IB Physics Syllabus Checklist

Understanding

Application

1. Fundamental and derived SI units
2. Scientific notation and metric multipliers
3. Significant figures
4. Estimation

1. Use SI units correctly in measurement, answers, and presentation of data
2. Use scientific notation and metric multipliers
3. Quote and compare ratios, values, and approximations to nearest order of magnitude
4. Estimate with a correct number of significant figures

1. Random and systematic errors
2. Absolute, fractional, and percentage uncertainties
3. Error bars
4. Uncertainty of gradient and intercepts

1. Explain random and systematic error identification and minimization
2. Collect data with uncertainty
3. Propagate uncertainty through calculations
4. Determine uncertainty of gradients and intercepts

1. Vectors and scalar quantities
2. Combination and resolution of vectors

1. Solve vector problems graphically and algebraically

Understanding

Application

1. Distance and displacement
2. Speed and velocity
3. Acceleration
4. Motion graphs
5. SUVAT equations
6. Free fall and projectile motion
7. Fluid resistance and terminal speed

1. Determine instantaneous and average speed, velocity, and acceleration
2. Use SUVAT equations to solve motion problems
3. Sketch and interpret motion graphs of displacement, velocity, and acceleration
4. Determine free fall acceleration experimentally
5. Analyse projectile motion in x and y directions of displacement, velocity, and acceleration
6. Qualitative description of fluid resistance on falling and projectile objects

1. Objects as point particles
2. Free-body diagrams
3. Translational equilibrium
4. Newton’s laws of motion
5. Solid friction

1. Represent forces as vectors
2. Sketch and interpret free-body diagrams
3. Describe consequence of Newton’s first law for translational equilibrium
4. Qualitative and quantitative use of Newton’s second law
5. Use Newton’s third law to identify force pairs
6. Solve problems with forces
7. Describe solid friction based on the coefficients of friction

1. Kinetic energy
2. Gravitational potential energy
3. Elastic potential energy
4. Work done as energy transfer
5. Power as rate of energy transfer
6. Principle of conservation of energy
7. Efficiency

1. Describe energy transformations as conservations of total energy
2. Sketch and interpret force-distance graphs
3. Determine work done with resistive forces
4. Solve problems with power
5. Quantitatively describe efficiency of an energy transfer

1. Newton’s second law is also the rate of change of momentum
2. Impulse and force-time graphs
3. Conservation of linear momentum
4. Elastic collisions, inelastic collisions, and explosions

1. Apply conservation of momentum to collisions, explosions, or water jets
2. Quantitatively and qualitatively use Newton’s second law when mass is not constant
3. Sketch and interpret force-time graphs
4. Determine impulse in car safety and sports
5. Quantitative and qualitatively compare and contrast elastic and inelastic collisions, and explosions

Understanding

Application

1. Molecular theory of solids, liquids, and gases
2. Temperature and absolute temperature
3. Internal energy
4. Specific heat capacity
5. Phase change
6. Specific latent heat

1. Describe temperature change in terms of internal energy
2. Use Kelvin and Celsius temperature scales and be able to convert between them
3. Apply calorimetry experiments to determine specific heat capacity or specific latent heat
4. Describe phase change in terms of molecular behaviour
5. Sketch and interpret phase change graphs
6. Calculate energy changes with specific heat capacity and specific latent heat

1. Pressure
2. Ideal gas equation and laws
3. Kinetic model of an ideal gas
4. Mole, molar mass, and Avogadro constant
5. Differences between real and ideal gases

1. Solve problems with the ideal gas equation and gas laws
2. Sketch and interpret pressure-volume, pressure-temperature, and volume^- temperature graphs of an ideal gas
3. Investigate one gas law experimentally

Understanding

Application

1. Simple harmonic oscillation
2. Time period, frequency, amplitude, displacement, and phase difference
3. Conditions for simple harmonic motion

1. Qualitatively describing the energy changes of one oscillation
2. Sketch and interpret simple harmonic motion graphs

1. Travelling waves
2. Wavelength, frequency, period, and wave speed
3. Transverse and longitudinal waves
4. The nature of electromagnetic waves
5. The nature of sound waves

1. Explain motion of particles in transverse and longitudinal waves
2. Sketch and interpret displacement- distance graphs and displacement-time graphs of transverse and longitudinal waves
3. Solve problems with wave speed, frequency, and wavelength
4. Investigate the speed of sound experimentally

1. Wavefronts and rays
2. Amplitude, intensity, and the inverse square law
3. Superposition
4. Polarization

1. Sketch and interpret wavefront and ray diagrams
2. Solve problems with amplitude, intensity, and the inverse square law
3. Sketch and interpret the superposition of pulses and waves
4. Describe methods of polarization
5. Sketch and interpret polarization, reflection, and transmission beams
6. Solve problems with Malus’s law

1. Reflection and refraction
2. Snell’s law, critical angle, and total internal reflection
3. Diffraction through a single-slit and around objects
4. Interference patterns
5. Double-slit interference
6. Path difference

1. Sketch and interpret incident, reflected, and transmitted waves at boundaries
2. Solve problems with reflection at a plane interface
3. Solve problems with Snell’s law, critical angle, and total internal reflection
4. Determine refractive index experimentally
5. Qualitatively describe single-slit diffraction patterns of plane waves
6. Quantitatively describe double-slit interference intensity patterns

1. Standing waves
2. Boundary conditions
3. Nodes and antinodes

1. Describe nature and formation of standing waves via superposition
2. Compare and contrast standing and travelling waves
3. Observe, sketch, and interpret standing wave patterns in strings and pipes
4. Solve problems with frequency of a harmonic, and length and speed of the standing wave

Understanding

Application

1. Charge
2. Electric field
3. Coulomb’s law
4. Electric current
5. Direct current (DC)
6. Potential difference

1. Identify two forms of charge and the direction of the electrostatic force
2. Solve problems with electric fields and Coulomb’s law
3. Calculate work done in an electric field with Joules (J) and electronVolts (eV)
4. Identify charge carriers in a metal
5. Determine drift speed of charge carriers
6. Solve problems with the drift speed equation
7. Solve problems with current, potential difference, and charge

1. Circuit diagrams
2. Kirchhoff’s circuit laws
3. Heating effect of current and its consequences
4. Resistance expressed as R = V/I
5. Ohm’s law
6. Resistivity
7. Power dissipation

1. Draw and interpret circuit diagrams
2. Identify ohmic and non-ohmic conductors in a voltage-current graph
3. Solve problems with potential difference, current, charge, Kirchhoff’s circuit laws, power, resistance, and resistivity
4. Investigate combinations of resistors in parallel and series circuits
5. Describe ideal and non-ideal ammeters and voltmeters
6. Describe practical uses of potential divider circuits, including advantages of a potential divider over a series resistor in controlling a simple circuit
7. Investigate factors that affect resistance experimentally

1. Cells
2. Internal resistance
3. Secondary cells
4. Terminal potential difference
5. Electromotive force

1. Investigate practical electric cells
2. Describe discharge characteristics of a simple cell
3. Identify current direction to recharge a cell
4. Determine internal resistance experimentally
5. Solve problems with emf, internal resistance, and other electrical quantities

1. Magnetic fields
2. Magnetic force

1. Determine the force on a charge in a magnetic field
2. Determine the force on a current- carrying conductor in a magnetic field
3. Sketch and interpret magnetic field patterns
4. Determine magnetic field direction based on current
5. Solve problems with magnetic forces, fields, current, and charges

Understanding

Application

1. Period, frequency, angular displacement, and angular velocity
2. Centripetal force
3. Centripetal acceleration

1. Identify sources of centripetal force such as tension, friction, gravity, electrostatic force, or magnetic force
2. Solve problems with centripetal forces, acceleration, period, frequency, angular displacement, linear speed, and angular velocity
3. Qualitative and quantitative description of horizontal and vertical circular motion

1. Newton’s law of gravitation
2. Gravitational field strength

1. Describe relationship of gravitational force and centripetal force
2. Apply Newton’s law of gravitation to an object in orbit around a point mass
3. Solve problems with gravitational force, gravitational field strength, orbital speed, and orbital period
4. Determine the resultant gravitational field strength of two masses on an object

Understanding

Application

1. Discrete energy levels
2. Transitions between energy levels
3. Radioactive decay
4. Fundamental forces and their properties
5. Alpha particles, beta particles, and gamma rays
6. Half-life
7. Absorption characteristics of decay particles
8. Isotopes
9. Background radiation

1. Describe emission and absorption spectra of common gases
2. Solve problems with atomic spectra, specifically photon wavelengths absorbed and emitted
3. Complete decay equations for alpha and beta decay
4. Determine half-life of a nuclide from a decay curve
5. Investigate half-life experimentally

1. Unified atomic mass unit
2. Mass defect and nuclear binding energy
3. Nuclear fission and nuclear fusion

1. Solve problems with mass defect and binding energy
2. Solve problems with energy release, nuclear fission, and nuclear fusion
3. Sketch and interpret the curve of an average binding energy per nucleon – nucleon number graph

1. Quarks, leptons, and antiparticles
2. Hadrons, baryons, and mesons
3. Conservation laws of charge, baryon number, lepton number, and strangeness
4. Nature and range of strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force, and electromagnetic force
5. Exchange particles
6. Feynman diagrams
7. Confinement
8. Higgs boson

1. Describe the Rutherford-Geiger-Marsden experiment
2. Apply conservation laws in particle interactions
3. Describe protons and neutrons in terms of quarks
4. Compare interaction strengths of fundamental forces
5. Describe mediation of fundamental forces through exchange particles
6. Sketch and interpret simple Feynman diagrams
7. Describe why free quarks are not observed

Understanding

Application

1. Specific energy and energy density of fuel sources
2. Sankey diagrams
3. Primary energy sources
4. Secondary energy sources (electricity)
5. Renewable and non-renewable energy sources

1. Solve specific energy and energy density problems
2. Sketch and interpret Sankey diagrams
3. Describe basic features of fossil fuel power stations, nuclear power stations, wind generators, pumped storage hydroelectric systems, and solar power cells
4. Solve problems of energy transformations in power generation systems
5. Discuss safety issues and risks of nuclear power
6. Describe differences between photovoltaic cells and solar heating panels

1. Conduction, convection, and thermal radiation
2. Black-body radiation
3. Albedo and emissivity
4. The solar constant
5. The greenhouse effect
6. Earth’s energy balance system

1. Sketch and interpret intensity-wavelength graphs of radiating bodies at different temperatures
2. Solve problems with the Stefan- Boltzmann law and Wien’s displacement law
3. Describe the effect of Earth’s atmosphere on surface temperature
4. Solve problems with albedo, emissivity, solar constant, and Earth’s average temperature