Cambridge A Level · 9702 · Paper 1 · Multiple choice
Physics 9702/12 May/June 2025 past paper
Cambridge A Level Physics (9702) Paper 1 (Multiple choice), variant 2, May/June 2025: the question paper and its official mark scheme, 40 questions worth 40 marks, with the grade thresholds. Free to open, no account needed.
- Questions
- 40
- Marks
- 40
- Grade A from
- 30
File names: 9702_s25_qp_12 · 9702_s25_ms_12
Grade thresholds for 9702/12 May/June 2025
The minimum raw marks Cambridge set for each grade on this component (out of 40). Thresholds change every session and variant, so always compare your score with the paper you actually sat.
| A | B | C | D | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | 26 | 22 | 18 | 15 |
Topics in this paper
Which syllabus chapters 9702/12 May/June 2025 tested, by marks. Each chapter links to every past-paper question on it.
| Chapter | Questions | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| Kinematics | 7 | 7 |
| Waves | 6 | 6 |
| Electricity | 6 | 6 |
| Forces, density and pressure | 5 | 5 |
| Dynamics | 3 | 3 |
| Work, energy and power | 3 | 3 |
| Deformation of solids | 3 | 3 |
| Particle physics | 3 | 3 |
| Physical quantities and units | 2 | 2 |
| Superposition | 2 | 2 |
Questions in 9702/12 May/June 2025
- Question 1
What must all physical quantities have? A a direction and a magnitude B a direction and a unit C a magnitude and a prefix D a magnitude and a unit
- Question 2
What is 0.25 kN mm–2 expressed in …
- Question 3
A student calculates the density of a solid steel cube in an experiment. The measured mass is …
- Question 4
The time period T of a pendulum is given by …
- Question 5
Radio waves can be used to measure the distance between Earth and the planet Jupiter. A pulse of radio waves is emitted from the surface of Earth. The pulse reflects from the surface of Jupiter and is detected again on …
- Question 6
The graph shows the variation with time of the velocity of a car. …
- Question 7
A solid object of mass 1.0 kg falls vertically downwards in a vacuum. When the speed of the object is …
- Question 8
A stone is thrown upwards and follows a curved path. Air resistance is negligible. Why does the path have this shape? A The stone has a constant horizontal acceleration and constant vertical velocity. B The stone has a constant horizontal …
- Question 9
A rocket engine ejects 90 kg of exhaust gas per second at a velocity of …
- Question 10
Which statement does not describe an elastic collision between two objects? A The relative speed of approach of the two objects equals the relative speed of separation. B The total kinetic energy of the objects is conserved. C The total …
- Question 11
A cyclist is riding at a constant speed on a level road. According to Newton’s third law of motion, what is equal and opposite to the backward push of the back wheel on the road? A the force exerted by …
- Question 12
A stone is released from rest and falls a long distance in air. Which graph could show the variation with time t of the acceleration a of the stone? …
- Question 13
An empty cart is moving along a horizontal track at a constant velocity. Resistive forces acting on the cart are negligible. A heavy rock is dropped vertically into the cart. velocity of rock velocity of cart The cart continues to …
- Question 14
A wooden block is held stationary in a container of water using a string that is attached to both the wooden block and the bottom of the container. wooden block string container water The wooden block has mass m and …
- Question 15
A square shop sign of uniform density has mass 2.4 kg and sides of length 0.86 m. The sign is supported by a hinge along its top edge. There is friction in the hinge so that the sign hangs from …
- Question 16
A block is submerged vertically in a liquid. The four diagrams show the block viewed from the side. Which diagram shows, to scale, the forces exerted on equal areas of the block by the liquid? …
- Question 17
The diagram shows a couple. force force perpendicular distance between the forces How is the torque of the couple calculated? …
- Question 18
A ball of mass 1.2 kg travels horizontally at a speed of …
- Question 19
A box of mass 4.9 kg is pushed at a constant velocity from point P at the bottom of an inclined plane to point Q at the top. The box is pushed by a force of 64 N acting parallel …
- Question 20
Which expression gives the efficiency of a system? A output energy useful input energy total B input energy total output energy wasted + output energy useful C input energy total output energy useful D input energy total output energy wasted
- Question 21
A student has a copper wire and a steel wire with equal lengths and cross-sectional areas. The student hangs identical loads on the two wires. The extensions of the two wires are different. The student calculates the stress, strain and …
- Question 22
Two springs X and Y stretch elastically. The graphs show the variation with extension x of the force F applied to each spring. …
- Question 23
Which phrase describes the strain at the elastic limit on a stress–strain graph? A the maximum strain below which Hooke’s law is obeyed B the maximum strain below which the deformation is plastic C the minimum strain above which Hooke’s …
- Question 24
A teacher removes the turntable from a microwave oven and places a bar of chocolate in the oven. She then switches the oven on for a short time. A stationary wave is formed in the oven. When the chocolate is …
- Question 25
A sound wave travels from the left to the right. The graph shows the variation of the displacement to the right of particles in the sound wave with distance, at one instant. Which letter represents the centre of a compression? …
- Question 26
A buzzer emitting sound of frequency 846 Hz is attached to a string and rotated in a horizontal circle. The linear speed of the buzzer is …
- Question 27
Vertically polarised light of intensity I0 is incident normally on a polarising filter. The transmission axis of the filter is at an angle to the plane of polarisation of the light. The intensity of the light after passing through …
- Question 28
Which statement compares the behaviour of transverse and longitudinal waves? A Only longitudinal waves can be diffracted. B Only longitudinal waves can travel in free space. C Only transverse waves can be coherent. D Only transverse waves can be polarised.
- Question 29
A student uses a diffraction grating to determine the wavelength of visible light from a source. The diffraction grating has 300 lines per mm. The student measures the angle of each order n of the intensity maxima. A graph …
- Question 30
Two waves meet. What is not a necessary condition for the waves to produce a stationary wave? A They must be of the same type. B They must have the same period. C They must have the same wavelength. D …
- Question 31
Light of a single wavelength is incident normally on a double slit. Interference fringes are observed on a screen. The distance from the double slit to the screen is 0.60 m and the fringe separation is 1.8 mm. The distance …
- Question 32
A wire is made from a metal of constant resistivity. There is a constant current in the wire. Which statement about the potential difference across the wire is correct? A It is directly proportional to the length of the wire. …
- Question 33
The I–V characteristics for three electrical components are shown. …
- Question 34
A resistor of resistance 200 is connected to a supply that has a p.d. of 4.00 V. How many electrons enter the resistor in …
- Question 35
The diagram shows a cell of internal resistance 1.0R connected to a variable resistor. 1.0R When the variable resistor has an initial resistance of 2.0R, the current in the cell is I1 and the terminal potential difference (p.d.) across the …
- Question 36
The diagram shows a four-terminal box connected to a battery and two ammeters. …
- Question 37
Each of Kirchhoff’s two laws presumes that some quantity is conserved. Which row states Kirchhoff’s first law and names the quantity that is conserved? statement quantity A The algebraic sum of currents at a junction is zero. charge B The …
- Question 38
Two neutral atoms are isotopes of the same element. Which statement about the atoms is correct? A They have a different number of neutrons and a different number of electrons. B They have a different number of neutrons and the …
- Question 39
What is the composition of a meson? A 1 quark and 1 antiquark B 1 quark and 2 antiquarks C 2 quarks and 1 antiquark D 3 quarks
- Question 40
A nucleus of carbon-11 contains 6 protons and 5 neutrons. The nucleus of carbon-11 decays by + emission. What is the total number of up and down quarks in the product of the decay of this nucleus? up quarks down …
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