Light (Cambridge O Level Physics)

Exam Questions

3 hours44 questions
1
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The diagram shows white light passing through a prism.

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Which of the following gives colours in the correct order from A to B?

  • Red, green, violet

  • Red, violet, green

  • Violet, red, green

  • Violet, green, red

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2
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A teacher has a clock mounted in such a way that students can only see its reflection in a plane mirror.

The diagram shows the reflection of the clock.

q2-easy-mcq-3-2-light-cie-igcse-physics

What time is shown on the clock?

  • 05:40

  • 07:40

  • 07:20

  • 06:20

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3
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An object is placed in front of a mirror. Where is the image formed, and is the image real or virtual?

  Image location Image type
A X real
B X virtual
C Y real
D Y virtual

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    4
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    When light passes from a denser material into a less dense material

    • light slows down and bends toward the normal

    • light slows down and bends away from the normal

    • light speeds up and bends toward the normal

    • light speeds up and bends away from the normal

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    5
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    Identify the correct definition of the critical angle.

    • The critical angle is the angle of incidence when the angle of refraction is exactly 90° and light is refracted along the boundary

    • The critical angle is the angle of refraction when the angle of incidence is exactly 90° and light is refracted along the boundary

    • The critical angle is the angle of incidence when the angle of reflection is exactly 90° and light is reflected along the boundary

    • The critical angle is the angle of incidence when the angle of refraction is exactly 90° and light is reflected along the boundary

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    1
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    Which of the diagrams below shows both the correct position of the image, and the correct path the light rays must have taken to the eye?

    q1-medium-mcq-3-2-light-cie-igcse-physics

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      2
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      Which of the images correctly shows the focal length of the thin converging lens?

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        3
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        A physics teacher demonstrates dispersion for her class. She asks the students to draw a diagram of the dispersion.

        The diagrams show four examples of what different students drew. One of them is correct. Which one?

        q3-medium-mcq-3-2-light-cie-igcse-physics

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          4
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          Which diagram correctly shows the formation of a real image on a screen?

          q4-medium-mcq-3-2-light-cie-igcse-physics

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            5
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            The diagram shows a ray of light inside a perspex rod. 

            Perspex has a critical angle of 42o.

            q5-medium-mcq-3-2-light-cie-igcse-physics

            Which row in the table correctly states whether there is any light reflected from the surface, and whether there is any light refracted out of the perspex rod?

              Light reflected? Light refracted?
            A yes yes
            B yes no
            C no yes
            D no no

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              6
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              Light is incident on a mirror and is reflected as shown.

              q18-cie-ol-physics-specimen-paper-1-mcq

              What is the angle of incidence and what is the angle of reflection?

                Angle of incidence Angle of reflection
              A 40° 40°
              B 40° 50°
              C 50° 40°
              D 50° 50°

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                7
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                An object O is placed in front of a lens. 

                The ray diagram shows the paths of two light rays that start at the tip of the object

                q19-cie-ol-physics-specimen-paper-1-mcq

                Which point P or Q is a principal focus and what type of image is formed?

                  Principal focus Type of image formed
                A point P real
                B point P virtual
                C point Q real
                D point Q virtual

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                  8
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                  Light refracts from a liquid into air as shown. 

                  q21-cie-ol-physics-paper-1-2021-mcq

                  The refractive index for light moving from air to the liquid is 1.4. 

                  What is the angle of incidence in the liquid?

                  • 22°

                  • 37°

                  • 41°

                  • 45°

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                  9
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                  A ray of red light in air enters a semi-circular block. 

                  Which diagram shows the partial reflection and the refraction of the ray?

                  q22-cie-ol-physics-paper-1-2021-mcq

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                    10
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                    Which statement about human vision is correct? 

                    • In a normal eye, the image on the retina is magnified and upright.

                    • In a long-sighted eye, distant objects form images in front of the retina. 

                    • Short-sighted eyes produce only virtual images. 

                    • Short-sight is corrected by the use of a diverging lens. 

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                    11
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                    White light enters a prism and forms a spectrum. 

                    The rays in the air are labelled. 

                    Which diagram shows how the white light is dispersed by the prism? 

                    q24-cie-ol-physics-paper-1-2021-mcq

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                      1
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                      The diagram shows light passing from air into glass. A number of angles have been labelled on the diagram.

                      q1-hard-mcq-3-2-light-cie-igcse-physics

                      Which of the equations could be used to correctly calculate the refractive index, n, of the glass?

                      • fraction numerator sin space P over denominator sin space S end fraction

                      • fraction numerator sin space Q over denominator sin space R end fraction

                      • fraction numerator sin space P over denominator sin space R end fraction

                      • fraction numerator sin space Q over denominator sin space S end fraction

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                      2
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                      Below is a ray diagram showing the image formed by a thin, converging lens.

                      q3-hard-mcq-3-2-light-cie-igcse-physics

                      Which of the following statements about the image is correct?

                      • The image is virtual and can be seen by eye Y.

                      • The image is inverted and can be seen by eye Y.

                      • The image is real and can be seen by the eye at X.

                      • The image is virtual and can be seen by eye X.

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                      3
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                      Light enters a flat water surface at an angle of 27 o.

                      The refractive index of water is 1.33.

                      At what angle does the light ray refract?

                      • 0.34 o

                      • 20.3 o

                      • 20.0 o

                      • 37.0 o

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                      4
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                      A ray of light is shone into a semi-circular glass block so that it makes an angle of 48° with the rear, flat edge of the block as shown.

                      q4-hard-mcq-3-2-light-cie-igcse-physics

                      Calculate the refractive index of the glass.

                      • 0.023

                      • 1.49

                      • 2.38

                      • 1.35

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                      5
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                      The diagram shows an object positioned close to a thin converging lens (inside the focal distance). Three light rays are shown leaving the object and passing through the lens.

                      q5-hard-mcq-3-2-light-cie-igcse-physics

                      Which row in the table correctly describes the properties of the image? 

                       

                      Location

                      Size

                      Real / Virtual

                      A

                      to the left of O

                      reduced

                      real

                      B

                      to the right of O

                      enlarged

                      virtual

                      C

                      to the left of O

                      enlarged

                      virtual

                      D

                      at O

                      the same as O

                      real

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                        6
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                        The diagram shows a ray of light being totally internally reflected at the boundary between substances A and B.

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                        Which row in the table must be true?

                         

                        Angle of incidence

                        Substance A

                        A

                        greater than critical angle

                        greater refractive index than B

                        B

                        greater than critical angle

                        smaller refractive index than B

                        C

                        less than critical angle

                        greater refractive index than B

                        D

                        less than critical angle

                        smaller refractive index than B

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                          7
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                          The image below shows white light being split into its constituent colours by a glass prism.

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                          Why does a prism cause white light to be dispersed?

                          • Light towards the red end of the spectrum slows down less than light towards the violet end of the spectrum as it moves through the glass

                          • Light towards the red end of the spectrum slows down more than light towards the violet end of the spectrum as it moves through the glass

                          • The frequency of the light towards the red end decreases more than the frequency of light towards the violet end of the spectrum

                          • The frequency of the light towards the violet end decreases more than the frequency of light towards the red end of the spectrum

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