The Physics Question Bank

Hints for every question on the June 2023 GCSE Physics Paper 2 Foundation (8463/2F). Get the paper from AQA’s GCSE Physics page (Filter → Question papers → June 2023). The hints tell you which equation to use and what to watch out for – but not the answer. Try each question first, and only open a hint if you’re stuck. ← All past papers

Question 1 – Spring constant investigation (7 marks)

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• 01.1 Extension = new length − original length. It is NOT the total length of the stretched spring.
• 01.2 Give something the student should do to stay safe (a precaution) – not just what could go wrong. Think: what if the spring or masses fall or ping off?
• 01.3 The equation is given: weight = mass × gravitational field strength. Multiply the two numbers. Unit: newtons (N).
• 01.4 For a spring (before it’s overstretched), if you double the force, the extension doubles. What shape of graph shows that – and where must it start?
• 01.5 The equation is given: spring constant = force ÷ extension. The extension is already in metres. Unit: N/m.

Question 2 – Stopping distance and reaction time (13 marks)

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• 02.1 A moving car has which energy store? When brakes rub and get hot, which store goes up?
• 02.2 Use the words from the axes: “As the speed increases, the braking distance…”. Don’t say “directly proportional” – the line is a curve.
• 02.3 Ice makes the road slippery, so there is less friction between the tyres and the road. Does the car take longer or shorter to stop?
• 02.4 Step 1: work out the change in velocity (12.5 − 5.0) and WRITE IT DOWN – there’s a mark for this step. Step 2: time = change in velocity ÷ deceleration. Unit: seconds (s).
• 02.5 The equation is given: resultant force = mass × deceleration. Just multiply – don’t square anything, even though the unit is m/s².
• 02.6 A control variable is something you keep the same for every person. Which option could you choose to keep the same?
• 02.7 She only tested 3 people. Why might they not be typical of the whole class? Saying “only 3 people were tested” on its own won’t get the mark – say what that means for the mean.
• 02.8 Don’t explain how music might affect reaction time – describe what you would do. Test people with music and without music, then compare the results.

Question 3 – Electromagnets and the electric bell (9 marks)

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• 03.1 The arrows are on the field lines, not on the wire. So what direction are they showing? (It’s not the current.)
• 03.2 Which option would make the magnetic effect of the current stronger?
• 03.3 A solenoid’s field looks like a bar magnet’s field. Inside the coil the lines are straight, parallel and close together.
• 03.4 Start with what has to happen first to make anything work (hint: it’s electrical). Then: what does that create? What does that do to the iron arm? The last step is the arm going back.
• 03.5 Magnetic forces get stronger when things are closer. Fewer cells or fewer turns would make the electromagnet weaker.
• 03.6 The equation is given: period = 1 ÷ frequency. Unit: seconds (s).
• 03.7 A compression is where the particles are squashed closest together.

Question 4 – The solar system and stars (11 marks)

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• 04.1 Scientists change a model when it no longer fits the evidence. Which option is about evidence?
• 04.2 (4 marks) Look at what is at the centre of the old model in Figure 10. Then write comparisons, not lists: “In the old model… but in the model used now…”. Compare things like what is at the centre, what orbits what, and how many planets there are. Linking each point to the other model gets the marks.
• 04.3 Use both column headings: “As the mean distance from the Sun increases, the time taken for one orbit…”. Don’t talk about speed.
• 04.4 Work out the scale on the vertical axis first – how much is each small square worth? Then draw each missing bar to the right height with a ruler.
• 04.5 The Sun is a small, average star – it is NOT big enough to become a red supergiant or a supernova. Stage A is the stage the Sun is in now, when it is stable.
• 04.6 A perfect black body absorbs all the radiation that hits it. What else is it the best at?

Question 5 – Electromagnetic waves (6 marks)

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• 05.1 Wavelength = the length of one complete wave (e.g. peak to the next peak). How many complete waves fit into length Q?
• 05.2 Amplitude is measured from the middle line to the top of a peak. Check where R starts and ends on Figure 13 – is it from the middle or from bottom to top?
• 05.3 Which of these waves are used for TV and radio broadcasts?
• 05.4 The equation is given: distance = speed × time. Count the zeros carefully when you type the numbers in – or use the ×10ˣ button (0.000 009 = 9 × 10⁻⁶). Unit: metres (m).
• 05.5 Think about a machine in your kitchen – or how signals reach satellites. “TV” or “computers” won’t get the mark.

Question 6 – Refraction of light (11 marks)

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• 06.1 With a wide beam, where exactly do you put the ruler or protractor?
• 06.2 (3 marks) Use a ruler. Going into glass, light bends towards the normal. Coming out into air, it bends away from the normal. Draw a normal where the ray leaves the block. Don’t draw a reflection – the normal is not a mirror.
• 06.3 Resolution = the smallest change you can read on the scale. Look at the gap between the smallest marks on the protractor.
• 06.4 Add the three readings, then divide by 3.
• 06.5 The filter takes in the energy of the other colours. What’s the physics word for this? (“Blocked” or “filtered” won’t score.)
• 06.6 Copy it from the equation sheet: wave speed = frequency × wavelength.
• 06.7 Rearrange v = f λ to λ = v ÷ f. Type the powers of ten in with the ×10ˣ button – many students got the power wrong. Write the rearranged equation with the numbers in so you get method marks.

Question 7 – The Hubble Space Telescope (8 marks)

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• 07.1 The Moon is a natural one. The Hubble Space Telescope is an artificial one.
• 07.2 Draw ONE arrow, starting on the telescope, pointing towards the centre of the Earth.
• 07.3 Speed = gradient = change in distance ÷ change in time. Use a big triangle on the straight line. Check the units on the axes – the answer needs to be in km/s.
• 07.4 Compare the dark lines with the Sun’s spectrum. The faster a galaxy moves away, the more its lines are shifted towards the red end. Which galaxy’s lines have moved the most?
• 07.5 The further away a galaxy is, the faster it is moving away – so it has the biggest red-shift.
• 07.6 Peer review means other scientists check the work. What are they checking?

Question 8 – Lenses (8 marks)

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• 08.1 Focal length is a distance, not a point. Choose the proper physics name for the point where the parallel rays meet.
• 08.2 Use a ruler. Draw a ray from the top of the object straight through the centre of the lens (it doesn’t bend). Draw a ray parallel to the axis – after the lens it spreads out so it looks as if it came from F on the object’s side (draw that part dashed). The image arrow goes where the lines meet.
• 08.3 Compare the images, not the diagrams. Is each image upright or upside down? Real or virtual? Which side of the lens is it on?
• 08.4 magnification = image height ÷ object height, so image height = magnification × object height. Multiply – don’t divide. Both heights are in mm.

Question 9 – Infrared radiation investigation (17 marks)

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• 09.1 The oscillations are at right angles to the direction the wave travels. What’s the one-word name for that? (It starts with p.)
• 09.2 (6 marks) Write it as steps someone could follow. Include: what you put in each flask and how you make it fair (same volume of hot water, same starting temperature, same size flask); what you measure (temperature at the start and after 10 minutes – or use an infrared detector at the same distance from each flask); and how you use the results (calculate the temperature drop for each and compare – what would a bigger drop tell you?).
• 09.3 Objects emit infrared faster when they are hotter. When is the water at its hottest? Your reason must say the water is at its highest temperature – “hotter” isn’t enough.
• 09.4 The dependent variable is the thing you measure. What did the student measure after 10 minutes?
• 09.5 Compare only one thing at a time: matt vs shiny (same colour), and black vs white (same finish). Your conclusions must be about absorbing infrared – not emitting or reflecting.
• 09.6 Find it on the equation sheet.
• 09.7 (4 marks) Rearrange to force = pressure × area. The area is only the bottom face of the cube (side × side) – not the total surface area or the volume. If the side is in cm, convert to m before you work out the area. Unit: N.

Question 10 – Aeroplane journey (10 marks)

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• 10.1 Displacement is the straight-line distance from start to finish – not the length of the route. Use a ruler to join start to finish, measure it, then use the scale.
• 10.2 Forces in the same direction add up. Forces in opposite directions – take the smaller away from the bigger.
• 10.3 Use your answer to 10.2. If the resultant force is zero, what happens to the speed? If it isn’t zero, what happens? Use words like constant speed, accelerating or decelerating – not just “moving forward”.
• 10.4 A contact force needs the objects to touch. Gravity, magnetic and electrostatic forces are non-contact, so they don’t count.
• 10.5 On Figure 27, a flat line means the plane is not moving. A curve getting steeper means it’s speeding up. On a velocity–time graph, what does “not moving” look like – and what does “speeding up” look like? Match the times.
• 10.6 Draw a smooth curve through the points and carry it on (extrapolate) to 10 km. Then read across to the pressure axis. Check the scale carefully before you read the value.
• 10.7 The higher you go, the thinner the air gets.

✅ Finished? Mark your paper with the mark scheme, then read the examiners’ report for the questions you found hardest. Find both on AQA’s GCSE Physics page (Filter → June 2023).