| edexcel |
A2 Level |
Physics |
How Science Works
Students explore how scientific knowledge is developed, validated and communicated by the scientific community. They consider the risks, benefits, ethical and environmental implications of science and appreciate ways in which society uses science to inform decision-making.
Unit 4 Physics on the Move
Topic 3: Particle physics
This topic covers atomic structure, particle accelerators, and the standard quark-lepton model, enabling students to describe the behaviour of matter on a subatomic scale. This topic is the subject of current research, involving the acceleration and detection of high-energy particles. It may be taught by exploring a range of experiments:
- accelerating particles to high energies
- detecting and interpreting interactions between particles.
Students will be assessed on their ability to:
- explain the role of electric and magnetic fields in particle accelerators (linac and cyclotron) and detectors (general principles of ionisation and deflection only)
- recall and use the fact that charge, energy and momentum are always conserved in interactions between particles and hence interpret records of particle tracks
- explain why high energies are required to break particles into their constituents and to see fine structure
- recognise and use the expression ?E = c2?m in situations involving the creation and annihilation of matter and antimatter particles
- use the non-SI units MeV and GeV (energy) and MeV/c2, GeV/c2 (mass)
- be aware of relativistic effects and that these need to be taken into account at speeds near that of light (use of relativistic equations not required)
- recall that in the standard quark-lepton model each particle has a corresponding antiparticle, that baryons (e.g. neutrons and protons) are made from three quarks, and mesons (e.g. pions) from a quark and an antiquark, and that the symmetry of the model predicted the top and bottom quark
Unit 5 Physics from Creation to Collapse
Topic 4: Astrophysics and cosmology
This topic covers the physical interpretation of astronomical observations, the formation and evolution of stars, and the history and future of the universe.
Students will be assessed on their ability to:
- be aware of the controversy over the age and ultimate fate of the Universe associated with the value of the Hubble Constant and the possible existence of dark matter
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