Physics
Laws of Motion
Force and Inertia, Newton’s First Law of motion; Momentum, Newton’s Second Law of motion; Impulse;
Newton’s Third Law of motion. Law of conservation of linear momentum and its applications, Equilibrium of
concurrent forces. Static and Kinetic friction, laws of friction, rolling friction. Dynamics of uniform circular
motion: Centripetal force and its applications.
Gravitation
The universal law of gravitation. Acceleration due to gravity and its variation with altitude and depth. Kepler’s
laws of planetary motion. Gravitational potential energy; gravitational potential. Escape velocity. Orbital
velocity of a satellite. Geo-stationary satellites.
Thermodynamics
Thermal equilibrium, zeroth law of thermodynamics, concept of temperature. Heat, work and internal energy.
First law of thermodynamics. Second law of thermodynamics: reversible and irreversible processes. Carnot
engine and its efficiency.
Electrostatics
Electric charges: Conservation of charge, Coulomb’s law-forces between two point charges, forces between
multiple charges; superposition principle and continuous charge distribution. Electric field: Electric field due
to a point charge, Electric field lines, Electric dipole, Electric field due to a dipole, Torque on a dipole in a
uniform electric field. Electric flux, Gauss’s law and its applications to find field due to infinitely long
uniformly charged straight wire, uniformly charged infinite plane sheet and uniformly charged thin spherical
shell. Electric potential and its calculation for a point charge, electric dipole and system of charges;
Equipotential surfaces, Electrical potential energy of a system of two point charges in an electrostatic field.
Conductors and insulators, Dielectrics and electric polarization, capacitor, combination of capacitors in series
and in parallel, capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor with and without dielectric medium between the plates,
Energy stored in a capacitor.
Current Electricity
Electric current, Drift velocity, Ohm’s law, Electrical resistance, Resistances of different materials, V-I
characteristics of Ohmic and nonohmic conductors, Electrical energy and power, Electrical resistivity, Colour
code for resistors; Series and parallel combinations of resistors; Temperature dependence of resistance.
Electric Cell and its Internal resistance, potential difference and emf of a cell, combination of cells in series
and in parallel. Kirchhoff’s laws and their applications. Wheatstone bridge, Metre bridge. Potentiometer -
principle and its applications.
Magnetic Effects of Current and Magnetism
Biot - Savart law and its application to current carrying circular loop. Ampere’s law and its applications to
infinitely long current carrying straight wire and solenoid. Force on a moving charge in uniform magnetic and
electric fields. Cyclotron. Force on a current-carrying conductor in a uniform magnetic field. Force between
two parallel current-carrying conductors-definition of ampere. Torque experienced by a current loop in
uniform magnetic field; Moving coil galvanometer, its current sensitivity and conversion to ammeter and
voltmeter. Current loop as a magnetic dipole and its magnetic dipole moment. Bar magnet as an equivalent
solenoid, magnetic field lines; Earth’s magnetic field and magnetic elements. Para-, dia- and ferro- magnetic
substances. Magnetic susceptibility and permeability, Hysteresis, Electromagnets and permanent magnets.
Electromagnetic Waves
Electromagnetic waves and their characteristics. Transverse nature of electromagnetic waves. Electromagnetic
spectrum (radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visible, ultraviolet, Xrays, gamma rays). Applications of e.m.
waves.
Reflection and refraction of light at plane and spherical surfaces, mirror formula, Total internal reflection and
its applications, Deviation and Dispersion of light by a prism, Lens Formula, Magnification, Power of a Lens,
Combination of thin lenses in contact, Microscope and Astronomical Telescope (reflecting and refracting) and
their magnifying powers. Wave optics: wave front and Huygens’ principle, Laws of reflection and refraction
using Huygen’s principle. Interference, Young’s double slit experiment and expression for fringe width.
Diffraction due to a single slit, width of central maximum. Resolving power of microscopes and astronomical
telescopes, Polarisation, plane polarized light; Brewster’s law, uses of plane polarized light and Polaroids.
Dual Nature of Matter and Radiation
Dual nature of radiation. Photoelectric effect, Hertz and Lenard’s observations; Einstein’s photoelectric
equation; particle nature of light. Matter waves-wave nature of particle, de Broglie relation. Davisson Germer
experiment.
Atoms and Nuclei
Alpha-particle scattering experiment; Rutherford’s model of atom; Bohr model, energy levels, hydrogen
spectrum. Composition and size of nucleus, atomic masses, isotopes, isobars; isotones. Radioactivity-alpha,
beta and gamma particles/rays and their properties; radioactive decay law. Mass-energy relation, mass defect;
binding energy per nucleon and its variation with mass number, nuclear fission and fusion.