A-Level Physics revision guide: the spec, the maths, the plan
A-Level Physics covers mechanics, electricity, waves, fields, thermal physics and nuclear physics across three papers, with at least 40% of marks for mathematical skills and a separate practical endorsement. The subject rewards derivation over memorisation — most formulae connect, and the marks go to students who can build the equation from the principle, apply it to an unfamiliar context, and explain the physics in words as well as symbols.
A-Level Physics is the subject where memorising fails most visibly. The formula sheet gives you the equations; the exam asks whether you can derive them, apply them somewhere new, and explain what they mean. Students who revise it as a list of facts keep hitting the same wall — the questions are never about the facts.
What you're actually sitting
| Board | Papers | The quirk |
|---|---|---|
| AQA (7408) | P1 sections 1–5+6 periodic (85 mk, 2h) · P2 sections 6–8 (85 mk, 2h) · P3 practical+option (80 mk, 2h) | 25 multiple-choice marks on each of Papers 1 & 2; Paper 3 has an optional topic |
| Edexcel (9PH0) | P1 Advanced Physics I (90 mk, 1h45) · P2 Advanced Physics II (90 mk, 1h45) · P3 synoptic (120 mk, 2h30) | Paper 3 is the longest physics exam — synoptic and practical-heavy |
| OCR A (H556) | P1 'Modelling' modules 1,2,3,5 (100 mk, 2h15) · P2 'Exploring' modules 1,2,4,6 (100 mk, 2h15) · P3 'Unified' (70 mk, 1h30) | Short synoptic paper crossing all modules |
Every board includes the practical endorsement — pass/fail, assessed by teachers — and examines the practical methods on the written papers. The maths requirement is real: logs, trig, exponentials, rearranging, and uncertainties carry at least 40% of the marks.
The topic breakdown
- Mechanics — motion, forces, energy, momentum, circular motion, simple harmonic motion.
- Materials — stress, strain, the Young modulus, and the graphs examiners love.
- Waves — superposition, interference, standing waves, and the wave-particle bridge.
- Electricity — circuits, resistivity, internal resistance, potential dividers.
- Fields — gravitational, electric and magnetic; the hardest and highest-mark topic.
- Thermal physics — ideal gases, kinetic theory, specific heat capacity.
- Nuclear and particle — decay, half-life, binding energy, and the standard model's vocabulary.
- Quantum phenomena — the photoelectric effect, energy levels, wave-particle duality.
How the marking actually works
Physics mark schemes award marks for the physical reasoning, not just the number. A 'show that' derivation needs every algebraic step; an explanation question wants the mechanism in words — 'the force provides a centripetal acceleration', not just F = mv²/r. And a calculation answer without working or units scores a fraction of its marks. The working is the answer, in physics more than anywhere.
Worked questions
A satellite orbits Earth at radius r. Show that its orbital period T satisfies T² ∝ r³.
- Equate gravity to centripetal force: GMm/r² = mv²/r — this is the physical step the marks reward.
- Cancel m and one r: GM/r = v².
- Substitute v = 2πr/T: GM/r = 4π²r²/T².
- Rearrange: T² = (4π²/GM) r³.
- Since 4π²/GM is constant, T² ∝ r³ — Kepler's third law, derived not quoted. Every line is a mark.
T² = (4π²/GM) r³ — a 'show that' where the physics (equating forces) is the first mark.
A mass on a spring oscillates with T = 0.8 s and amplitude 0.05 m. Find the maximum speed.
- Angular frequency: ω = 2π/T = 2π/0.8 ≈ 7.85 rad s⁻¹.
- Maximum speed in SHM: v_max = ωA.
- v_max = 7.85 × 0.05 ≈ 0.39 m s⁻¹.
- It occurs at the equilibrium position — worth stating, as examiners often ask where.
v_max ≈ 0.39 m s⁻¹ at equilibrium. ω = 2π/T is the bridge every SHM question uses.
Where marks get dropped
- Answers without working or units — the method marks are most of the question.
- Memorised formulae applied where they do not fit — the question wanted a derivation.
- Explanation questions answered with equations only — the mark wants the mechanism in words.
- Fields questions abandoned — they are the hardest topic and the most heavily weighted.
- Sign and direction errors in vectors, fields and circuits.
- Uncertainty and error questions skipped — they are examined on every paper.
Your revision checklist
- I can derive the key equations (centripetal, orbital, SHM, field strength) not just quote them.
- I can explain a physical process in words — mechanism, cause, effect — not just symbols.
- I am fluent with logs, exponentials, trig and significant figures.
- I can describe each required practical as method, uncertainties and errors.
- I have done fields questions until they stopped being scary.
- I have done timed papers per paper code and checked explanations against mark schemes.
Physics clicks when the derivation becomes visible — when you can see why the equation has to be that shape. That is exactly what Lumi draws: it builds the equation from the principle on a board, step by step, and lets you stop it at the line where the logic breaks. Then it gives you a 'show that' of your own.
What to take from this
- At least 40% of marks are maths — physics is the most mathematical A-Level science.
- Derivation beats memorisation: most formulae connect, and examiners ask for the derivation.
- Explanation questions carry real marks — 'explain why' in words, not just equations.
- Required practicals are examined as method, uncertainty and error questions.
- Fields (gravitational, electric, magnetic) are where most students lose the most marks — revise them early.
Questions people also ask
At least 40% of marks across the papers are for mathematical skills — the highest of the sciences. Logs, exponentials, trigonometry, rearranging and uncertainties are all examinable, usually inside a physics context.
Not formally, but the maths overlap is large — mechanics especially. Students without maths A-Level cope but have to learn some techniques (like SUVAT-style reasoning) inside the physics. The physics is teachable either way.
Fields — gravitational, electric and magnetic — for most students, because the concepts are abstract and the questions are heavily weighted. Simple harmonic motion runs it close. Both reward derivation over memorisation.
A pass/fail assessment of lab skills across the required practicals, reported separately. The written papers examine the methods — uncertainties, errors, apparatus — as ordinary questions.