Boyle’s Law

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Matter Noun

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[mat-er]

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Matter

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Anything that has mass and takes up space, existing in various states such as solid, liquid, or gas.

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Example: This image shows the three states of matter—gas, liquid, and solid—and how their particles are arranged, from spread out (gas) to tightly packed (solid).

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Gas Noun

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[gas]

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Gas

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A state of matter with no fixed shape or volume, whose particles are far apart and move randomly.

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Example: Heating water in a kettle causes it to boil and turn into steam, a visible example of a substance in its gas state.

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Solid Noun

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[sol-id]

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Solid

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A state of matter with a definite shape and volume, whose particles are tightly packed and vibrate in place.

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Example: This image shows ice cubes, the solid state of water. However, this is not related to Boyle's Law, which describes the relationship between pressure and volume in gases.

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Liquid Noun

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[lik-wid]

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Liquid

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A state of matter with a definite volume that takes the shape of its container, with free-flowing particles.

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Example: This image compares the properties of a solid, a liquid, and a gas, showing that a liquid takes the shape of its container but has a fixed volume.

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Compressibility Noun

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[kom-pres-uh-bil-i-tee]

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Compressibility

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A measure of how much the volume of a substance, particularly a gas, decreases under an increase in applied pressure.

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Example: Pushing the syringe plunger increases the pressure of the gas outside the balloon, causing the balloon to compress and its volume to decrease.

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Volume Noun

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[vol-yoom]

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Volume

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The amount of three-dimensional space that a substance or object occupies, often measured in liters or milliliters.

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Example: This image displays formulas for calculating the volume of solid geometric shapes, a mathematical concept, not the physical science concept of gas volume in Boyle's Law.

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Pressure Noun

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[presh-er]

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Pressure

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The continuous physical force exerted on or against an object by something in contact with it, measured per unit area.

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Example: Applying the same downward force (F) over a smaller area (the sharp point) creates more pressure than applying it over a larger area (the flat base).

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Temperature Noun

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[tem-per-uh-cher]

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Temperature

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A physical quantity that is a measure of the average kinetic energy of the atoms or molecules in a system.

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Example: This image shows a thermometer, a tool used to measure temperature, which is the variable kept constant when studying the relationship between pressure and volume in Boyle's Law.

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Molecule Noun

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[mol-e-kyool]

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Molecule

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A group of two or more atoms held together by chemical bonds, representing the smallest unit of a chemical compound.

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Example: This image shows a single molecule of water, formed when one oxygen atom chemically bonds with two hydrogen atoms.

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Boyle's Law Noun

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[boylz law]

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Boyle's Law

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A scientific law stating that the volume of a gas varies inversely with its pressure at a constant temperature.

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Example: This image shows that as the volume of a gas in a container decreases (piston pushed down), its pressure increases (gauge reads higher).