13 Direct current circuits

AQA Physics Exam-style questions

1 A car battery has an emf of 12 V and an internal resistance of 5.0  10–3 Ω.

a i Explain what is meant by the emf of the battery.

(1 mark)

ii Explain what is meant by the internal resistance of the battery.

(1 mark)

b The battery is used to provide the starting motor of a car with a current of
800 A.
i Calculate the potential difference across the terminals of the battery.

pd V
(2 marks)
ii Calculate the rate of dissipation of energy within the battery due to its
internal resistance, stating an appropriate unit.

rate of dissipation of energy unit

(3 marks)
c State and explain the effect of attempting to use a battery with a much higher
internal resistance to start the car.

(2 marks)

From AQA Physics A PHYA1 Particles, Quantum Phenomena and Electricity

January 2009 (Question 7)

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 13 Direct current circuits
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

2 The graph in Figure 1 shows how the resistance of a resistor, R1, and the
resistance of a thermistor, T, change with temperature.

Figure 1
a The circuit in Figure 2 shows R1 and T connected in series to a 12 V battery
of negligible internal resistance.

Figure 2
At a certain temperature the resistance of R1 is equal to the resistance of T.
State the voltage across R1 and the voltage across T at this temperature.

(1 mark)

b A second resistor, R2, having the same resistance as R1 is connected in

series with a switch across the thermistor, as shown in Figure 3. The
temperature of R1 and T is the same as that in part a.

Figure 3

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 13 Direct current circuits
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

i The switch S is now closed.

Deduce, without calculation, whether the separate voltages across R1 and
T will increase or decrease.

(4 marks)

ii The effect of the resistor R2 on the voltage across R1 and the voltage
across T could have been obtained by changing the temperature of R1
and T in the circuit of Figure 2.
State, with a reason, whether the temperature should have been
decreased or increased. Assume that the temperatures of R1 and T are
always equal to each other.

(1 mark)

From AQA Physics A PHA3/W Current Electricity and Elastic Properties of Solids
June 2008 (Question 4)

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 13 Direct current circuits
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

3 A thermistor is to be used as a temperature sensor. To find out how the voltage

across the thermistor varies with temperature, the circuit shown in Figure 4 is set up.

Figure 4
a Data has to be obtained so that a graph can be plotted to show how the
reading on the voltmeter varies with temperature between 0 °C and 100 °C.
Design an experiment, using this circuit, to obtain enough data to plot the
graph.
Your answer should include:
 details of the measurements taken
 details of how the temperature of the thermistor can be varied
 an explanation of the need for resistor R
 an explanation of how the thermistor can then be used to measure the
temperature of a room.

(4 marks)

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 13 Direct current circuits
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

b The experiment you designed in part a is repeated with the voltmeter

connected across R instead.
State and explain how the readings on the voltmeter would be different.

(3 marks)

From AQA Physics A PHYA1 Particles, Quantum Phenomena and Electricity June
2014 (Question 7)

4 A cell of emf, ε, and internal resistance, r, is connected to a variable resistor R.

The current through the cell and the terminal pd of the cell are measured as R is
decreased. The circuit is shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5
The graph in Figure 6 shows the results from the experiment.

Figure 6

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 13 Direct current circuits
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

a Explain why the terminal pd decreases as the current increases.

(2 marks)

b i Use the graph to find the emf, ε, of the cell.

emf V
(1 mark)
ii Use the graph to find the internal resistance, r, of the cell.

internal resistance Ω
(3 marks)
c Draw a line on the graph in Figure 6 that shows the results obtained from a
cell with the same emf but double the internal resistance of the first cell,
labelling your graph A. (2 marks)
d In the original circuit shown in Figure 5, the variable resistor is set at a value
such that the current through the cell is 0.89 A.
i Calculate the charge flowing through the cell in 15 s, stating an
appropriate unit.

charge unit
(2 marks)

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 13 Direct current circuits
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

ii Calculate the energy dissipated in the internal resistance of the cell per
second.

energy dissipated per second W

(2 marks)
From AQA Physics A PHYA1 Particles, Quantum Phenomena and Electricity June
2011 (Question 6)

5 The circuit in Figure 7 contains four identical new cells, A, B, C, and D, each of
emf 1.5 V and negligible internal resistance.

Figure 7
a The resistance of each resistor is 4.0 Ω.
i Calculate the total resistance of the circuit.

resistance Ω
(1 mark)
ii Calculate the total emf of the combination of cells.

emf V
(1 mark)

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 13 Direct current circuits
AQA Physics Exam-style questions

iii Calculate the current passing through cell A.

current A
(2 marks)
iv Calculate the charge passing through cell A in 5 minutes, stating an
appropriate unit.

charge unit
(2 marks)
b Each of the cells can provide the same amount of electrical energy before
going flat.
State and explain which two cells in this circuit you would expect to go flat
first.

(3 marks)

From AQA Physics A PHYA1 Particles, Quantum Phenomena and Electricity

January 2010 (Question 6)

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