OCR A Level Physics Your notes
Dynamics
Contents
Force & Acceleration
Weight
Tension, Normal force, Upthrust & Friction
Motion in One & Two Dimensions
Drag Forces
Terminal Velocity
Investigating Terminal Velocity
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 1
Force & Acceleration
Your notes
Force & Acceleration
When a resultant force, F, acts on a body with mass, m, the body will speed up with
acceleration, a
The resultant force is related to mass and acceleration by the formula:
This relationship means that objects will accelerate if there is a resultant force acting
upon them
An unbalanced force on a body means it experiences a resultant force
If the resultant force is along the direction of motion, it will speed up (accelerate) or
slow down (decelerate) the body
If the resultant force is at an angle, it will change the direction of the body
The Newton
The Newton, N, is commonly used to measure force
The SI unit for force is kg m s–2
One Newton is defined as:
The force that will give a mass of 1 kg an acceleration of 1 m s–2
Resultant Force
Since force is a vector, every force on a body has a magnitude and direction
The resultant force is, therefore, the vector sum of all the forces acting on the body
The direction is given by either the positive or negative direction as shown in the
examples below
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 2
Your notes
Resultant forces on a body can be positive or negative depending on their direction
The resultant force could also be at an angle, in which case addition of vectors with
calculation or scale drawing is used to find the magnitude and direction of the resultant
force
Acceleration
Since acceleration is a vector, it can be either positive or negative depending on the
direction of the resultant force
If the resultant force is in the same direction as the motion of an object, the
acceleration is positive
If the resultant force is in the opposite direction to the motion of an object, the
acceleration is negative
An object may continue in the same direction however with a resultant force in the
opposite direction to its motion, it will slow down and eventually come to a stop
If drag forces are ignored, or severely reduced, the acceleration is independent of the
mass of an object
This has been shown in experiments by astronauts who have dropped a feather and
a hammer on the Moon from the same height
Both the hammer and feather drop to the Moon's surface at the same time
Worked Example
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 3
A rocket produces an upward thrust of 15 MN and has a weight of 8 MN.
a) When in flight, the force due to air resistance is 500 kN. Your notes
What is the resultant force on the rocket?
b) The mass of the rocket is 0.8 × 105 kg.
Calculate the acceleration of the rocket and the direction its going in.
Answer:
Part (a)
Part (b)
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 4
Your notes
Examiner Tips and Tricks
The direction you consider positive is your choice, as long as the signs of the numbers
(positive or negative) are consistent throughout the question. It is a general rule to
consider the direction the object is initially travelling in as positive. Therefore all
vectors in the direction of motion will be positive and opposing vectors, such as drag
forces, will be negative.
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 5
Weight
Your notes
Weight
Weight is the effect of a gravitational field on a mass
Since it is a force on an object due to the pull of gravity, it is measured in Newtons (N) and
is a vector quantity
The weight of a body is equal to the product of its mass (m) and the acceleration of free
fall (g)
g is the acceleration due to gravity or the gravitational field strength
On Earth, this is 9.81 m s−2 (or N kg−1)
Free fall
An object in free fall is falling solely under the influence of gravity
On Earth, all free-falling objects accelerate towards Earth at a rate of 9.81 m s−2
In the absence of air resistance, all bodies near the Earth fall with the same acceleration
regardless of their mass
Mass v Weight
An object’s mass always remains the same, however, its weight will differ depending on
the strength of the gravitational field on different planets
For example, the gravitational field strength on the Moon is 1.63 N kg-1, meaning an
object’s weight will be about 6 times less than on Earth
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 6
Your notes
On the moon, a person's mass will stay the same but their weight will be much lower
The value of g on other planets in the solar system is given in the diagram below
Notice how much this varies according to the size of the planet
Gravitational field strength of the planets in our solar system
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 7
Worked Example
The acceleration due to gravity on the moon is 1/6 of that on Earth. If the weight of a Your notes
space probe on the moon is 491 N, calculate its mass.
Answer:
Examiner Tips and Tricks
It is a common misconception that mass and weight are the same, but they are in
fact very different
Weight is the force of gravity acting upon an object
Weight is a vector quantity
Mass is the amount of matter contained in the object
Mass is a scalar quantity
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 8
Tension, Normal force, Upthrust & Friction
Your notes
Tension, Normal Force, Upthrust & Friction
Tension:
The force experienced by a cable, rope, or string when pulled, hung, rotated or
supported
This is normally labelled as T on free body diagrams
Tension always acts away from the mass
Normal Contact Force:
The force arising when an object rests against another object acting at a 90° angle to
the plane of contact
It is sometimes also referred to as the reaction force
This is normally labelled as N or R on free body diagrams
This force arises from Newton's Third Law
Normal contact force always acts perpendicular to the surface
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 9
Upthrust:
The upward buoyancy force acting on an object when it is in a fluid Your notes
Upthrust can occur in liquids and gases
Upthrust always acts upwards
Friction:
The force that arises when two surfaces are in contact with each other
Friction always opposes the motion
This is normally labelled as F or Fr on free body diagrams
Friction always acts at the point where the objects are in contact, and in the opposite
direction to the direction of motion
Free-body diagrams
Free body diagrams are useful for modelling the forces that are acting on an object
Each force is represented as a vector arrow, where each arrow:
Is scaled to the magnitude of the force it represents
Points in the direction that the force acts
Is labelled with the name of the force it represents
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 10
Free body diagrams can be used:
To identify which forces act in which plane Your notes
To resolve the net force in a particular direction
The net force in a particular direction can be calculated by:
Using the labelled angles and magnitudes
Resolving each force into horizontal and vertical components
Worked Example
Draw free-body diagrams for the following scenarios:
a) A picture frame hanging from a nail
b) A box being pulled up a slope by a mass on a pulley (resolving the weight into
parallel and perpendicular directions)
c) A man fishing in a stationary boat
d) A car accelerating along a road
Answer:
Part (a)
The size of the arrows should be such that the 3 forces would make a closed
triangle as they are in equilibrium
Part (b)
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 11
Your notes
In problems such as this, it is best to resolve the forces parallel and perpendicular
to the slope
Usually, an angle will be given to allow calculation of the weight in these
directions
Part (c)
As the boat is not moving, the size of both arrows must be the same
Part (d)
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 12
Your notes
As the car is accelerating, the size of the thrust must be larger than the size of the
friction force
As in part (c), the upwards and downwards forces must be equal
Examiner Tips and Tricks
If you need a reminder on how to combine and resolve vectors, take a look at the
notes in '3.3 Scalars & Vectors'
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 13
Motion in One & Two Dimensions
Your notes
Motion in One & Two Dimensions
If a constant force acts upon an object, then it will experience a resultant acceleration,
determined using F = ma
This motion can be investigated in one or two-dimensional planes, such as along the
ground or on a slope
One-dimensional planes involve just up and down or left and right (on the ground)
Two-dimensional planes involve both up and down and left and right (on a slope)
On a slope, it is often simpler to resolve the forces into parallel and perpendicular
components, rather than horizontally and vertically:
The weight, mg of the object acts vertically down
The frictional force, F between the slope and the object acts along the plane of the
slope, in the direction opposing the motion
The normal reaction force, R acts perpendicular to the plane of contact between the
object and the slope
The normal reaction force R, weight W and friction F on a block moving down a slope
Worked Example
The diagram below shows the forces acting on a water drop on the windscreen of a
stationary car.
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 14
Your notes
The windscreen makes an angle of 30° to the horizontal. The weight of the water drop
is 8.0 × 10–5 N. The normal contact force on the water drop is R. There is also a force F
acting on the water drop as shown. The water drop is stationary. Determine:
(a) The component of the weight of the water-drop perpendicular to the windscreen
(b) The component of the weight of the water-drop parallel to the windscreen
(c) The magnitude of R
(d) The magnitude of F
Answer:
Part (a)
Perpendicular component = W cos 30°
Perpendicular component = (8.0 × 10–5) cos 30° = 6.9 × 10–5 N
Part (b)
Parallel component = W sin 30°
Parallel component = (8.0 × 10–5) sin 30° = 4.0 × 10–5 N
Part (c)
R is equal to the perpendicular component of the weight
Perpendicular forces must be equal and opposite
R = 6.9 × 10–5 N
Part (d)
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 15
F is equal to the parallel component of the weight
Parallel forces must be equal and opposite
F = 4.0 × 10–5 N Your notes
Worked Example
The diagram below shows a rider on a sledge sliding down an icy slope. The frictional
forces acting on the sledge and the rider are negligible. The normal contact force N
and the total weight W of the sledge and rider are shown.
The acceleration of the sledge and rider down the slope is 2.0 m s–[Link] the
angle made by the slope to the horizontal.
Answer:
Step 1: Write down the known quantities
Acceleration, a = 2.0 m s–2
Weight, W = mg
Component of weight parallel the slope, F = W sin θ = mg sin θ
Step 2: Write down the equation relating force and acceleration
F = ma
Step 3: Substitute in the component of weight down the slope
mg sin θ = ma
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 16
Step 4: Rearrange for sin θ and calculate the angle
a = g sin θ Your notes
sin θ = 2.0 / 9.81
θ = 12°
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 17
Drag Forces
Your notes
Drag Forces
Drag forces are forces that oppose the motion of an object moving through a fluid (gas
or liquid)
Examples of drag forces are friction and air resistance
Drags forces:
Are always in the opposite direction to the motion of the object
Never speed an object up or start them moving
Slow down an object or keeps them moving at a constant speed
Convert kinetic energy into heat and sound
Lift is an upwards force on an object moving through a fluid. It is perpendicular to the
fluid flow
For example, as an aeroplane moves through the air, it pushes down on the air to
change its direction
This causes an equal and opposite reaction upwards on the wings (lift) due to
Newton's third law
Drag forces are always in the opposite direction to the thrust (direction of motion). Lift is
always in the opposite direction to the weight
A key component of drag forces is it increases with the speed of the object
This is shown in the diagram below:
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 18
Your notes
Frictional forces on a car increase with speed
Worked Example
A car of mass 800 kg has a horizontal driving force of 3 kN acting on [Link] acceleration
is 2.0 m [Link] is the frictional force acting on the car?
Answer:
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 19
Your notes
Factors Affecting Drag
The magnitude of the drag force depends on several factors, including:
The speed of the object
The object’s shape and texture
The density of the fluid
The two most significant factors are the speed of the object and the object’s cross-
sectional area
Air Resistance
Air resistance increases with the speed of an object
However, there are other factors that also affect the maximum speed, such as:
Cross-sectional area
Shape
Altitude
Temperature
Humidity
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 20
Your notes
Many factors such as posture, clothes and bicycle shape must be considered when trying
to reduce air resistance
Examiner Tips and Tricks
If a question considers air resistance to be ‘negligible’ this means in that question, air
resistance is taken to be so small it will not make a difference to the motion of the
body. You can take this to mean there are no drag forces acting on the body.
Objects Falling in a Uniform g Field with Drag
When an object is falling vertically in a uniform gravitational field, it is usually considered
to have only a constant attractive force, weight, acting on it
However, for a more realistic approach, the opposing drag forces should be
considered
Opposing drag forces reduce the net force acting on an object and as a result, reduce
the magnitude of the acceleration
The drag force will increase until it is equal in magnitude to the weight of the object
This leads to the object reaching a steady speed, known as its terminal velocity
Because of drag, experimental values of the acceleration due to gravity, g, tend to be
less than 9.81 m s-2
Air Resistance & Projectile Motion
Air resistance decreases the horizontal component of the velocity of a projectile
This means both its range and maximum height is decreased compared to no air
resistance
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 21
Your notes
A projectile with air resistance travels a smaller distance and has a lower maximum height
than one without air resistance
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 22
Terminal Velocity
Your notes
Terminal Velocity
For a body in free fall, the only force acting is its weight and its acceleration g is only due
to gravity.
The drag force increases as the body accelerates
This increase in velocity means the drag force also increases
Due to Newton’s Second Law, this means the resultant force and therefore acceleration
decreases (recall F = ma)
When the drag force is equal to the gravitational pull on the body, the body will no longer
accelerate and will fall at a constant velocity
This velocity is called the terminal velocity
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 23
Your notes
A skydiver in freefall reaching terminal velocity
The graph shows how the velocity of the skydiver varies with time
Since the acceleration is equal to the gradient of a velocity-time graph, the acceleration
decreases and eventually becomes zero when terminal velocity is reached
After the skydiver deploys their parachute, they decelerate to a lower terminal velocity
to reduce the impact on landing
This is demonstrated by the graph below:
A graph showing the changes in speed of the skydiver throughout their entire journey in
freefall
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 24
Your notes
Worked Example
Skydivers jump out of a plane at intervals of a few seconds.
Skydivers A and B want to join up as they fall.
If A is heavier than B, who should jump first?
Answer:
Skydiver B should jump first since he will take less time to reach terminal velocity
His terminal velocity will also be a lower speed than that of skydiver A
This is because skydiver A has a higher mass, and hence, weight
A greater weight means a greater acceleration for A than B at every stage
until terminal velocity
Air resistance gets larger with speed, so for air resistance to match A's
weight, A must be travelling faster than B at terminal velocity
This means if A were to jump first, skydiver B would never catch up
Skydiver B must jump first, then skydiver A can catch up
Worked Example
The diagram below shows the graph of velocity v against time t for the ball as it travels
through the oil. The ball enters the oil at time t = 0.
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 25
Your notes
In terms of the forces acting on the ball, describe and explain its motion at
a) Point A
b) Point B
Answer:
Part (a)
At A:
The drag force is greater than the weight of the ball
Therefore, the ball is decelerating
Part (b)
At B:
The drag force is equal to the weight
The ball has reached terminal velocity and is no longer decelerating
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Exam questions about terminal velocity commonly involve the motion of
skydivers as they fall
A common misconception is that skydivers move upwards when their parachutes
are deployed - however, this is not the case, they are in fact decelerating to a
lower terminal velocity
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 26
Investigating Terminal Velocity
Your notes
Terminal Velocity in Fluids
Aims of the Experiment
The terminal velocity of a ball bearing in a viscous fluid can be determined experimentally
using a cylinder filled with a viscous liquid. The aim of this experiment is to calculate the
terminal velocity of the mass as it falls through a viscous fluid.
Variables
Independent variable = Distance between markers (m)
Dependent variable = Time to travel between markers (s)
Control variables
Use the same viscous fluid
Use the same ball bearing
Equipment List
Resolution of measuring equipment:
Metre ruler = 1 mm
Stopwatch = 0.01 s
Method
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 27
Your notes
Experimental set up for investigating terminal velocity in a fluid
1. Set up the equipment as shown in the diagram
2. Wrap elastic bands, or draw marks using a marker pen, around the tube of viscous liquid
at set intervals measured by the ruler
3. Hold a ball bearing directly above the surface of the liquid, and then release it from rest
4. Record the time it reaches each elastic band or marker line by using the lap feature on
the stopwatch
5. Calculate the time taken to travel between consecutive bands and calculate the
average speed at each time
6. Repeat the procedure several times over a wide range of readings
An example table might look like this:
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 28
Your notes
Analysis of Results
When the ball bearing reaches terminal velocity, the distance it has travelled between
each time interval will be the same, and so its velocity can be determined
Use the equation speed = distance / time to find the average velocity of the ball bearing
between each set of bands or markers
Plot a graph of velocity against time and draw a line of best fit
The maximum velocity is where the graph plateaus and has zero gradient
This is the terminal velocity
An example graph of results might look like this:
Evaluating the Experiment
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 29
Systematic Errors:
Use a more viscous fluid to slow the ball more Your notes
Using a denser fluid makes the object fall slower and therefore makes determining
speeds easier
Use a tube that is as tall as possible
This allows the ball bearing to travel at its terminal velocity for longer
Use larger intervals for the bands
This reduces the percentage uncertainty in both the distance and time between the
bands
Random Errors:
Repeat at least four times to reduce the effect of random errors
Instead of using a stopwatch, attach the ball to some ticker tape
This punches holes at a set time interval so the distance between the dots can be
used to find the velocities
© 2025 Save My Exams, Ltd. Get more and ace your exams at [Link] 30