# 9702 P4 The first law of thermodynamics Topic Questions > CIE IAL 9702 P4: every The first law of thermodynamics topic question from 10 papers (2025–2026), grouped by syllabus point. 23 questions, 53 marks, with… - Canonical HTML: https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/ - Markdown mirror: https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/index.md --- CIE IAL · Physics · 9702 P4 · A Level Every 9702 P4 The first law of thermodynamics topic question from the 2025–2027 syllabus, drawn from 10 papers (2025–2026) and grouped by syllabus point. Each row opens a page listing the exact question numbers, marks and a direct link into the paper. These are questions by topic, not full papers, so you can revise one topic at a time. - 9702 P4 - 2 subtopics - 23 topic questions - 10 papers - 53 tagged marks - [Back to The first law of thermodynamics](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/) - [All paper codes](https://www.examsci.com/topics/) Core finding **2 recall and use the first law of thermodynamics … expressed in terms… is the most frequently assessed subtopic in The first law of thermodynamics, with 17 topic questions and 44 marks across 10 papers.** 1 recall and use … for the work done when the volume of a… follows with 12 topic questions and 28 marks. The topic contains 2 subtopics, 23 topic questions and 53 marks in total. Rows count only the parts tagged to that subtopic, keep the same colour in both charts and repeat paper count, tagged marks and year range in the native table. ## Topic question count and mark distribution Subtopics are on the vertical axis and sorted from highest to lowest. Only the parts whose knowledge graph matches a subtopic are counted for it, and percentages are each row's share of the tagged total in that chart. A part tagged to several subtopics is counted in each bar, so the bars are not a partition of the topic total. ### Questions by subtopic question items - [2 recall and use the first law of thermodynamics $\Delta U = q + W$ expressed in terms of the increase in internal energy, the heating of the system (energy transferred to the system by heating) and the work done on the system](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/2-recall-and-use-the-first-law-of-thermodynamics-delta-u-q-w-expressed-in-terms-of/) (10 papers) — 17 · 58.6% - [1 recall and use $W = p\Delta V$ for the work done when the volume of a gas changes at constant pressure and understand the difference between the work done by the gas and the work done on the gas](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/1-recall-and-use-w-p-delta-v-for-the-work-done-when-the-volume-of-a-gas-changes-at/) (8 papers) — 12 · 41.4% ### Marks by subtopic marks - [2 recall and use the first law of thermodynamics $\Delta U = q + W$ expressed in terms of the increase in internal energy, the heating of the system (energy transferred to the system by heating) and the work done on the system](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/2-recall-and-use-the-first-law-of-thermodynamics-delta-u-q-w-expressed-in-terms-of/) (10 papers) — 44 · 61.1% - [1 recall and use $W = p\Delta V$ for the work done when the volume of a gas changes at constant pressure and understand the difference between the work done by the gas and the work done on the gas](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/1-recall-and-use-w-p-delta-v-for-the-work-done-when-the-volume-of-a-gas-changes-at/) (8 papers) — 28 · 38.9% ## Subtopic comparison matrix Curriculum order is by syllabus number, then alphabetically. Every row links to the matching past-paper question list. | Subtopic | Topic questions | Papers | Marks | Years | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | **[1 recall and use $W = p\Delta V$ for the work done when the volume of a gas changes at constant pressure and understand the difference between the work done by the gas and the work done on the gas](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/1-recall-and-use-w-p-delta-v-for-the-work-done-when-the-volume-of-a-gas-changes-at/)** | 12 | 8 | 28 | 2025–2026 | [Open topic questions](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/1-recall-and-use-w-p-delta-v-for-the-work-done-when-the-volume-of-a-gas-changes-at/) | | **[2 recall and use the first law of thermodynamics $\Delta U = q + W$ expressed in terms of the increase in internal energy, the heating of the system (energy transferred to the system by heating) and the work done on the system](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/2-recall-and-use-the-first-law-of-thermodynamics-delta-u-q-w-expressed-in-terms-of/)** | 17 | 10 | 44 | 2025–2026 | [Open topic questions](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/2-recall-and-use-the-first-law-of-thermodynamics-delta-u-q-w-expressed-in-terms-of/) | ## Browse every topic question - [1 recall and use $W = p\Delta V$ for the work done when the volume of a gas changes at constant pressure and understand the difference between the work done by the gas and the work done on the gas](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/1-recall-and-use-w-p-delta-v-for-the-work-done-when-the-volume-of-a-gas-changes-at/) — 12 question items · 8 papers — 28 marks · 2025–2026 - [2 recall and use the first law of thermodynamics $\Delta U = q + W$ expressed in terms of the increase in internal energy, the heating of the system (energy transferred to the system by heating) and the work done on the system](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/2-recall-and-use-the-first-law-of-thermodynamics-delta-u-q-w-expressed-in-terms-of/) — 17 question items · 10 papers — 44 marks · 2025–2026 ## Other topics in 9702 P4 - [Capacitors and capacitance 17 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/capacitors-and-capacitance/) - [Centripetal acceleration 25 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/centripetal-acceleration/) - [Characteristics of alternating currents 21 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/characteristics-of-alternating-currents/) - [Concept of a magnetic field 3 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/concept-of-a-magnetic-field/) - [Damped and forced oscillations, resonance 7 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/damped-and-forced-oscillations-resonance/) - [Discharging a capacitor 16 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/discharging-a-capacitor/) - [Electric field of a point charge 8 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/electric-field-of-a-point-charge/) - [Electric fields and field lines 7 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/electric-fields-and-field-lines/) - [Electric force between point charges 12 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/electric-force-between-point-charges/) - [Electric potential 26 question items](https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/electric-potential/) ## Topic question rules and edge cases **How many subtopics does The first law of thermodynamics contain?** This page lists 2 subtopics tagged to the current syllabus. They are ordered by syllabus number, then alphabetically, and each row opens a page of matching past-paper questions. **How are the subtopic question and mark totals calculated?** A multiple-choice question contributes one item and its marks to every subtopic it is tagged with. A structured question contributes one item per tagged part, and that part’s marks; untagged parts of the same question are not counted here. A part tagged to several subtopics therefore appears under each of them. **Why do some subtopics have no numbered prefix?** Practical-skills statements and some syllabus bullets are unnumbered. Numbered statements come first; unnumbered statements and ties are sorted alphabetically. **Is the LaTeX rendered without JavaScript?** Yes. Subtopics that contain formulas are converted to static KaTeX HTML during the build, and the KaTeX stylesheet is served from the same site. --- Full page with native tables, bar charts and Practice Hub links: https://www.examsci.com/topics/cie-ial/physics/9702-paper-4/the-first-law-of-thermodynamics/