AQA GCSE Physics key terms

A change to the surroundings caused by an activity, such as pollution or habitat loss from energy use.

A state in which the forces on an object are balanced, so the resultant force is zero.

One resistor that could replace a combination of resistors while producing the same total resistance.

The change from a liquid to a gas at its surface.

Increasing the volume occupied by a gas.

An event in which one object, or a group of connected objects, separates into parts that move apart.

The increase in an object’s length compared with its original, unloaded length.

A region in which an object can experience a force without touching the source of that force.

A thin wire inside a filament lamp that becomes hot enough to emit light when current passes through it.

The velocity at the end of the period of motion being considered, represented by $v$.

A sample of gas in which no gas particles enter or leave, so its mass and number of particles remain unchanged.

A hand rule that relates the mutually perpendicular directions of magnetic field, conventional current and force on a current-carrying conductor.

A substance that can flow and may be either a liquid or a gas.

The distance along the principal axis from the centre of a lens to its principal focus.

A push or pull on an object caused by an interaction with another object.

A device that produces a larger output force than the force applied to it.

The connection of a diode that allows current to flow readily in its conducting direction.

Coal, oil or natural gas, formed from the remains of ancient organisms over millions of years.

A simplified diagram showing all the external forces acting on one chosen object or system as labelled arrows.

The change from a liquid to a solid.

The number of complete cycles produced each second, measured in hertz.

A force that opposes relative motion between surfaces in contact.

A safety component that melts and breaks a circuit if the current is too large.

A high-energy electromagnetic wave emitted from the nucleus.

Force acting normally per unit area on a surface, produced in a gas by particle collisions with that surface.

A toothed wheel that turns about an axle and can transmit a turning effect to another gear.

A change in a gene that may affect how a cell functions.