AQA A-Level Physics revision: papers, the option, the plan
AQA A-Level Physics (7408) is three two-hour papers. Paper 1 (85 marks) covers sections 1–5 plus periodic motion, Paper 2 (85 marks) covers sections 6–8, and Paper 3 (80 marks) tests practical skills plus one optional topic chosen from astrophysics, medical physics, engineering, turning points or electronics. Papers 1 and 2 each end with 25 marks of multiple choice. Revision should secure the option topic's predictable marks early, and train the MCQ sections as a separate speed skill.
AQA physics is the most-structured of the three boards: two content papers that split the course, then a third that tests practical skills and a topic your school chose. The option topic is the gift — it is the most predictable section of any physics paper, and most students underuse it.
The specification, in plain English
| Paper | Content | Time | Marks | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 | Sections 1–5 + periodic motion (60 short/long + 25 MCQ) | 2 hours | 85 | 34% |
| Paper 2 | Sections 6–8: thermal, fields, nuclear (60 + 25 MCQ) | 2 hours | 85 | 34% |
| Paper 3 | Practical skills & data (45) + option topic (35) | 2 hours | 80 | 32% |
| Section | Content |
|---|---|
| 1. Measurements & errors | Uncertainty, significant figures, practical skills |
| 2. Particles & radiation | The standard model, quantum phenomena |
| 3. Waves | Superposition, interference, refraction |
| 4. Mechanics & materials | Motion, energy, momentum, materials |
| 5. Electricity | Circuits, resistivity, internal resistance |
| 6. Further mechanics & thermal | SHM, circular motion, ideal gases |
| 7. Fields | Gravitational, electric, magnetic, capacitors |
| 8. Nuclear | Decay, half-life, binding energy, fission/fusion |
The Paper 3 option topic
Paper 3's second section is 35 marks on an option your school picked — astrophysics, medical physics, engineering physics, turning points in physics, or electronics. Its questions repeat more faithfully than anything else in the course: the same diagrams, the same calculations, the same explanations year after year. Learn your option's past questions as a distinct set and this section becomes the most reliable marks on the paper.
Worked questions in the AQA style
A capacitor of 100 μF is charged to 12 V and discharged through a resistor. Calculate the initial discharge current if R = 10 kΩ, and explain why the current falls exponentially.
- Initial current: I = V/R = 12/10 000 = 1.2 × 10⁻³ A.
- The current depends on the charge remaining — as charge falls, voltage falls, so current falls.
- The rate of discharge is proportional to the charge left — that is the condition for exponential decay.
- I = I₀e^(−t/RC) — the exponential form is the explanation, not just the shape.
- Marks are for the physical reason (rate ∝ charge), not just stating 'it decays'.
I₀ = 1.2 mA; current falls exponentially because the discharge rate is proportional to remaining charge.
The unit of gravitational field strength is: A) N B) N kg⁻¹ C) J kg⁻¹ D) kg m s⁻¹
- Field strength is force per unit mass: g = F/m.
- Units: N ÷ kg = N kg⁻¹.
- The distractors are near-misses — J kg⁻¹ is potential, not field strength; kg m s⁻¹ misses the squared seconds.
- Option B. MCQ marks are for instant unit reasoning — derive, don't recall.
B) N kg⁻¹.
Common AQA mistakes
- Spending three minutes on a one-mark MCQ — the section is a sprint.
- Neglecting the option topic because it is 'small' — 35 predictable marks is a fifth of Paper 3.
- Derivation questions compressed into two lines — every algebraic step is a mark.
- Practical questions answered vaguely — AQA wants the named uncertainty and the specific improvement.
- Explanation answers with equations only — the mechanism in words is the mark.
Your AQA checklist
- I can do a 25-question MCQ section in under thirty minutes.
- I have revised my school's option topic's past questions as a distinct set.
- I can derive the key equations — SHM, fields, orbital — not just quote them.
- I can describe each required practical with uncertainties and improvements.
- I am fluent with logs, exponentials and rearranging.
- I have done timed papers per paper code and checked explanations against mark schemes.
When a derivation keeps collapsing at the same line — the substitution, the cancellation, the 'where did that r go' — that is the moment for a worked board. Lumi builds the derivation with you, lets you interrupt at the step that lost you, and then hands you a 'show that' to prove it stuck.
What to take from this
- Papers 1 & 2 each carry 25 marks of multiple choice — a separate speed skill.
- Paper 3 = 45 marks on practical skills/data + 35 on your school's chosen option topic.
- The option topic is the most predictable revision in the course — its questions repeat.
- AQA wants derivations shown — 'show that' questions carry method marks.
- At least 40% of marks are maths across the papers.
Questions people also ask
Astrophysics, medical physics, engineering physics, turning points in physics, and electronics. Your school chooses one; Paper 3's second section (35 marks) is on it. The questions repeat faithfully — it is the most predictable section.
25 marks' worth at the end of each of Papers 1 and 2 — usually 25 one-mark questions. They are a speed test: estimation, elimination, and spotting the error-trap option.
Same content. AQA has the MCQ sections and a dedicated option topic; Edexcel has the longer synoptic Paper 3. Students who like structure often prefer AQA; students with stamina often prefer Edexcel.
At least 40% of marks — logs, exponentials, trig, rearranging, uncertainties — all inside physics contexts. It is the most mathematical of the three sciences on every board.