How to Prepare for Physics Olympiad

Submitted by pax on Wed, 15/12/2010 - 18:53 Some guidelines on how to prepare for Physics Olympiad competitions 1. Be familiar with the syllabus of the IPhO. But be aware of the statement that says Questions may contain concepts and phenomena not contained in the Syllabus but sufficient information must be given in the questions so that candidates without previous knowledge of these topics would not be at a disadvantage. 2. If you are a beginner you can start with non-calculus physics textbooks: o "College Physics" by Alan Giambattista, Betty McCarthy Richardson, and Robert C. Richardson o "Physics", 7th Edition by John D. Cutnell, Kenneth W. Johnson 3. Study first year level university physics. o "University Physics with Modern Physics with Mastering Physics", 12th edition, by Hugh D. Young and Roger A. Freedman o "Physics", Volume 1 & 2 by David Halliday, Robert Resnick and Kenneth S. Krane o "Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern Physics" by Raymond A. Serway and John W. Jewett, Jr. o Upgrade Your Physics by The British Physics Olympiad

Interesting Readings on General Physics and Maths:

"Street-Fighting Mathematics" - The Art of Educated Guessing and Opportunistic Problem Solving Project PHYSNET PDF Modules - Concise summaries of physics topics with exercises

Textbooks on specific topics: "An Introduction to Mechanics" by Kleppner and Kolenkow o "Classical Mechanics" by John R. Taylor o "Introduction to Classical Mechanics with Problems and Solutions" by David Morin o "Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems" by Jerry B. Marion and Stephen T. Thornton o "Special Relativity" by A.P. French o "Vibrations and Waves" by A.P. French o "Introduction to Electrodynamics, 3rd ed." by David J. Griffiths o "Electricity and Magnetism" by Edward M. Purcell o "Electromagnetic Fields and Waves" by Paul Lorrain and Dale Corson 4. Practice working out theoretical problems o Past IPhO papers o Past APhO papers o Samples and Past Papers from The British Physics Olympiad o POPTOR Past Problems and Solutions o US Physics Olympiad Exams Documents o BAUPC Exams and Solutions o "Problems in General Physics" by I. E. Irodov o Solutions to I. E. Irodov's "Problems in General Physics" o Physics Problems o Problem of the Week by David Morin - Harvard Physics
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"Cavendish Problems in Classical Physics" by A.B. Pippard o "Cambridge Problems in Physics and Advice on Solutions" by P.P. Dendy, R. Tuffnell and C.H.B. Mee o "200 Puzzling Physics Problems with Hints and Solutions" by Peter Gnadig, Gyula Honyek and Ken Riley o "Physics by Example - 200 Problems and Solutions" by W.G. Rees o Selected problems from "A Guide to Physics Problems", Part 1 and Part 2 by Sidney B. Cahn and Boris E. Nadgorny o "Problems and Solutions on Mechanics" by Yung-Kuo Lim o "Problems and Solutions on Atomic, Nuclear and Particle Physics" by Yung-Kuo Lim o "Problems and Solutions on Electromagnetism" by Yung-Kuo Lim o "Problems and Solutions on Optics : Major American Univ. PhD Qualifying Questions and Solutions" by Yung-Kuo Lim o "Problems and Solutions on Solid State Physics, Relativity and Miscellaneous Topics" by Yung-Kuo Lim o "Problems and Solutions on Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics" by Yung-Kuo Lim 5. "Useful Hints for Solving Physics Olympiad Problems" 6. Practice doing experiments o Past IPhO papers o Past APhO papers o "Practical Physics", 4th Edition by G. L. Squires o Student Laboratory Handbook o "Error Analysis" o "An Introduction to Error Analysis", 2nd Edition by John R. Taylor
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