1

Page

Sec-A

(a) Carbon14 is used to find the age of objects. A 10 g sample of carbon is taken from a young
plant. Fig-1 shows how the number of counts in one minute from the sample decreases
with time.

Fig-1
The number of counts per hour from an identical sample of carbon taken from an old piece
of wood is 380.
(i) Use Fig-1 to determine the age of this piece of wood. Explain how you obtained your
answer.
(ii) Explain why it is important to take background radiation into account in this
measurement.
.......................................................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................................................
.....................................................................................................................................................................[3]
2

(a) Some atoms are radioactive. Explain what is meant by radioactive.

.......................................................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................[2]
(b) Some hospital equipment is sterilised using gamma-rays. State two properties of
gamma-rays that make them suitable for this use.
1. ....................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................
2. ...................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................[2]

Page

(c) Explain why radioactive sources should only be handled at a distance from the body.
............................................................................................................................................................................
.........................................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................................................[2]
3

Fig.3.1 shows a coil ABCD that can turn between the two poles of a magnet. Bare metal
paper clips support and pass current into and out of the coil.

Fig. 3.1
(a) (i) State the direction of the force on the side AB.
..........................................................................................................................................................................
(ii) Explain the reason for your choice of direction.
..........................................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................................
[2]
(b) A student turns the coil through 180 so that AB is close to the N pole of the magnet.
(i) State the direction of the force on side AB of the coil.
..........................................................................................................................................................................
(ii) The student releases the coil. Explain why the coil does not rotate continuously.
..........................................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................................................................[2]
(c) With the coil as shown in Fig. 3.1, the top half of the wire from C to the paper clip is
coated with an insulator, as shown in Fig. 3.2. Explain why the coil can now rotate
continuously.

3
Page
Fig. 3.2
..........................................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................................................................................... [2]
4

Fig. 4.1 shows a piece of recording tape passing under the recording head of a tape
recorder. An alternating current is passed through the coil. The tape is coated with a
magnetic material that becomes magnetised.

Fig. 4.1
(a) (i) Explain why the tape becomes magnetized.
...........................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................................................
(ii) Fig. 4.1 shows that sections of the tape are magnetised in opposite directions.
Explain why they become magnetised in opposite directions.
...........................................................................................................................................................................
...........................................................................................................................................................................

Page

(iii) The tape is moved faster past the recording head. State how this changes the
pattern on the tape.
........................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................
[3]
(b) (i) Explain why the coating on the tape must be of a permanent magnetic material.
.........................................................................................................................................................................
...................................................................................................................................................................... [1]
5

(a) A wire carrying a current in a magnetic field experiences a force due to the current. On
Fig. 5.1, insert the words current, field and force in the boxes to show the relative directions
of the current, the magnetic field and the force.

Fig. 5.1
[1]
(b) Fig. 5.2 shows a current-carrying coil ABCD in a magnetic field.

Fig. 5.2
Each side of the coil is 4.0 cm in length. The force on AB is 20 N and the force on CD is 20 N.
(i)
Calculate the total moment caused by these forces.

moment = .......................................................... [2]

(ii) The moment is increased by using a stronger magnetic field.

5
Page

State two other ways to increase the moment.

1. ...............................................................................................................................................................
2. ................................................................................................................................................................
6.

[2]

Fig. 6.1 shows a flexible wire hanging between two magnetic poles. The flexible wire is
connected to a 12 V d.c. supply that is switched off.

Fig.6.1
(a) Explain why the wire moves when the supply is switched on.
......................................................................................................................................................................
......................................................................................................................................................................
................................................................................................................................................................... [2]
(b) State the direction of the deflection of the wire.
.....................................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................. [2]
(c) When the wire first moves, energy is changed from one form to another. State these two
forms of energy. from .......................................................................................
to ................................................................................................................................................................ [1]
(d) Fig. 6.2 shows the flexible wire made into a rigid rectangular coil and mounted on an
axle.

Fig. 6.2
(i) Add to the diagram an arrangement that will allow current to be fed into the coil
whilst allowing the coil to turn continuously. Label the parts you have added.
[1]
(ii) Briefly explain how your arrangement works.
.......................................................................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................................................................[2]

In a country where the mains electricity supply is 240 V, the transformer in Fig. 7.1 is used
to enable a 6 V lamp to be lit.

Page

7.

Fig. 7.1
(a) Calculate the number of turns needed on the secondary coil if the lamp is to be lit at
normal brightness.
number of turns = ........................ [3]
(b) Without further calculation, state the number of secondary turns needed to light, at
normal brightness,
(i) two identical 6 V lamps in parallel i.e.

number of turns = ....................

(ii) two identical 6 V lamps in series i.e.

number of turns = ....................

[2]

Fig. 8.1 shows the outline of an a.c. generator. The peak output voltage of the generator is
6.0 V and the output has a frequency of 10Hz.

Page

8.

Fig. 8.1
(a) Fig. 8.2 shows the axes of a voltage-time graph for the generator output.

Fig. 8.2
On Fig. 8.2,
(i) mark suitable voltage values on the voltage axis,
(ii) draw a graph of the generator output.
[3]
(b) The generator shown in Fig. 8.1 works by electromagnetic induction.
Explain how this effect produces the output voltage.
.........................................................................................................................................................
.........................................................................................................................................................
..........................................................................................................................................................
.........................................................................................................................................................
[3]
(c) State the energy changes that occur in the generator when it is producing output.
..........................................................................................................................................................
Section B
Answer two questions from this section. Answer in the spaces provided.
9

An atom of one isotope of sodium contains 11 protons, 13 neutrons and 11 electrons.

(a) (i) State the nucleon number (mass number) of this isotope.

[2]

Page

.................................................................................................................................................................
[1]

(ii) Explain why the number of protons is equal to the number of electrons in a neutral atom.
..................................................................................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................
[1]
(b) A nucleus of this isotope undergoes radioactive decay by the emission of a beta-particle.
(i) State the energy change that occurs during radioactive decay.
................................................................................................................................................................
...............................................................................................................................................................
[2]
(ii) Complete the nuclear equation that represents this decay by filling in the appropriate
numbers in the blank spaces. Na is the chemical symbol for sodium.

[4]
(c) At the start of an experiment, the count rate due to a sample of this isotope of sodium is found to be
1200 counts per minute. This is shown on Fig. 11.1 by a point plotted at time t = 0.
The half-life of this isotope is 15 hours.
(i) On Fig. 11.1, draw a smooth line to show how the count rate is expected to change
between t = 0 and t = 30 hours.
[3]

Fig. 9.1
(ii) Explain why readings taken in an actual experiment may not follow a smooth line.
.......................................................................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................................................................

[1]

Page

(iii) Determine the count rate due to this isotope 30 hours before the start of the experiment.

count rate = .......................................................... [1]

(iv) In the space below, draw a labelled diagram of the apparatus used to measure the count
rate of the radioactive isotope.

10

A doctor uses a radioactive isotope, iodine-131, to find the volume of blood in a patients body.
Information about iodine-131 is given in Fig. 10.1.

Fig. 10.1
(a) (i) Describe the structure of an atom of iodine-131.
(ii) The radioactive decay equation below shows an iodine-131 nucleus decaying into a
xenon nucleus (Xe). Copy the equation and insert the proton number and the nucleon
number of the xenon nucleus.

[5]
(b) Describe the differences between beta-particles and gamma-rays.
[3]
(c) The doctor uses a sample of iodine-131 that initially produces a count rate of 144 000 per
second.
The whole sample is injected into the patients arm. Nine small samples of blood, each of
volume 2.0 cm3, are taken from the other arm at 2 minute intervals.
Fig. 10.2 shows the count rates from the nine samples.

Page

10

Fig. 10.2
(i) State two reasons why different count rates are obtained from the nine samples.
(ii) Calculate the average value of the count rates from the last four samples.
This is the average count rate from a volume of 2.0 cm3 of blood.
(iii) Using your answer to (ii), determine the volume of blood in the patients body, which
has a total count rate of 144 000 per second.
(iv) Sample number 9 is kept.
The count rate is measured again after 16 days.
Estimate the value obtained, given that the half-life of iodine-131 is 8.0 days.
[6]
(d) Describe one precaution that the doctor must take when handling this radioactive source.
[1]
11

As a researcher, you are assigned to investigate the characteristics of radioactive

substances with different half-lives to be used for the treatment of cancer.
Diagram 11.1 shows radioactive rays directed towards the cancer cells in a patients
brain.

Diagram 11.1
(a) What is meant by halflife?
[ 1 mark ]
(b) Sketch a graph of activity against time to illustrate the decay rate of a radioactive
substance. Use your graph to explain how the half-life is determined.
[4 marks ]
Table 11.1 shows the properties of four radioactive substances, J, K , L and M

11
Page
Table 11.1
(c) (i) Based on Table 12.1 above, explain the suitable properties of the
radioactive substance for use to kill cancer cells in a patient.
(ii) Determine which radioactive substance is the most suitable for the treatment
of cancer cells in a patient and give your reasons.
[5 marks]
(d) Diagram 11 .2 shows a radioactive decay series for Rn-222 nucleus to Pb210.

Diagram 11.2
(i) Describe what happens to a nucleus when it undergoes a radioactive decay.
(ii) Write an equation to represent the radioactive decay series of Rn-222 to Pb210 in Diagram 11.2
(iii) State the number of alpha particles and beta particles produced in the decay.
[ 5 marks]