The 2024 paper keeps the classic mechanics-plus-electromagnetism balance, with everyday scenarios, moderate computation, and more concept checks. Scan the code for the 2024 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.2024 Physics Bowl paper overview and exam highlights.
The Physics Bowl is run by the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) each spring (around late March to early April), with registration deadlines per the official announcement. It is a 40-question multiple-choice test in 45 minutes: correct answers score, wrong answers carry no penalty, calculators are allowed, and the paper is entirely in English.
The 2024 paper follows the familiar blueprint: mechanics (kinematics, Newton laws, momentum and energy) and electromagnetism (fields, circuits, magnetism) lead the way, while gravitation, simple harmonic motion, capacitors, and electromagnetic induction hold steady shares. Thermodynamics and fluids, waves and sound, geometric and physical optics, and modern physics fill their usual slots. Most items are two- or three-step calculations or concept checks that reward clean unit habits.
Division 1 targets ninth-graders and physics beginners (no calculus needed); Division 2 targets eleventh-graders and AP Physics C students. The two divisions are ranked and awarded separately and cannot both be entered. Scan the code for the 2024 paper with answers and explanations, and practise under a strict 45-minute timer.
2024 Physics Bowl main topic areas, weights and emphasis.
Kinematics, Newton laws, and momentum-energy form the backbone, with gravitation and SHM each holding a fixed seat.
Circuit simplification and basic fields stay prominent; capacitors and induction are regular finishers.
Direct use of v = fλ, lens imaging, and double-slit spacing appears frequently.
Specific-heat and ideal-gas-law calculations dominate at a gentle level.
The photoelectric effect, time dilation, and half-life form a stable set.
2024 Physics Bowl-style mock questions (Basic · Medium · Hard) — submit to grade and view step-by-step solutions.
A high-speed train travels at a steady 300 km/h for 0.5 h. What distance does it cover, in km?
Correct answer: B
Uniform motion: s = vt = 300 × 0.5 = 150 km. Choice B. Core: displacement = speed × time.A 3 kg object is pushed by a net horizontal force of 12 N. What is the magnitude of its acceleration, in m/s2?
Correct answer: C
From F = ma, a = F/m = 12 / 3 = 4 m/s2. Choice C. Core: acceleration = net force / mass.A planet has 8 times the mass of Earth and twice its radius. What is the surface gravitational acceleration, in m/s2? (g = 10 m/s2 on Earth)
Correct answer: A
With g = GM/R2, the new value is 10 × 8 / 22 = 20 m/s2. Choice A. Core: surface gravity scales with mass and inversely with radius squared.A 6 V source is connected across a 3 Ω resistor. What current flows, in A?
Correct answer: D
From I = V/R, I = 6 / 3 = 2 A. Choice D. Core: current = voltage / resistance.A capacitor holds a charge of 6×10-5 C when the voltage across it is 12 V. What is its capacitance, in μF?
Correct answer: C
C = Q/V = 6×10-5 / 12 = 5×10-6 F = 5 μF. Choice C. Core: capacitance = charge / voltage.A sound wave in air has frequency 500 Hz and wavelength 0.68 m. What is its speed, in m/s?
Correct answer: E
v = fλ = 500 × 0.68 = 340 m/s, the speed of sound in air. Choice E. Core: wave speed = frequency × wavelength.How much heat, in kJ, is needed to warm 2 kg of water from 20 ℃ to 30 ℃? (c = 4200 J/(kg·℃))
Correct answer: B
Q = mcΔT = 2 × 4200 × 10 = 84000 J = 84 kJ. Choice B. Core: heat = specific heat × mass × temperature change.A room is at 27 ℃. What is this on the Kelvin scale, in K?
Correct answer: D
T = t + 273 = 27 + 273 = 300 K. Choice D. Core: kelvin = celsius + 273.What is the energy, in J, of a photon of frequency 5×1014 Hz? (h = 6.6×10-34 J·s)
Correct answer: A
E = hf = 6.6×10-34 × 5×1014 = 3.3×10-19 J. Choice A. Core: photon energy = Planck constant × frequency.A sled is pulled by a 150 N horizontal force and moves 20 m in the direction of the force. How much work does the force do, in J?
Correct answer: E
Force and displacement are parallel: W = Fd = 150 × 20 = 3000 J. Choice E. Core: work = force × displacement along the force.A diver leaves the board at 20 m/s, angled 30° above the horizontal (g = 10 m/s2). What maximum height is reached, in m?
Correct answer: A
The vertical component is 20 sin 30° = 10 m/s, so H = 102/(2 × 10) = 5 m. Choice A. Core: peak height depends only on the vertical component.A mass-spring oscillator has period T when the mass is m. With the same spring, the mass is quadrupled to 4m. What is the new period?
Correct answer: E
T = 2π√(m/k): four times the mass doubles the square root, giving 2T. Choice E. Core: the SHM period scales with the square root of the mass.A 2 kg block moving at 6 m/s hits a stationary 4 kg block on frictionless ice and sticks to it. What is their common speed after the collision, in m/s?
Correct answer: C
Momentum is conserved: v = (2 × 6)/(2 + 4) = 2 m/s. Choice C. Core: total momentum is unchanged by the collision.A 6 Ω and a 3 Ω resistor in parallel are connected in series with a 4 Ω resistor across a 12 V battery. What is the total current, in A?
Correct answer: D
The parallel pair gives (6 × 3)/(6 + 3) = 2 Ω, plus 4 Ω in series gives 6 Ω; I = 12/6 = 2 A. Choice D. Core: simplify a mixed circuit before applying Ohm law.A straight wire 0.2 m long carries 4 A perpendicular to a uniform 0.5 T magnetic field. What is the magnetic force on the wire, in N?
Correct answer: B
F = BIL = 0.5 × 4 × 0.2 = 0.4 N. Choice B. Core: magnetic force on a wire = B × current × length.A 12 V supply is connected across a 6 Ω heating element. What power does it dissipate, in W?
Correct answer: C
P = V2/R = 122/6 = 24 W. Choice C. Core: power = voltage squared over resistance.An object sits 15 cm from a converging lens of focal length 10 cm. How far from the lens is the image, in cm?
Correct answer: D
1/v = 1/f - 1/u = 1/10 - 1/15 = 1/30, so v = 30 cm. Choice D. Core: an object between f and 2f forms a real image beyond 2f.In a double-slit experiment the slits are 0.2 mm apart, the screen is 2 m away, and the light has wavelength 600 nm. What is the spacing of adjacent bright fringes, in mm?
Correct answer: B
Δy = λL/d = (6×10-7 × 2)/(2×10-4) = 6×10-3 m = 6 mm. Choice B. Core: fringe spacing scales with wavelength and screen distance, inversely with slit separation.A fixed amount of ideal gas occupies 2 L at 300 K. Heated at constant pressure to 600 K, what is its new volume, in L?
Correct answer: E
At constant pressure V/T is fixed: V = 2 × 600/300 = 4 L. Choice E. Core: at fixed pressure, volume scales with kelvin temperature.A metal has work function 2.0 eV. Light of photon energy 3.5 eV shines on it. What is the maximum kinetic energy of ejected electrons, in eV?
Correct answer: A
Maximum kinetic energy = photon energy - work function = 3.5 - 2.0 = 1.5 eV. Choice A. Core: leftover photon energy becomes electron kinetic energy.On frictionless ground, a 2 kg block slides at 12 m/s into a light spring of stiffness 800 N/m and compresses it. What is the maximum compression of the spring, in m?
Correct answer: C
Kinetic energy becomes spring energy: ½kx2 = ½mv2, so x = v√(m/k) = 12 × √(2/800) = 12 × 0.05 = 0.6 m. Choice C. Core: maximum compression comes from energy conservation.A 100-turn coil of area 0.01 m2 sits in a uniform field perpendicular to its plane. The field drops steadily from 0.2 T to zero in 0.05 s. What is the induced EMF, in V?
Correct answer: E
Flux change per turn = 0.2 × 0.01 = 0.002 Wb; EMF = NΔΦ/Δt = 100 × 0.002/0.05 = 4 V. Choice E. Core: induced EMF scales with the rate of flux change.A string fixed at both ends is 0.6 m long and carries transverse waves at 48 m/s. What is the frequency of its third harmonic, in Hz?
Correct answer: D
For a string fixed at both ends fn = nv/2L, so f3 = 3 × 48/(2 × 0.6) = 120 Hz. Choice D. Core: the nth harmonic is n times the fundamental.A spaceship travels at a steady 0.6c to a station 3 light-years away, as measured in the Earth frame. How many years pass for the astronaut on board?
Correct answer: B
In the Earth frame the trip takes t = 3/0.6 = 5 y; the moving clock runs slow, so t′ = 5√(1 - 0.62) = 5 × 0.8 = 4 y. Choice B. Core: the time dilation factor grows with speed.A radioactive sample has mass 80 g and half-life 3 days. How much remains after 9 days, in g?
Correct answer: E
Nine days is 3 half-lives, leaving 80 × (1/2)3 = 10 g. Choice E. Core: each half-life halves the mass.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 2024 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 2024 Physics Bowl.
Match Division 1 or Division 2 to your background: beginners and ninth-graders default to Division 1, while AP Physics C students can take Division 2. The division sets your comparison group and award pool, so train at that level.
Forty questions in 45 minutes is barely over a minute each, so grab the given data and the target quantity before reading a long stem. Do full timed papers and make skip-and-return second nature.
Calculators are allowed, yet many items are settled by estimation and order of magnitude. Convert to SI units before substituting into formulas to avoid needless slips.
Mechanics and electromagnetism carry about sixty percent of the paper, so drill kinematics, Newton laws, momentum and energy, Ohm law, and mixed circuits until they are automatic. Gravitation and SHM are steady easy marks; keep waves and optics, thermodynamics, and modern physics alive for the distinguishing questions.
Wrong answers cost nothing, so answer every question. After ruling out clearly wrong options, guess among the rest for positive expected gain; review a log of common errors (signs, units, powers of ten) before the exam.
Frequent questions about the 2024 Physics Bowl papers and answers.
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