Thermal Properties of MatterNEET MCQs with solutions
Thermal Properties of Matter covers thermal expansion, calorimetry, heat transfer (conduction, convection, radiation), Newton's law of cooling, latent heat and specific heat. NEET tests calorimetry problems, linear/area/volume expansion calculations and Stefan's law — mostly numerical.
- Class
- 11 Physics
- Free on this page
- 24 questions
- In the RankUp app
- 499 questions
- ELITE questions
- 188
- NCERT topics
- 11
Practise 24 questions
Tap an option to check it. Questions from every NCERT topic in this chapter, from easy to hard.
Q1Measurement of Temperature (Thermometry & Temperature Scales)
A clinical thermometer is primarily designed to measure:
Not quite — the answer is B.
A clinical thermometer has a calibrated range of 35°C to 42°C, designed exclusively for body temperature. Its constriction prevents mercury from falling back after the reading is taken, unlike a laboratory thermometer.
Q2Measurement of Temperature (Thermometry & Temperature Scales)
The fixed points used to define the Celsius scale are:
Not quite — the answer is C.
The Celsius scale uses two fixed points: the ice point (0°C, equilibrium of ice and water at 1 atm) and steam point (100°C, boiling point of water at 1 atm). Option D is wrong: absolute zero is not a fixed point of the Celsius scale.
Q3Advanced NCERT Hidden Facts & AIR <10 Exclusive Concepts
A bimetallic strip is heated uniformly. It bends toward the metal with the smaller coefficient of linear expansion because:
Not quite — the answer is B.
The metal with larger α extends more and must form the outer (longer) arc. The metal with smaller α forms the inner (shorter) arc. The strip therefore bends toward the low-α metal. Students most commonly choose the trap: "bends toward larger α."
Q4Advanced NCERT Hidden Facts & AIR <10 Exclusive Concepts
Railway tracks are provided with small gaps at junctions mainly to:
Not quite — the answer is D.
Without expansion gaps, rails heated in summer develop large compressive thermal stress (= YαΔT) with no room to expand, causing lateral buckling. The gap provides exactly the relief needed.
Q5Grand Test
A body of mass 2 kg and specific heat capacity 420 J kg⁻¹ K⁻¹ is heated from 20°C to 50°C. The heat supplied is:
Not quite — the answer is B.
Q = mcΔT = 2 × 420 × 30 = 25200 J. Option A uses ΔT = 15 (half the correct value). Option D uses mass = 1 kg by error.
Q6Grand Test
Which one of the following statements is correct regarding a cavity inside a metal block when uniformly heated?
Not quite — the answer is D.
Every linear dimension, including cavities, expands on heating. Option A is the most common wrong answer — students assume empty space cannot expand.
Q7Heat Transfer
The rate of heat conduction through a slab is directly proportional to:
Not quite — the answer is B.
From Fourier's law H = kAΔT/L, heat flow rate is directly proportional to k (thermal conductivity). Option A is wrong — H is inversely proportional to thickness L. Option C inverts the correct relationship for ΔT.
Q8Heat Transfer
The phenomenon responsible for sea breeze is:
Not quite — the answer is C.
Land heats faster than sea during the day, so air above land rises. Cooler sea air moves in to replace it — this bulk fluid motion is convection. Option A (conduction) requires direct contact with no bulk motion; Option B (radiation) requires no medium.
Q9Specific Heat Capacity
The SI unit of specific heat capacity is:
Not quite — the answer is C.
Specific heat capacity = heat per unit mass per unit temperature rise. SI unit = J kg⁻¹ K⁻¹. Option A omits K⁻¹. Option D is CGS unit, not SI. Option B uses kJ, a non-standard SI prefix form.
Q10Specific Heat Capacity
Specific heat capacity is defined as the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of:
Not quite — the answer is D.
Specific heat capacity is defined per unit mass per unit temperature rise (1 K). Option B defines heat capacity (not specific). Option C incorrectly uses unit volume — specific heat is per unit mass, not volume.
Q11Change of State and Latent Heat
Which of the following remains constant during the melting of pure ice at atmospheric pressure?
Not quite — the answer is C.
Heat supplied becomes latent heat of fusion, breaking intermolecular bonds without increasing kinetic energy — so temperature stays fixed at 0°C. Internal energy increases and volume changes slightly during melting.
Q12Change of State and Latent Heat
The SI unit of latent heat is:
Not quite — the answer is B.
Latent heat is heat per unit mass during a phase change — SI unit is J kg⁻¹. Option C (J K⁻¹) is heat capacity; Option A (J m⁻³) is energy density; Option D (J mol⁻¹) is molar latent heat — a different quantity.
475 more questions on this chapter are waiting in the app
Every one with a detailed explanation, plus flashcards and chapter tests.
Get RankUp on Google PlayQ13Temperature and Heat
Which of the following best defines temperature?
Not quite — the answer is B.
Temperature is an intensive state variable that determines the direction of spontaneous heat flow. Option A is wrong as calories measure heat, not temperature. Option C confuses temperature with heat content.
Q14Temperature and Heat
Heat is correctly defined as:
Not quite — the answer is C.
Heat is energy in transit due to a temperature difference; it is not stored in a body. Option A confuses heat with internal energy, a classic NEET distractor.
Q15Thermal Expansion
A metal cube has side length 10 cm at 20°C. If the coefficient of linear expansion is 2 × 10⁻⁵ °C⁻¹, the approximate increase in volume when heated through 10°C is:
Not quite — the answer is C.
γ = 3α = 6×10⁻⁵ °C⁻¹. V = 1000 cm³. ΔV = γVΔT = 6×10⁻⁵ × 1000 × 10 = 0.6 cm³. Option D arises from using γ = 6α instead of 3α — a common factor-of-2 error.
Q16Thermal Expansion
For an isotropic solid, the coefficient of cubical expansion (γ) is related to the coefficient of linear expansion (α) by:
Not quite — the answer is B.
For isotropic solids expanding equally in all three dimensions, γ ≈ 3α for small ΔT. Option C is β = 2α (superficial expansion), a common confusion. Option A conflates linear and volumetric coefficients.
Q17Calorimetry
The principle of calorimetry is based on:
Not quite — the answer is B.
In an isolated system, total energy is conserved. Heat lost by the hot body equals heat gained by the cold body — a direct application of the First Law of Thermodynamics.
Q18Calorimetry
A hot iron ball is dropped into cold water inside a perfectly insulated calorimeter. At equilibrium:
Not quite — the answer is D.
In a perfectly insulated calorimeter, no heat escapes to surroundings. By conservation of energy, heat lost by iron equals heat gained by water until both reach the same final temperature.
Q19Newton's Law of Cooling
Newton's law of cooling is a good approximation when the temperature difference between the body and surroundings is:
Not quite — the answer is B.
Newton's law dT/dt ∝ (T−Ts) is valid only for small ΔT (typically under 30–40°C), where Stefan's T⁴ law linearises. At large ΔT, radiation dominates non-linearly and the simple proportionality fails.
Q20Newton's Law of Cooling
According to Newton's law of cooling, the rate of loss of heat from a body is directly proportional to:
Not quite — the answer is C.
Newton's law states dQ/dt ∝ (T−Ts). The driving quantity is excess temperature above surroundings. Mass and specific heat affect how temperature changes per unit heat lost, not the rate of heat loss directly.
Q21NCERT Hidden Facts, PYQs & Integrated Concepts
Which is always true for a pure substance during a phase change at constant pressure?
Not quite — the answer is B.
During phase change, supplied heat increases intermolecular potential energy, not kinetic energy. Temperature stays constant throughout. Trap: students confuse constant temperature with constant internal energy — internal energy increases as PE rises.
Q22NCERT Hidden Facts, PYQs & Integrated Concepts
At 4°C, pure water has:
Not quite — the answer is C.
Water contracts anomalously on cooling from 4°C to 0°C. At 4°C, density is maximum (~1000 kg/m³) and volume per unit mass is minimum. Trap: Option A lists both minimum volume and minimum density — internally contradictory since max density means min volume.
Q23Temperature and Heat
A hot iron rod and a cold copper rod are brought into contact. Heat flows until:
Not quite — the answer is A.
Thermal equilibrium is reached when both bodies attain the same temperature, not equal heat or internal energy. Internal energy depends on mass and composition, not temperature alone.
Q24Temperature and Heat
A large iceberg and a small cup of boiling water are compared. Which of the following is correct regarding their internal energy?
Not quite — the answer is A.
Internal energy depends on mass, temperature, and state. A massive iceberg at 0°C can have greater total internal energy than a small cup of boiling water. Option B wrongly assumes temperature alone decides internal energy.
ELITE question · AIR under 50 level
This chapter has 188 ELITE questions for students aiming at the very top. They are only in the app.
Unlock ELITE questions in the appKey Thermal Concepts
Quick revision: most questions in this chapter test these facts.
| Concept | Key Formula |
|---|---|
| Linear expansion | ΔL = αLΔT; α = coefficient of linear expansion |
| Area expansion | ΔA = 2αAΔT (β = 2α) |
| Volume expansion | ΔV = 3αVΔT (γ = 3α) |
| Calorimetry | Heat lost = Heat gained; Q = mcΔT; Q = mL (phase change) |
| Conduction | Q/t = KA(T₁−T₂)/L; K = thermal conductivity |
| Stefan's law | E = σAT⁴; net radiation = σA(T⁴−T₀⁴); Wien's law: λ_max T = constant |
What the app covers in this chapter
499 questions in total, each with a detailed explanation.
| Measurement of Temperature (Thermometry & Temperature Scales) | 61 |
| Advanced NCERT Hidden Facts & AIR <10 Exclusive Concepts | 59 |
| Grand Test | 55 |
| Heat Transfer | 49 |
| Specific Heat Capacity | 41 |
| Change of State and Latent Heat | 40 |
| Temperature and Heat | 39 |
| Thermal Expansion | 39 |
| Calorimetry | 39 |
| Newton's Law of Cooling | 39 |
| NCERT Hidden Facts, PYQs & Integrated Concepts | 38 |
Questions students ask
Is Thermal Properties important for NEET?
Yes — calorimetry, thermal expansion and heat transfer questions appear regularly. Most are numerical and formula-based.
Which topics should I revise first?
Master thermal expansion (linear, area, volume) with the α:β:γ = 1:2:3 relation, calorimetry problems with phase changes, conduction formula, and Stefan-Boltzmann and Wien's displacement laws.
How many questions from this chapter are on RankUp?
The RankUp app has 499 questions on Thermal Properties of Matter, including 188 ELITE questions. Every question has a detailed explanation.
