020
 CAMBRIDGE INTERNATIONAL AS & A LEVEL PHYSICS: WORKBOOK

3 How far through a wave cycle one Exercise 12.4 The Doppler effect
oscillation leads or lags another, expressed
as an angle, so that if two points are 1 a  he waves are squashed together because
T
one wavelength apart they have a phase the source is moving towards him.
difference of 360°.
b  he source of sound always emits the
T
4 a same amplitude same frequency. In one second, the same
number of wavelengths are emitted but
b same frequency they fit in a smaller distance because the
c A is 90° ahead of B. source is moving towards the observer. So,
the wavelength of these waves is reduced
Exercise 12.3 Wave intensity, and – since the speed of the sound is the
same – more complete wavelengths arrive
measuring time and the at the observer per second.
electromagnetic spectrum
2 a 453 Hz
1 1 : 4, 25% or 0.25
b 358 Hz
2 Amplitude Intensity
3 2740 Hz
initial wave A0 I0
4 319 Hz and 283 Hz
1 1
wave A A I 5 a 57 m s−1
2 0 4 0
A0 1 b 214 Hz
wave B I
2 2 0 6 a 31 m s−1 towards the observer
wave C 3A0 9I0
b  lower frequency but still larger than
A
wave D 4A0 16I0 600 Hz because the component of the
velocity of the train towards the observer
is less.
3 a 500 W or J s−1
b The area facing the wave is reduced. Exercise 12.5 Polarisation
c 0.1 m2 1 a  he oscillation of E (and B) is at right
T
angles to the direction of travel.
4 Frequency / Wavelength / Region
b I n a polarised wave, the oscillation of the
Hz m of the
electric field is in only one plane. In a non-
spectrum
polarised wave, the plane of oscillation
1.0 × 1010 3.0 × 10−2 microwaves varies in direction, although still at 90° to
6.0 × 1014 5.0 × 10−7 visible the direction of travel.

5.0 × 1017 6.0 × 10−10 X-ray unpolarised

wave
5.0 × 107 6.0 radio vertical slit

6.0 × 1022 5.0 × 10−15 γ-ray plane polarised

wave
3.0 × 1013 1.0 × 10−5 infrared
direction
of wave
5 a 2.0 ms = 2.0 × 10−3 s energy

b 500 Hz 2 a i I = 0.75I0, A = 0.87I0

c 125 Hz ii I = 0.50I0, A = 0.71I0
b 60°

2 Cambridge International AS & A Level Physics – Sang & Jones © Cambridge University Press 2020