PHYSICS

Grade: XI
Revised-2073
(DRAFT)

Full marks: 100 (75T + 25 P)

Pass Marks: 27T + 8P
Teaching hours: 150T +50P
Nature of course: Theory +Practical

1. Introduction
The curriculum in Physics is designed to provide students with an understanding of the
scientific laws and principles of the physical world. As expected this curriculum will
provide an opportunity to students to see physics as a contribution to life in modern
society.
The course demands emphasis on conceptual understanding of the physical phenomena.
This will involve the proper utilization of suitable mathematical models and equations.
The applications of the physics together with the social and environmental aspects need
to be emphasized whenever possible. Students are expected to actively participate in the
learning process trough experimentation supplemented by demonstration, discussions and
problem solving.
The practical component of this course is designed to supplement learning through the
application of the learned theory. The students will handle simple apparatus to do simple
measurements, verifies physical laws and apply their knowledge of physics to real life
example.

2. Objectives

2.1 General objectives

The general objectives of this course are:
a. To provide students with sufficient understanding and knowledge of the
fundamental principles of physics and their applications
b. To develop the skills of experimenting, observing, interpreting data evaluating
evidence and formulating generalizations and models.
c. To understand the social, economic, environmental and other implications of
physics and appreciate the advancement of physics and its applications as
essential for the growth of national economy.

2.2 Specific Objective

Upon completion of this course, the students will be able to:

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 1. Describe physics as a coherent and developing framework of knowledge based on
fundamental theories of the structure and process of the physical world.
2. explain phenomena in terms of theories and models
3. apply quantitatively and qualitatively the knowledge and understanding of
physical principles and theories
4. translate information from one from to another
5. present information in the language of physics or other appropriate form; and
6. Design simple experiment to develop relations among physical quantities and
draw conclusions.

3. Course contents

Unit 1: Mechanics 75 Teaching Hours

1.1. Units and Measurement of Physical Quantities 3 hrs

The Nature of Physics – Importantdiscoveries, technology and Society; SI Unit,
Dimensions and its Uses, Error in measurement, Uncertainty and Significant Figures.
1.2. Motion in One, Two and Three Dimensions 6 hrs
Inertial Frames of Reference, Displacement, Time and Average Velocity, Instantaneous
Velocity, Average and Instantaneous Acceleration, (Graphical Treatment only), Motion
with Constant Acceleration, Freely Falling Bodies, Projectile Motion - Projectile Fired
from Ground , Projectile Fired from Height
1.3. Vectors 4 hrs
Vectors – Graphical Representation of vectors, Addition and Subtraction of Vectors
(Parallelogram and Triangle Laws), Components of Vectors, Unit Vectors, Products of
Vectors - Scalar Product and Vector Product, Relative Velocity (One and Two
Dimensional)
1.4. Circular motion 5 hrs
Angular Velocity and Acceleration, Relating Angular and Linear Kinematics, Motion in a
uniform circle – Centripetal acceleration, Centripetal force;Dynamics of circular motion:
Motion of cars and cyclist round a banked track, Conical pendulum; motion in vertical
circle.
1.5. Newton’s Laws of Motion and its Applications 4 hrs
Newton’s Laws of Motion – statement and explanation, Free Body Diagram, Dynamics
of Particles,Frictional Forces - Laws of Friction, Kinetic and Static Friction
1.6. Work and Energy 6 hrs
Work; work done by a constant force, Kinetic Energy and Work – Energy Theorem, The
Meaning of Kinetic Energy, Work Done by a Varying Force,Work Energy Theorem for
Straight Line Motion; Potential Energy – a few examples,Conservative and Non-
Conservative Forces, Law of Conservation of Energy; Force and Potential Energy,
Energy Diagrams, Power
1.7. Momentum, Impulse and Collisions 6 hrs
Momentum and Impulse, Newton’s Second Law in terms of Momentum, the Impulse
Momentum Theorem, Conservation of Momentum,Collisions:Elastic and Inelastic

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Collisions, Elastic collisions - one body initially at rest, Centre of Mass, Motion of Centre
of Mass.
1.8. Rotation of Rigid Bodies 5 hrs
Energy in Rotational Motion, Moment of Inertia, Radius of Gyration, Moment of inertia
Calculations - Moment of inertia of a uniform rod about an axis perpendicular to length,
1.9. Dynamics of Rotational Motion 5hrs
Torque, Torque and Angular Acceleration for a rigid Body Combined translation and
rotation dynamics, Rolling Friction, Angular Momentum, Angular Momentum of a Rigid
Body, Conservation of Angular Momentum
1.10. Equilibrium 3 hrs
Particles in Equilibrium, Conditions for Equilibrium, Centre of Gravity, Finding and
using the Centre of Gravity, Solving Rigid body equilibrium problems
1.11. Elasticity 6 hrs
Stress, Strain and Elastic Moduli- Hook’s Law, Tensile and Compressive Stress and
Strain, Bulk Stress and Strain, Shear Stress and Strain, Poisson’s ratio, Young’s modulus
and its determination, Elasticity and Plasticity, Elastic potential energy.
1.12. Gravitation 8 hrs
Newton’s Law of Gravitation, Weight, Gravitational Potential Energy (derivation and
numerical problems), escape speed, The Motion of Satellites, Kepler’s Laws and the
Motion of the Planets (Statements only), Planetary Motions and the Centre of Mass,
Apparent Weight and the Earth’s Rotation, Apparent Weight and Apparent
Weightlessness, Black holes
1.13. Periodic Motion 5hrs
Oscillatory motion –Free, damped and Forced Oscillation, amplitude, period, frequency
and angular frequency,Simple Harmonic Motion, Energy in SHM, Applications of SHM -
Vertical SHM, The Simple Pendulum, Resonance.
1.14. Fluid Mechanics 9hrs
Surface Tension – Introduction, tendency to decrease the surface area, Surface energy,
Excess pressure inside a drop, Contact angle and capillarity, Rise and Fall of a liquid in a
capillary tube, Fluid Dynamics –Viscosity, turbulence, Newton’s formula for viscosity,
Terminal velocity, Stokes’ law and its use to measure viscosity of liquid, The Continuity
equation, Bernoulli’s Equation
Unit 2: Heat and Thermodynamics 45 Teaching Hours

2.1 Temperature and Heat 8 hrs

Temperature, Thermal Equilibrium and Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics, Kelvin scale,
Thermal Expansion of Solids: Linear Expansion and Volume expansion, Measurement of
linear expansivity by Pullingermethod, Thermal Stress, Thermal Expansion of Liquid –
Absolute and apparent expansion of liquid, Measurement of absolute expansivity by
Dulong and Petit method, Anomalous Expansion of Water
2.2 Quantity of heat and change of phase 8hrs
Quantity of Heat, Specific Heat capacity, Newton’s law of cooling, Measurement of
specific heat capacity of solids by the method of mixture and of liquids by the method of
cooling, change, Measurement of latent heat of fusion and vaporization by the method of
mixture
2.3 Transfer of Heat 5 hrs

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Mechanism of Heat Transfer: Conduction, thermal conductivity and its measurement,
Convection; Radiation: Concept of Black body radiation; Stefan-Boltzmann law .
2.4 Thermal properties of matter 9 hrs
Equation of state of Ideal Gas, P-V Diagram, Molecular Properties of Matter, Kinetic
Molecular Model of an Ideal Gas, Collision and Gas Pressure, Pressure and Molecular
Kinetic Energies, Molecular Speeds, Mean Free Path (Concept Only), Heat Capacities of
Gasses,Cp and Cv, Degrees of Freedom, Law of Equipartition of energy, Heat Capacities
of Solids, Phases of Matter.
2.5 The First Law of Thermodynamics 9 hrs
Thermodynamic Systems,Work Done During Volume Changes, Paths Between
Thermodynamic States, Internal Energy and the First Law of Thermodynamics, Kinds of
Thermodynamic Processes; Isobaric Process, Isochoric Process, Isothermal Process and
Adiabatic Process, Internal Energy of an Ideal Gas, Heat Capacities of an Ideal Gas,
Adiabatic Process for an Ideal Gas.
2.6 The Second Law of Thermodynamics 6 hrs
Directions of Thermodynamic Processes, Heat Engines, the Carnot Cycle, Refrigerators,
Statements of Second Law of Thermodynamics, Entropy and Disorder, Entropy and the
Second Law
Unit 3: Geometrical Optics 30Teaching Hours

3.1 Reflection at Spherical Surface 6 hrs

Image of a Point Object, Focal Point and Focal Length, Image of an Extended Object:
spherical mirror, Convex Mirrors, Graphical Methods for Mirrors,
3.2 Refraction at plane surfaces 5 hrs
Laws of refraction, refractive index and its determination by real and apparent method,
lateral shift, total internal reflection and its applications
3.3 Refraction through prisms 5 hrs
Minimum deviation, Relation between angle of prism, minimum deviation and refractive
index, deviation in small angle prism
3.4 Thin lenses 9 hrs
Properties of a lens, image of an extended object: Converging lens, Diverging Lens, The
Lensmaker’s Equation, Graphical Methods for Lenses, power of lens, Combination of
thin lenses in contact, The Magnifier, Microscopes and Telescopes
3.5 Dispersion 5 hrs
Dispersion of light, Spectrum – pure and impure spectrum, Angular dispersion, dispersive
power, Achromatic lenses -condition of achromatic lenses in contact, Chromatic
aberration,Scattering of light – blue color of the sky

4. Teaching strategies:
 Lecturing
 Group interaction
 Problem solving
 Demonstration
 Evaluation

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5. Instructional materials
Text book:
1. University Physics, Sears F.W, M.W. Zemansky, H.D. Young and R.A.
Freedman, 12th edition, Pearson Education Singapore, 2012

Reference books:
1.Concepts of Physics, HC Verma

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 PHYSICS
Grade: XII
Revised-2073
(DRAFT)
Full marks: 100 (75T + 25 P)
Pass Marks: 27T + 8P
Teaching hours: 150T +50P
Nature of course: Theory +Practical

1. Introduction
The curriculum in Physics is designed to provide students with an understanding of the
scientific laws and principles of the physical world. As expected this curriculum will
provide an opportunity to the students to see physics as a contribution to life in modern
society.
The course demands emphasis on conceptual understanding of the physical phenomena.
This will involve the proper utilization of suitable mathematical models and equations.
The applications of the physics together with the social and environmental aspects need
to be emphasized whenever possible. The students are expected to actively participate in
the learning process trough experimentation supplemented by demonstration, discussions
and problem solving.
The practical component of this course is designed to supplement learning through the
application of the learned theory. The students will handle simple apparatus to do simple
measurements, verifies physical laws and apply their knowledge of physics to real life
example.

2. Objectives

2.1 General objectives

The general objectives of this course are:
a) to provide students with sufficient understanding and knowledge of the
fundamental principles of physics and their applications;
b) to develop the skills of experimenting, observing, interpreting data evaluating
evidence and formulating generalizations and models; and
c) to explain the social, economic, environmental and other implications of physics
and appreciate the advancement of physics and its applications as essential for the
growth of national economy.

2.2 Specific Objective

Upon completion of this course, the students will be able to:

1. describe physics as a coherent and developing framework of knowledge based on

fundamental theories of the structure and process of the physical world;
2. explain phenomena in terms of theories and models;
Page 6 of 10
 3. apply quantitatively and qualitatively the knowledge and understanding of
physical principles and theories;
4. translate information from one from to another;
5. present information in the language of physics or other appropriate form; and
6. design simple experiment to develop relations among physical quantities and
draw conclusions.

3. Course Content
Unit-1 Electromagnetism 70 Teaching Hours

1.1. Electrostatics (20 Hrs)

Electric charge- Concepts of Electric charges; Charging by induction, Coulomb’s

law- Force between two point charges, Forces between multiple electric charges.

Electric fields- electric field due to point charges, Electric Field lines, Electric
dipoles, electric field due to a dipole.
Gauss Law: Electric Flux; Gauss Law and its application to find field due to:
charged sphere, line charge, and Infinite plane sheet of charge.

Electric Potential- Electric potential energy, Electric potential and potential

difference, Potential due to a point charge; Equipotential surfaces; Potential
gradient. Millikan’s oil drop experiment

Capacitance and dielectrics- Capacitor and capacitance; Parallel plate capacitor;

Combination of capacitors; Energy stored in capacitors; Dielectric and electric
polarization; Dielectric breakdown, Capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor with
dielectric medium between the plates,

1.2. Current Electricity (15

Hrs)
Electric Current- Drift velocity and its relation with current density; Ohm’s law;
Electrical Resistance and Resistivity; Temperature dependence of resistance,
Electromotive force, Energy and Power in electric circuit.
Direct Current Circuits –Combination of resistors, Kirchhoff’s Rules and its
applications; Electrical measuring instruments: Ammeters, Voltmeters,
Wheatstone bridge; Meter Bridge, Post Office Box; Potentiometer- Principle and
its application to compare e.m.f’s of two cells and Measurement of internal
resistance of a cell.

1.3. Magnetic Field and Magnetic forces (35

Hrs)

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 Magnetic Field- Oersted’s experiment, Concept of magnetic field, Force on
moving charged particle, Magnetic field lines and magnetic flux; Motion of
charged particles in a magnetic field and its application to Thomson’s e/m
experiment, Magnetic Force on a current carrying conductor; Force and Torque
on a current loop,

Moving coil galvanometers and its conversion to ammeter and voltmeter, Hall
Effect;
Biot and Savart law and its application to (i) a long straight conductor and (ii)
current carrying circular loop; Forces between two parallel conductors carrying
current- definition of ampere

Ampere’s law and its application to (i) a straight solenoid and (ii) a toroidal
solenoid;
Magnetic materials: The Bohr Magneton, Para- magnetism, Diamagnetism,
Ferromagnetism.

1.4. Electromagnetic Induction- Induction experiments, Faraday’s law: Induced

electric fields; Lenz’s law, Motional electromotive force. AC generators
Inductance: Mutual inductance; Self- inductance and inductors, Self inductance of
a solenoid, Energy stored in an inductor

1.5. Alternating Currents (AC Currents)- Concept of phasor diagram, Peak and RMS
Value of AC current and Voltages, AC through resistor, capacitor and inductor,
Series circuits containing combination of resistor, capacitor and inductor;
Resonance in AC circuits, Power in AC circuits: Power factor.
1.6. Electromagnetic waves- Description of Electromagnetic waves,
Electromagnetic spectrum

Unit-2 Wave, Sound and Optics 35 Teaching

Hours

2.1 Waves
Mechanical waves- Types of mechanical waves, Periodic waves, Mathematical
description of a wave; Standing waves on a string and pipes, fundamental mode
and harmonics; Seismic waves- Types of seismic waves, Earthquake- magnitude
and intensity, damage and safety measures.

2.2. Sound
Sound wave- Mechanical waves- Speed of wave motion; Velocity of sound in
solid and liquid; Velocity of sound in gas; Laplace’s correction; Effect of
temperature, pressure, humidity on velocity of sound, End correction in pipes;
Resonance Tube experiment; Sound intensity, Beats and Doppler’s effect

2.3. Physical Optics

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 Nature and propagation of Light- Nature and sources of light; Huygen’s principle,
Reflection and Refraction according to wave theory; Velocity of light: Foucault’s
method; Michelson’s method.
Interference- Phenomenon of Interferences; Coherent sources; Young’s two slit
experiment; Interference in thin films: Newton’s ring.

Diffraction- Fresnel and Fraunhofer Diffraction, Diffraction from a single slit;

Diffraction pattern of image; Diffraction grating; Resolving power of optical
instruments.
Polarization- Phenomenon of polarization; Polarizing filters, Polarization by
reflection;

Unit-3 Modern Physics 45 teaching

hours

3.1. Photons and Atoms

Photons: The Photoelectric effect- Einstein’s photoelectric equation; Stopping
potential; Measurement of Plank’s constant,
Atoms: The Bohr model of Hydrogen, Atomic Line Spectra and Energy levels:
The Hydrogen Spectrum,
Lasers: He- Ne laser, Nature and production, properties and uses.
X-rays: Production, Continuous and characteristic spectra, uses, X-rays
diffraction-Bragg’s law;
3.2. The Wave nature of particles: Wave- particle duality, The De Broglie Waves,
Uncertainly principle
3.3. Nuclear physics- Properties of Nuclei, Nuclear binding energy; Nuclear Stability
and Radioactivity- Alpha decay, Beta Decay, Gamma decay, Laws of radioactive
disintegration; Half-life and decay constant ,Radioactive Dating, Biological
effect of Radiation,
Nuclear Reaction: Fundamentals of nuclear reactions, Nuclear Fission and
fusion, Energy released from fission and fusion
3.4. Semiconductor devices- Structure of solids; Energy bands in solids (qualitative
ideas only); Difference between metals, insulators and semi-conductors using
band theory;
Semiconductor diode - I-V characteristics in forward and reverse bias, diode as a
rectifier; Special purpose p-n junction diodes: LED, photodiode, solar cell and
Zener diode and their characteristics, Zener diode as a voltage regulator. Junction
transistor, transistor action, characteristics of a transistor and transistor as an
amplifier (common emitter configuration), basic idea of analog and digital
signals, Logic gates (OR, AND, NOT, NAND and NOR), Nanotechnology
(introductory idea)

3.5. Communication Systems

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 Elements of a communication system (block diagram only); bandwidth of signals
(speech, TV and digital data); bandwidth of transmission medium; Propagation of
electromagnetic waves in the atmosphere, sky and space wave propagation,
satellite communication, Need for modulation, amplitude modulation and
frequency modulation, advantages of frequency modulation over amplitude
modulation.

4. Teaching strategies:
 Lecturing
 Group interaction
 Problem solving
 Demonstration
 Evaluation

5. Instructional materials
Text book:
2. University Physics, Sears F.W, M.W. Zemansky, H.D. Young and R.A.
Freedman, 12th edition, Pearson Education Singapore, 2012

Reference books:
1. Concepts of Physics, HC Verma

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