Cambridge IGCSE Physics 0625/32 is the May/June 2026 Paper 3 (Core Theory), variant 2. It lasts 1 hour 15 minutes, is worth 80 marks and is sat by every Core candidate. It had ten compulsory questions, with a calculation in most of them; the biggest, Question 2 on work done, mass and pressure, carried 11 marks. This guide goes through the paper question by question and shows what the official mark scheme gave marks for. The paper and its mark scheme are free on the Tutopiya Learning Portal.

For an overview of all six 0625 papers from this series, see IGCSE Physics 0625 May/June 2026 past papers: what came up and how it was marked.

0625/32 at a glance

Question	Topic	Marks	Main command word
1	Motion: a runner’s speed-time graph, distance from the area, average speed	10	Calculate, describe
2	Work done, mass from weight, pressure under a block of ice	11	Calculate
3	Density of a pebble: measuring mass and volume	8	Describe, calculate
4	Melting, particles in a solid, absolute zero	6	Describe, state
5	A solar water heater: radiation, conduction, convection	7	Explain, state
6	The electromagnetic spectrum	7	State, complete
7	Reflection in a plane mirror, a converging lens ray diagram	9	State, draw
8	A mains heater: resistance, power and the fuse	10	Calculate, explain
9	Alpha, beta and gamma, protons and neutrons, half-life	7	Complete, calculate
10	The Moon’s orbit and the Earth-Moon distance	5	Calculate, state
	Total	80

Question-by-question walkthrough

Question 1: a runner’s speed-time graph (10 marks)

The graph showed a student speeding up steadily to 9 m/s in the first 2 s, running at that speed until 8 s, then slowing steadily to a stop at 11 s.

• Speed at 1.0 s (1 mark): 4.5 m/s, with 4.4 to 4.6 m/s accepted.
• Describe the speed in two sections (2 marks): from 2 s to 8 s the speed is constant (no acceleration; “9 m/s” was condoned). From 8 s to 11 s the speed is decreasing, or the runner has a constant deceleration. “At rest” or “stationary” for the first section contradicted the mark, and an unqualified “acceleration” or “changing acceleration” for the second section scored nothing.
• Distance from 2 s to 8 s (3 marks): distance is the area under the graph, 6.0 s × 9.0 m/s = 54 m. One mark was for stating that distance is the area under the graph, and two for the working.
• Average speed for 400 m in 2.0 minutes (4 marks): convert the time first, 2.0 × 60 = 120 s, then 400 ÷ 120 = 3.3 m/s (3 m/s also earned all 4 marks). Using the minutes directly, 400 ÷ 2.0 = 200, was worth only 2 marks. The equation mark was for average speed = total distance ÷ time taken, written in that form.

Question 2: work, mass and pressure (11 marks)

A machine lifted a block of ice weighing 650 N through a vertical height of 1.2 m.

• Work done, with unit (4 marks): work = force × distance = 650 × 1.2 = 780 J. Three marks were for the number and one for the unit. N m was accepted, and 0.78 kJ earned all 4.
• Mass of the block (3 marks): mass = weight ÷ gravitational field strength = 650 ÷ 9.8 = 66 kg. Using g = 10 N/kg, which gives 65 kg, scored only 1 mark, because the front of the paper tells you to take g as 9.8.
• Pressure on the ground (4 marks): the block rests on a face measuring 0.82 m × 0.36 m, so the area is 0.2952 m², and pressure = force ÷ area = 650 ÷ 0.2952 = 2200 N/m². The scheme gave one mark for the pressure equation and one for the area, so picking the wrong pair of dimensions still left marks for the method.

Question 3: the density of a pebble (8 marks)

• Instrument for mass (1 mark): a balance (electronic, top-pan or digital); “scales” was also accepted. “Scale” on its own and “weighing machine” were ignored.
• Measuring the volume (4 marks): there were two separate methods and the scheme did not allow mixing them. With a measuring cylinder: part-fill it with water, read the volume, lower the pebble in so it is under water, read the new volume, and take the difference (V₂ − V₁). With a displacement can: fill the can until water overflows, put the pebble in, collect the overflow in the measuring cylinder, and that volume is the pebble’s volume.
• Density (3 marks): density = mass ÷ volume = 120 ÷ 52 = 2.3 g/cm³.

Question 4: melting, solids and absolute zero (6 marks)

• Solid to liquid (1 mark): melting.
• Particles in a solid (3 marks): any three of a regular arrangement (a lattice or pattern), closely packed, vibrating, and fixed in position. “Vibrate about fixed positions” scored two points in one go. “Solids have a fixed shape” was ignored, because the question is about particles.
• Lowest possible temperature (2 marks): the term is absolute zero (correct answer only) and its value is −273 °C.

Question 5: a solar water heater (7 marks)

Water in a black copper pipe on a roof was heated by the Sun and stored in a tank.

• Transfer from the Sun to the pipe (1 mark): infrared radiation. “Light rays” and “sunlight” were ignored.
• Why the pipe is black (2 marks): a black surface is a good absorber (1 mark) of infrared radiation (1 mark). The absorber mark had to be scored first; points about emission, reflection or conduction were ignored.
• Transfer through the copper (1 mark): conduction.
• Why hot water is at the top of the tank (3 marks): any three of convection, the heated water expands, it becomes less dense, and the less dense water rises. The reverse argument about cold water sinking also counted. “The water becomes lighter” was ignored, and an answer about air instead of water could score at most 2.

Question 6: the electromagnetic spectrum (7 marks)

• Missing labels (2 marks): gamma rays at one end and microwaves between infrared and radio waves. Putting them the wrong way round scored 1 mark.
• Property that increases along the arrow (1 mark): wavelength.
• Speed of X-rays compared with radio waves in a vacuum (1 mark): the same (3.0 × 10⁸ m/s was accepted).
• One use of X-rays (1 mark): for example imaging bones, medical scans, cancer treatment, security scanning of luggage or checking welds. “Medical examinations”, “astronomy” or “security” on their own were too vague to score.
• Three regions of the Sun’s output (2 marks): infrared, visible light and ultraviolet. All three earned 2 marks; one or two earned 1.

Question 7: mirrors and lenses (9 marks)

• The dashed line (1 mark): the normal.
• Marking the angle of incidence (1 mark): the X had to sit between the incoming ray and the normal.
• Law of reflection (1 mark): angle of incidence = angle of reflection.
• Image in a plane mirror (2 marks): virtual, upright and the same size (three correct for 2 marks, one or two for 1). Laterally inverted and the same distance from the mirror were also accepted. Only the first three answers were marked, and contradictions such as “virtual” and “real” together cost a mark.
• Line XY (1 mark): the principal axis.
• Ray diagram (3 marks): the figure gave one ray from the top of the object, parallel to the axis and then bent through the lens. The second ray was the one from the top of O straight through the centre of the lens, undeviated (a ray through F on the left, then parallel to the axis, was also accepted). The image was an inverted arrow drawn from the axis up to where the rays cross; an upright arrow scored nothing. The last mark was for marking a principal focus F where the given ray crosses the axis.

Question 8: a mains heater (10 marks)

The heater was connected to a 230 V supply and took 11.5 A.

• Resistance (3 marks): R = V ÷ I = 230 ÷ 11.5 = 20 Ω. The answer line had no unit printed, so write the ohm symbol yourself.
• Power (3 marks): P = V × I = 230 × 11.5 = 2645, so 2600 W to 2 significant figures.
• Why large currents are dangerous (1 mark): the risk of overheating, which can cause fires or burns. Unqualified “heating” and “shocks” were ignored.
• How a fuse protects the circuit (2 marks): any two of a large current flows, the fuse melts (or blows), and the circuit is broken.
• Fuse rating (1 mark): 13 A, the smallest of the four options above the normal 11.5 A.

Question 9: radioactivity (7 marks)

• Table of emissions (3 marks, one per gap): the charge on an alpha particle is +2; a beta particle is an electron; gamma is an electromagnetic wave.
• Lithium-7 (2 marks): 3 protons and 4 neutrons. Swapping the two numbers scored 1 mark.
• Fraction left after 33 days (2 marks): the half-life is 11 days, so 33 days is three half-lives, and ½ × ½ × ½ = 1/8 (0.125 or 12.5%; 0.13 or 13% was accepted). Stating “3 half-lives” earned the first mark.

Question 10: the Moon (5 marks)

• Time for one orbit of the Earth, with unit (1 mark): about 1 month (27 to 30 days or 4 weeks were accepted).
• Force that keeps it in orbit (1 mark): gravitational force (gravity). “Centripetal force” was ignored and “GPE” was rejected.
• Earth-Moon distance (3 marks): distance = speed × time = 3.0 × 10⁸ × 1.28 = 3.8 × 10⁸ m (3.84 × 10⁸ m also accepted).

Where the marks are on 0625/32

• Calculations carried 35 of the 80 marks: 32 marks on “calculate” parts and 3 on “determine”. They are in 1(a)(iii), 1(b), all of Question 2, 3(c), 8(a), 8(b), 9(c) and 10(c), plus the graph reading in 1(a)(i) and the proton and neutron numbers in 9(b).
• Recall carried 18 marks: the “state”, “name” and “give” parts, such as melting, absolute zero, the normal, the principal axis and the 13 A fuse.
• Describe questions carried 10 marks, led by the 4-mark method for measuring the pebble’s volume in 3(b).
• Explain questions carried 7 marks: the black pipe and convection in Question 5, and how a fuse works in 8(d).
• Completing labels and tables carried 6 marks (6(a), 6(c) and 9(a)), and drawing or marking on diagrams carried 4 (Question 7).
• Question 2 alone is worth 11 marks, all from calculations. If you can write the equations for work, weight and pressure from memory, this is the most reliable block of marks on the paper.

How to self-mark 0625/32 with the mark scheme

1. Learn the mark types first. An A mark is for the correct final answer, C marks are compensatory marks for the equation and substitution when the answer is wrong, B marks stand alone, and an M mark must be earned before the A mark after it. “owtte” means or words to that effect, “cao” means correct answer only and “CON” means a contradiction that cancels the mark.
2. Check the final answer before the working. A correct answer scores every mark even with no working, so 54 m in 1(a)(iii) is 3 out of 3. Only go through the C marks when your answer is wrong.
3. Check every conversion. In 1(b), dividing 400 by minutes instead of seconds dropped the answer to 2 out of 4. In 2(a)(ii), using g = 10 instead of 9.8 dropped it to 1 out of 3.
4. Check units and significant figures. The unit in 2(a)(i) was a separate mark, and 2645 W must be rounded to 2600 W or given to at least 2 significant figures to match the scheme.
5. Apply the list rule. In 7(a)(iv), only your first three image properties were marked, so an extra wrong property can cost you.
6. Log each lost mark as missing knowledge, a wrong conversion or unit, a misread command word or a careless slip, and revise in that order.

Sit 0625/32 as a timed mock

The paper allows 75 minutes for 80 marks, a little under one minute per mark. A workable plan:

Block	Marks	Time
Question 1	10	9 minutes
Question 2	11	10 minutes
Question 3	8	7 minutes
Question 4	6	5 minutes
Question 5	7	6 minutes
Question 6	7	6 minutes
Question 7	9	8 minutes
Question 8	10	9 minutes
Question 9	7	6 minutes
Question 10	5	5 minutes
Check, especially units and conversions	–	4 minutes

For every calculation, write the equation first, then the numbers, then the answer with its unit. That habit protects the C marks if the final answer goes wrong.

Other May/June 2026 0625 papers

• 0625 Paper 12 (Core Multiple Choice)
• 0625 Paper 22 (Extended Multiple Choice)
• 0625 Paper 42 (Extended Theory)
• 0625 Paper 52 (Practical Test)
• 0625 Paper 62 (Alternative to Practical)

Practise and download

• Download 0625/32 and its mark scheme on the Learning Portal →
• All 0625 May/June 2026 papers: overview and marking patterns
• Try a free IGCSE Physics quiz

Need help with a 0625 topic? Book a free trial lesson with an IGCSE Physics tutor →

Frequently asked questions

What topics were on 0625 Paper 32 May/June 2026? +

Ten questions: a speed-time graph and average speed; work done, mass and pressure for a block of ice; the density of a pebble; melting, solids and absolute zero; a solar water heater; the electromagnetic spectrum; reflection and a converging lens; a mains heater and its fuse; radioactive emissions and half-life; and the Moon.

How many marks is 0625/32 and how long is it? +

It is out of 80 marks and lasts 1 hour 15 minutes. Question 2, on work done, mass and pressure for a block of ice, is the biggest at 11 marks.

What was the answer to the average speed question in 0625/32? +

The student ran 400 m in 2.0 minutes, which is 120 s, so the average speed is 400 ÷ 120 = 3.3 m/s. It was worth 4 marks. Dividing 400 by 2.0 without converting to seconds gave 200 and scored only 2 of the 4 marks.

Which fuse was correct for the heater in 0625/32 2026? +

The heater normally takes 11.5 A, so the suitable fuse from the four choices was 13 A, the smallest value above the normal current. It was worth one mark.

Is 0625/32 the Core or Extended paper? +

Core. Paper 3 is the Core theory paper, sat alongside Paper 1 (Core multiple choice) and either Paper 5 or Paper 6. Extended candidates sit Paper 4 instead.

Where can I download 0625/32 May/June 2026 and its mark scheme? +

Both are free to download and print on the Tutopiya Learning Portal, on the Cambridge IGCSE Physics 0625 past papers page.

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