Physics Terminology Study Guide
Term
Definition
Kinematics
branch of mechanics that deals with pure motion
Kinetics
branch of mechanics deals with the actions of forces changing the motion of masses
Statics
branch of mechanics deals with bodies at rest or forces in equilibrium
Dynamics
deals with the motion and equilibrium of systems under the actions of forces
Moment of Inertia
Resistance to rotational motion equal to the products of the mass and the square of the
perpendicular distance to the axis of rotation of each particle in a body
Torque
product of force and the lever arm; produces or tends to produce torsion or rotation
Faraday's Law
Induced EMF in any closed circuit is equal to the time rate of change of the magnetic
flux through the circuit
Joule's First Law
power produced (dissipated as heat) in a resistor
Aerodynamics
study of the flow of gases
Archimedes' Principle
bouyant force is equal to the weight of the fluid displaced
Pascal's Law
pressure change is conveyed uniformly throughout a fluid
Bernoulli's Principle
relates kinetic and potential energies to pressure in fluid flows
LASER
Light Amplification by Stimulated Emissions of Radiation; coherent beam of light
Critical Angle
smallest angle for total internal refraction
Fluorescence
emission of radiation by an object as a result of absorption of other radiation
Photon
single unit of EM radiation; particle/wave duality
Doppler Effect
apparent shift in frequency from moving source
Fermat's Principle
between any two points, light takes the path that requires the least time
Planck Relation
relates frequency and energy by namesake constant (E=hv)
Entropy (S)
a measure of disorder based on the number of equivalent micro states
Fusion/Melting
transition from solid to liquid phase
Freezing
transition from liquid to solid phase (opposite of melting)
Sublimation
transition directly from solid to gas phase
Deposition
transition directly from gas to solid phase (opposite of sublimation)
Gasization
transition from liquid to gas phase
Boiling
gasization originating with sub-surface bubbles
Kelvin (SI Unit)
starts at absolute zero; increments equal to 1 C
Celsius (Centigrade)
defines with 0C as freezing point of water and 100C as boiling point
Fahrenheit
water freezes at 32F, boils at 212F; zero is temp of ammonium chloride and ice
Rankine
starts at absolute zero; increments equal to 1F
Isobaric
constant pressure
Isothermal
constant temperature
Isochoric
constant volume
Adiabatic
no heat flow
0th Law of Thermodyn
transitive property of thermal equilibrium
1st Law of Thermodyn change in internal energy is sum of heat into the system and work done by the system
2nd Law of Thermodyn
Total entropy of any isolated system tends to increase over time
3rd Law of Thermodyn
processes cease and entropy goes to zero at absolute zero
Carnot's Theorem/Rule
no engine operating between two heat reservoirs can be more efficient than a
comparable Carnot Engine
Joule's Second Law
internal energy of an ideal gas depends only on temperature
Fermions
elementary particles with half-integer spin (1/2 for all known fermions)
Quarks
Type of fermion; components of hadrons; only known fractional charge
Leptons
have no strong interaction; electron(-1), electron neutrino(0), muon(-1), muon
neutrino(0), tauon (-1), tauon neutrino(0)
Bosons
elementary particles with integer spin; mediate fundamental forces
Hyperons
contain strange quarks; heavy and short-lived
Mesons
composite bosons; ordinary have a quark and an antiquark in addition to bosons
Planck's Law
describes the spectral radiance of electromagnetic radiation at all wavelengths from a
black body at temperature T
Special Relativity
physical theory of measurement in inertial frames of reference
Time Dilation
variance of time observation between observers depending on the relative speeds of
the observers' frames of reference
General Relativity
geometric theory of gravitation; describes gravity as a geometric property of spacetime