Edexcel GCSE Physics key terms

A measure of how strongly a component or conductor opposes an electric current, measured in ohms (Ω).

A pattern of changing current or potential difference that carries information, such as the pattern of a sound wave.

Energy transferred when electric charges move through a potential difference.

A physical property of matter that can be positive or negative and causes electrical forces between objects.

The rate at which electric charge flows past a point in a circuit, measured in amperes (A).

A region in which an electric charge experiences a force.

The direction of the force that would act on a positive test charge placed at a point in an electric field.

A line used to represent an electric field: its arrow shows the field direction and its concentration represents field strength.

A measure of how strong the electric field is at a particular position; it is represented by the concentration of field lines.

A push or pull experienced by an electric charge because it is in an electric field.

A device that uses the motor effect to convert electrical energy into rotational movement.

The harmful passage of electric current through the body.

A magnet produced by an electric current, so its magnetic effect can be switched on and off.

The production of a potential difference across a conductor when the magnetic field through it changes.

A transverse wave that transfers energy and can travel through a vacuum; radio waves, microwaves and infrared are types of electromagnetic radiation.

The continuous range of wavelengths and frequencies that electromagnetic waves can have.

A wave made of changing electric and magnetic fields that can carry energy through a vacuum.

A negatively charged particle found outside an atom’s nucleus.

The arrangement of an atom's electrons in its electron shells.

The path at a particular distance from the nucleus used to represent an electron's energy level in the atomic model.

Another name for an energy level: a set distance from the nucleus at which electrons orbit.

The movement of electrons from one material to another.

An attractive or repulsive force between electrically charged objects.

The rearrangement of electrons within an object caused by the electric field of a nearby charged object, without the objects needing to touch.

A device that uses electrostatic attraction to remove smoke and other particles from a gas.

The force that pushes like electric charges apart; it acts between positively charged nuclei.

A device that gives fine liquid droplets the same electric charge so that electrostatic forces control their movement.