The 2023 paper keeps the classic layout with a healthy share of scenario and graph items, mechanics and electromagnetism still leading. Scan the code for the 2023 paper with full solutions.
The 25 online practice questions start instantly; the full past-paper & answers PDF is available free from an advisor via the QR code — it is not a direct download on this page.2023 Physics Bowl paper overview and exam highlights.
The Physics Bowl is organized by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) every spring (around late March to early April), and registration usually closes per the official announcement each year. It is a 40-question multiple-choice contest in 45 minutes: correct answers score, wrong answers carry no penalty, calculators are permitted, and the paper is fully in English.
The 2023 paper follows the stable frame built on mechanics and electromagnetism: kinematics graphs, projectile motion, momentum conservation, and energy transfer are high-frequency models, while circuit simplification, basic electric fields, and capacitor calculations hold steady shares. Gravitation and simple harmonic motion are reliable easy marks, and rigid-body rotation occasionally appears near the end. Waves and sound, thermodynamics and fluids keep their usual proportion, and modern physics centres on classic models such as the photoelectric effect, energy-level transitions, length contraction, and half-life.
Division 1 serves ninth-graders and physics beginners (no calculus required); Division 2 serves eleventh-graders and AP Physics C students. The divisions are ranked and awarded separately and cannot both be entered. Scan the code for the 2023 paper with answers and explanations, and review each timed run against the solutions.
2023 Physics Bowl main topic areas, weights and emphasis.
Kinematics graphs, projectiles, and momentum-energy items are prominent, with rotation occasionally finishing the paper.
Circuit simplification and point-charge fields are steady types; capacitor math and field superposition appear now and then.
Pipe resonance, refraction basics, and double-slit interference keep their usual count with direct formula use.
Latent heat and gas-law calculations dominate, with a slightly larger conceptual share.
Energy-level transitions, length contraction, and half-life form a stable set.
2023 Physics Bowl-style mock questions (Basic · Medium · Hard) — submit to grade and view step-by-step solutions.
A city speed limit is 90 km/h. What is this in m/s?
Correct answer: C
Unit conversion: 90 ÷ 3.6 = 25 m/s. Choice C. Core: divide km/h by 3.6 to get m/s.A stone is dropped from rest (g = 10 m/s2). What is its speed after 3 s, in m/s?
Correct answer: A
Free fall: v = gt = 10 × 3 = 30 m/s. Choice A. Core: free-fall speed grows in proportion to time.Gravity on the lunar surface is about 1/6 of its Earth value. What is the weight of a 60 kg astronaut on the Moon, in N? (g = 10 m/s2 on Earth)
Correct answer: B
On the Moon g′ = 10/6 m/s2, so W = mg′ = 60 × 10/6 = 100 N. Choice B. Core: weight = mass × local gravitational acceleration.A charge of 60 C passes through a wire in 12 s. What is the current, in A?
Correct answer: E
I = Q/t = 60/12 = 5 A. Choice E. Core: current = charge / time.Two 10 Ω resistors are wired in parallel. What is the equivalent resistance, in Ω?
Correct answer: D
Two equal resistors in parallel: R = 10/2 = 5 Ω. Choice D. Core: n equal resistors in parallel give 1/n of one resistor.A wave has frequency 50 Hz. What is its period, in s?
Correct answer: B
T = 1/f = 1/50 = 0.02 s. Choice B. Core: period and frequency are reciprocals.How much heat, in kJ, is needed to warm a 0.5 kg aluminum block from 20 ℃ to 60 ℃? (c = 900 J/(kg·℃) for aluminum)
Correct answer: C
Q = mcΔT = 0.5 × 900 × (60 - 20) = 18000 J = 18 kJ. Choice C. Core: heat = specific heat × mass × temperature change.How much heat, in J, is absorbed when 0.5 kg of ice at 0 ℃ melts completely? (latent heat of fusion = 3.2×105 J/kg)
Correct answer: A
Phase change at constant temperature: Q = mL = 0.5 × 3.2×105 = 1.6×105 J. Choice A. Core: heat of fusion = mass × latent heat.Uranium-238 has mass number 238 and atomic number 92. How many neutrons are in its nucleus?
Correct answer: D
Neutrons = mass number - protons = 238 - 92 = 146. Choice D. Core: nucleons = protons + neutrons.A cyclist covers the first 100 m in 20 s and the next 100 m in 30 s. What is the average speed over the whole trip, in m/s?
Correct answer: C
Average speed = total distance / total time = 200/50 = 4 m/s. Choice C. Core: average speed uses total distance over total time.A simple pendulum of length 2.5 m swings with small amplitude near the ground (g = 10 m/s2, π ≈ 3.14). What is its period, in s?
Correct answer: E
T = 2π√(L/g) = 2 × 3.14 × √0.25 = 3.14 s. Choice E. Core: the pendulum period depends only on length and g.A block slides across a floor at 10 m/s where the coefficient of kinetic friction is 0.5 (g = 10 m/s2). How far does it travel before stopping, in m?
Correct answer: A
a = μg = 5 m/s2, so d = v2/(2a) = 100/10 = 10 m. Choice A. Core: kinetic energy is fully spent against friction.On a frictionless surface a 4 kg block moving at 5 m/s collides elastically head-on with a stationary 1 kg block. What is the speed of the 1 kg block afterwards, in m/s?
Correct answer: B
For an elastic hit on a resting target, v2 = 2m1u/(m1+m2) = 2×4×5/5 = 8 m/s. Choice B. Core: elastic collisions conserve both momentum and kinetic energy.Two 6 Ω resistors in parallel are connected in series with a 3 Ω resistor across an 18 V battery. What current does the battery supply, in A?
Correct answer: D
6 Ω parallel 6 Ω gives 3 Ω, plus 3 Ω in series gives 6 Ω; I = 18/6 = 3 A. Choice D. Core: simplify parallel branches before series additions.A particle with charge 2×10-6 C sits in a uniform electric field of 500 N/C. What force does the field exert on it, in N?
Correct answer: C
F = qE = 2×10-6 × 500 = 1×10-3 N. Choice C. Core: electric force = charge × field strength.A 3 μF and a 6 μF capacitor are connected in parallel across a 6 V supply. What total charge does the supply deliver, in μC?
Correct answer: E
Parallel capacitances add: C = 3 + 6 = 9 μF, so Q = CV = 9 × 6 = 54 μC. Choice E. Core: parallel equivalent capacitance is the sum of the parts.An open pipe is 0.85 m long and the speed of sound is 340 m/s. What is its fundamental frequency, in Hz?
Correct answer: B
An open pipe fundamental fits half a wavelength: f1 = v/2L = 340/(2 × 0.85) = 200 Hz. Choice B. Core: open-pipe fundamental = v/(2L).Light of wavelength 600 nm enters glass of refractive index 1.5. What is its wavelength inside the glass, in nm?
Correct answer: A
Frequency is unchanged: λ′ = λ/n = 600/1.5 = 400 nm. Choice A. Core: wavelength in a medium = vacuum wavelength / index.An ideal gas is compressed isothermally by a piston from 4 L to 1 L, starting at 1 atm. What is the final pressure, in atm?
Correct answer: D
Boyle law: P1V1 = P2V2, so P2 = 1 × 4/1 = 4 atm. Choice D. Core: at constant temperature, pressure is inversely proportional to volume.A hydrogen atom drops from level n = 4 to n = 2. What is the energy of the emitted photon, in eV? (the hydrogen ground state is -13.6 eV)
Correct answer: E
En = -13.6/n2 eV: E4 = -0.85 eV and E2 = -3.4 eV, so ΔE = 3.4 - 0.85 = 2.55 eV. Choice E. Core: photon energy equals the gap between the two levels.A uniform disk of mass 4 kg and radius 0.5 m spins about its central axis, with moment of inertia I = ½MR2. A constant torque of 2 N·m is applied to the axis. What is the angular acceleration, in rad/s2?
Correct answer: C
I = ½ × 4 × 0.52 = 0.5 kg·m2, so α = τ/I = 2/0.5 = 4 rad/s2. Choice C. Core: torque = moment of inertia × angular acceleration.Two point charges, +4 μC and -4 μC, sit 0.2 m apart. What is the magnitude of the net electric field at the midpoint of the line joining them, in N/C? (k = 9×109 N·m2/C2)
Correct answer: A
Each charge gives E = kq/r2 = 9×109 × 4×10-6/0.01 = 3.6×106 N/C at the midpoint, and both fields point the same way, adding to 7.2×106 N/C. Choice A. Core: fields add as vectors.In a double-slit experiment the slits are 0.1 mm apart, the screen is 2 m away, and adjacent bright fringes are 12 mm apart. What is the wavelength of the light, in nm?
Correct answer: D
λ = dΔy/L = (1×10-4 × 1.2×10-2)/2 = 6×10-7 m = 600 nm. Choice D. Core: fringe spacing is proportional to wavelength.A rod of rest length 100 m moves along its own length at 0.8c. What length does it have in the lab frame, in m?
Correct answer: B
Length contraction: L = L0√(1 - v2/c2) = 100 × √(1 - 0.64) = 60 m. Choice B. Core: length along the motion shrinks by 1/γ.A radioactive sample decays to one-eighth of its initial mass in 24 days. What is its half-life, in days?
Correct answer: E
Remaining at 1/8 means 3 half-lives, so T1/2 = 24/3 = 8 days. Choice E. Core: the number of half-lives follows from the fraction left.Unified Physics Bowl specs, consistent across years.
Division 1 is for first-year physics students (no calculus); Division 2 is for second-year and AP Physics C students. The two divisions are ranked and awarded separately — students must choose one and cannot take both. Pick based on your level; our advisor can help.
Four steps · Overview / Topics / Practice / Prep
Read the 2023 Physics Bowl overview and format specs to grasp the year’s style.
Review the key topics and weights, and locate your weak areas.
Complete the 25 mock questions; submit for auto-grading and right/wrong marks.
Open the step-by-step solutions, learn from mistakes, and scan for full papers to push for national and global rankings.
Prep tips and score-boosting advice for the 2023 Physics Bowl.
Division 1 is for beginners and ninth-graders; Division 2 is for eleventh-graders and AP Physics C students, and the two pools are ranked separately with no double entry. Check where your mechanics stands relative to calculus-level material, then commit and train in one direction.
Run whole papers in 45 minutes to build triage skill: mark anything that stalls past 90 seconds and return at the end. At about 67 seconds per question, three hard items must never eat twenty easy ones.
The 2023 style leans on scenario and graph items: read axis units and scales before numbers, and circle the given and target quantities first. Make the meaning of v-t and x-t graphs instinctive.
Collect gravitation, SHM period, capacitance, and gas-law formulas on one card and review daily. Convert to SI units before substituting, and sanity-check the order of magnitude after computing.
Label every mistake as concept, model choice, or arithmetic, and treat each bin differently: explain the concept, redo similar problems, and standardise written work. With no penalty for wrong answers, protecting sure marks beats chasing hard ones.
Frequent questions about the 2023 Physics Bowl papers and answers.
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