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PhysicsGrade 12English

IB DP Physics HL Paper 1 (Sample) 2023

Many students freeze on IB Physics HL Paper 1 because they're not sure whether to recall a formula or derive it from first principles—and the 60 seconds per question leaves no margin for hesitation. This sample paper drills you on the exact decision tree examiners test: when do you apply energy conservation versus kinematics? When does uncertainty compound? How do you spot a non-linear relationship in data and still extract a mark? You'll encounter multiple-choice scenarios, true/false conceptual traps, and fill-in-the-blank calculations spanning measurements & uncertainties, mechanics, thermal physics, and waves—the core focus of Paper 1 at HL. This is designed for Grade 12 students sitting the 2023-onward syllabus. By the time you finish, you'll be able to glance at a marks-scheme bullet point and know exactly why the examiner gave partial credit, and how to avoid losing those marks yourself.

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  1. Question 1

    A student measures the length of a table four times and obtains the values 1.23 m, 1.25 m, 1.22 m, and 1.24 m. Which statement about the mean and uncertainty in the measurements is correct?

  2. Question 2

    A mass of 5.0 kg ± 0.1 kg is dropped from a height of 10 m ± 0.5 m. The gravitational potential energy is given by Ep=mghE_p = mgh. Which expression correctly shows the absolute uncertainty in EpE_p?

  3. Question 3

    Two forces of 30 N and 40 N act on an object at right angles to each other. What is the magnitude of the resultant force?

  4. Question 4

    An object is thrown vertically upward with an initial velocity of 20 m/s. Taking g=10g = 10 m/s², what is the time taken to return to its starting point?

  5. Question 5

    A car accelerates uniformly from rest. If it travels 50 m in the first 5 seconds, what is its acceleration?

  6. Question 6

    A block of mass 5 kg slides down a frictionless incline at 30° to the horizontal. What is the component of gravitational force parallel to the incline?

  7. Question 7

    A ball of mass 2 kg is thrown horizontally from a height of 20 m with an initial velocity of 15 m/s. Ignoring air resistance, what is its horizontal displacement when it hits the ground? (Take g=10g = 10 m/s².)

  8. Question 8

    A block of mass 3 kg is raised through a height of 4 m. If the gravitational potential energy increases by 96 J, what is the value of gg in this experiment?

  9. Question 9

    An object of mass 2 kg moving at 6 m/s collides elastically with a stationary object of the same mass. After the collision, the first object comes to rest. What is the velocity of the second object after the collision?

  10. Question 10

    A substance of mass 2 kg is heated from 20 °C to 80 °C. The specific heat capacity of the substance is 500 J/(kg·K). How much heat energy is absorbed?

  11. Question 11

    A wave has a frequency of 50 Hz and a wavelength of 0.4 m. What is the speed of the wave?

  12. Question 12

    A sound wave travels through air at 340 m/s. If the frequency is 1700 Hz, what is the wavelength?

  13. Question 13

    An observer moves towards a stationary sound source at a constant velocity. Which statement about the observed frequency is true?

  14. Question 14

    A light wave has a frequency of 5×10145 \times 10^{14} Hz. If the speed of light is 3×1083 \times 10^8 m/s, what is the wavelength?

  15. Question 15

    The intensity of a sound wave is halved. What happens to the intensity level in decibels?