AQA · Physics · 8463
GCSE Physics: Direct and alternating potential difference
Electricity · AQA GCSE Physics (8463), specification point 4.2.3.1. Cards are generated from the exam board's own specification for "Direct and alternating potential difference", and every card links back to the page it came from. Specification © AQA — used with attribution.
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Is mains electricity a direct or alternating supply?
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Alternating (ac).
What is the frequency of the UK domestic mains supply?
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50 Hz.
What is the approximate potential difference of the UK domestic mains supply?
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About 230 V.
The UK domestic mains supply has a frequency of ? Hz.
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50
The UK domestic mains supply is about ? V.
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230
What is a direct potential difference?
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A potential difference that stays in one direction only, so the current flows the same way all the time (e.g. from a cell or battery).
What is an alternating potential difference?
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A potential difference that repeatedly reverses direction, so the current constantly changes direction (e.g. the mains supply).
What is the key difference between direct and alternating potential difference?
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Direct pd acts in one direction only; alternating pd repeatedly reverses direction.
Give an example of a source that provides a direct potential difference.
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A cell or battery.
What does a mains frequency of 50 Hz mean physically?
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The potential difference completes 50 full cycles (forward and back) every second.
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