Lessons · A/L Physics

Unit 1 · Measurement

• Physical quantities, SI units and dimensions
• Measuring instruments: vernier caliper, micrometer, spherometer
• Errors, significant figures and straight-line graphs

Unit 2 · Mechanics

• Motion in a straight line and motion graphs
• Projectile motion
• Newton's laws, momentum and impulse
• Friction, moments and equilibrium
• Work, energy and power
• Circular motion
• Rotational motion: torque, moment of inertia and angular momentum
• Pressure in fluids, Archimedes' principle and flotation
• Fluid flow: continuity and Bernoulli's equation

Unit 3 · Oscillations and Waves

• Simple harmonic motion
• Progressive waves and their properties
• Stationary waves: strings, pipes, resonance and beats
• The Doppler effect and sound intensity
• Refraction of light, total internal reflection and prisms
• Lenses, the eye and optical instruments

Unit 4 · Thermal Physics

• Temperature, thermometers and thermal expansion
• Gas laws and the kinetic theory of gases
• Heat capacity, latent heat and Newton's law of cooling
• Vapours and humidity
• The first law of thermodynamics
• Heat transfer: conduction, convection and radiation

Unit 5 · Gravitational Field

• Gravitation, gravitational field and satellites

Unit 6 · Electrostatic Field

• Charge, Coulomb's law and electric field
• Electric potential and potential energy
• Capacitors and dielectrics

Unit 7 · Magnetic Field

• Magnetic force on currents and moving charges
• Magnetic fields of currents
• Electromagnetic induction, a.c. and transformers

Unit 8 · Current Electricity

• Current, resistance and resistivity
• Emf, internal resistance and Kirchhoff's laws
• Wheatstone bridge, metre bridge and potentiometer

Unit 9 · Electronics

• Semiconductors, the p–n junction and diodes
• The bipolar transistor: amplifier and switch
• Operational amplifiers
• Logic gates and Boolean algebra

Unit 10 · Mechanical Properties of Matter

• Elasticity: stress, strain and Young's modulus
• Surface tension and capillarity
• Viscosity: Poiseuille's equation and Stokes' law

Unit 11 · Matter and Radiation

• Photons, the photoelectric effect and wave–particle duality
• Energy levels, spectra and X-rays
• Radioactivity and the decay law
• Nuclear energy, fission, fusion and elementary particles