A Level Physics 9702, topic 22.3
Wave-particle duality: past paper questions
6 Cambridge A Level Physics 9702 questions on Wave-particle duality (22.3) from 6 papers, 2023 to 2026. Open the paper or try a question free.
Practising builds a set from this topic, free with an account. One question opens straight away, with no account.
- Questions
- 6
- Papers
- 6
- Years
- 2023 to 2026
- Total marks
- 63
- Average per question
- 10.5 marks
- Largest question
- 13 marks
By type: Structured 6
What the syllabus asks
- understand that the photoelectric effect provides evidence for a particulate nature of electromagnetic radiation while phenomena such as interference and diffraction provide evidence for a wave nature
- describe and interpret qualitatively the evidence provided by electron diffraction for the wave nature of particles
- understand the de Broglie wavelength as the wavelength associated with a moving particle
- recall and use λ = h / p
How hard the questions are
- Recall0
- Apply1
- Analyse5
- Not banded0
Derived from the command word Cambridge prints in each question, banded by a fixed table beside the syllabus's own definitions. A question printing no command word is unbanded: unknown, not middling.
Command words
- stateRecall6 questions
express in clear terms
- explainAnalyse5 questions
set out purposes or reasons/make the relationships between things evident/provide why and/or how and support with relevant evidence
- calculateApply3 questions
work out from given facts, figures or information
- sketchApply3 questions
make a simple freehand drawing showing the key features
- show thatApply2 questions
- useApply2 questions
- completeApply1 question
- determineApply1 question
establish an answer using the information available
Where the questions come from
By year
- 20261
- 20252
- 20241
- 20232
By session
- May/June5
- Oct/Nov1
By paper
- Paper 46
Questions on this topic
Showing 2 of 6, spread across the years. Open one to write your answer and have it marked.
- Try this questionQuestion 9May/June 2026, paper 42Structured10 marks
State what is meant by the de Broglie wavelength.
- Try this questionQuestion 9Oct/Nov 2024, paper 42Structured9 marksHas a diagram
Electrons in a vacuum are accelerated from rest through a potential difference (p.d.) to form a beam. The electrons each have mass and charge . The beam is incident on a graphite crystal that acts as a diffraction grating.