View source for Physics books

These '''Physics books''' are recommended by [[Art of Problem Solving]] administrators and members of the <url>index.php AoPS-MathLinks Community</url>.

Before adding any books to this page, please review the [[AoPSWiki:Linking books]] page.


== Books by subject ==
=== Astrophysics and Cosmology ===
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0756613647/artofproblems-20 Universe] by Robert Dinwiddie, et al.
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0007162219/artofproblems-20/103-8732293-1555047 Big Bang] by Simon Singh

=== Chaos Theory ===
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0756613647/artofproblems-20 Chaos: Making a New Science] by James Gleick

=== Introductory Textbooks ===
* [https://www.amazon.com/s?k=conceptual+physics&ref=nb_sb_noss Conceptual Physics] by Paul Hewitt
* [http://www.amazon.com/Physics-Scientists-Engineers-Standard-Version/dp/0716783398/ref=pd_bbs_sr_5/103-7161656-8805468?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1191019209&sr=8-5 Physics for Scientists and Engineers] by Paul A. Tipler and Gene Mosca

=== Studying for the F=ma Exam ===
The F=ma exam is the first round selection exam for the US Physics team, which selects five travelers to compete in the International Physics Olympiad.

* [https://www.amazon.com/s?k=conceptual+physics&ref=nb_sb_noss Conceptual Physics] by Paul Hewitt. This book is a basic introduction to physics.
* [https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Physics-Understandable-Practical-Reality/dp/0935218084/ Thinking Physics] by Lewis Carroll Epstein. This book contains hundreds of conceptual problems. Only some of the problems focus on mechanics.
* [https://www.amazon.com/Problems-Solutions-Introductory-Mechanics-David/dp/1482086921/ Problems and Solutions in Introductory Mechanics] by David Morin. This is the single most-important book for F=ma training. A few of the problems require calculus (which the F=ma exam does not), but anyone who works through this entire book should be well-prepared for the test.
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Physics-1-Robert-Resnick/dp/0471320579/ Physics] by Halliday, Resnick, and Krane (see note in USAPhO section) This is a calculus-based textbook that is very thorough, and good for getting a deeper understanding. It has thousands of challenging problems, and is useful for those who have covered the basics of mechanics and want to go deeper. It also covers many other topics in physics and will carry forward to the USAPhO exam.
* Former F=ma exams are available from AAPT on their [https://www.aapt.org/physicsteam/2019/exams.cfm website]. There is also a [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zBnBI3xEclkgIG_PNylPEHv6dL21Tyfk/view solution manual] to some of these exams. If your goal is to advance to USAPhO, you should solve all of the problems on all of the past exams.
* Take the [https://artofproblemsolving.com/school/course/fma AoPS F=ma Problem-Solving Series] course for additional practice, problem-solving forums, an original practice exam, and personalized guidance from expert teachers and assistants.

=== Studying for the USAPhO, IPhO, and other physics olympiads ===
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Physics-1-Robert-Resnick/dp/0471320579/ Physics] by Halliday, Resnick, and Krane (see note below). This is the single-most important book to read to prepare for the USAPhO exam. This book covers everything and contains many challenging problems.
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Introduction-Classical-Mechanics-Problems-Solutions/dp/0521876222 Introduction to Classical Mechanics] by David Morin. This book will take you deeper into mechanics, including some material (such as Lagrangian mechanics) beyond the syllabus of olympiads.
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Electricity-Magnetism-Edward-M-Purcell/dp/1107014026/ Electricity and Magnetism] by Purcell and Morin. This is a great book on electromagnetism for those who want to learn it with multidimensional and vector calculus.
* [https://www.amazon.com/Feynman-Lectures-Physics-boxed-set/dp/0465023827/ The Feynman Lectures on Physics] by Feynman. This is a deeply-insightful set of lectures that covers a very broad swath of physics, but does not on its own contain practice problems.


Note: There are two introductory physics texts by Halliday and Resnick. This happened because after their first textbook had existed for a decade, some colleges began asking for an easier version.

*Physics* by Resnick, Halliday, and Krane is in its 5th edition (published 2002). This book is often called "HRK". It is the recommended book for Olympiad preparation. The current editor is Paul Stanley, former academic director of the US Physics team. This edition has many challenging problems in it.

*Fundamentals of Physics* by Halliday, Resnick, and Walker is in its 10th edition (published 2013). This edition describes the basic physics of the same topics as HRK. However, it goes into less detail, omits some of the interesting calculations, and has fewer challenging problems. Although this is a good book, it is not written to train students to the same level of problem-solving ability as HRK. So HRK is recommended for those interested in improving their problem-solving ability to the level of the USAPhO or similar olympiad physics competitions.

=== Relativity, Quantum Mechanics, Particle Physics ===
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Dreams-Final-Theory-Steven-Weinberg/dp/0679419233/ Dreams of a Final Theory] by Weinberg
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0393058581/artofproblems-20 The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory] by Brian Greene.
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0375727205/artofproblems-20 The Fabric of the Cosmos: Space, Time, and the Texture of Reality] by Brian Greene.
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0060531096/artofproblems-20 Warped Passages: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe's Hidden Dimensions] by Lisa Randall.
* [https://smile.amazon.com/General-relativity-B-Robert-Geroch/dp/0226288633/ General Relativity from A to B] by Geroch
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Spacetime-Physics-John-Archibald-Wheeler/dp/0716703149/ Spacetime Physics] by Taylor and Wheeler
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Quantum-Mechanics-Simple-Matrix-Physics/dp/0486445305/ Quantum Mechanics in Simple Matrix Form] by Jordan
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Modern-Physics-Kenneth-S-Krane/dp/1118061144/ Modern Physics] by Krane

=== Books of Problems ===

* [https://smile.amazon.com/Thinking-Physics-Understandable-Practical-Reality/dp/0935218084 Thinking Physics] by Lewis Carroll Epstein (a book of conceptual problems for beginners and intermediate-levels)
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Problems-Solutions-Introductory-Mechanics-David/dp/1482086921 Problems and Solutions in Introductory Mechanics] by David Morin (A good book for preparing to the F=ma exam and for practicing basic mechanics)
* [https://smile.amazon.com/200-Puzzling-Physics-Problems-Solutions/dp/0521774802 200 Puzzling Physics Problems] by Gnadig (USAPhO / IPhO level problems)
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Creative-Physics-Problems-Solutions-Learning/dp/1843318695 300 Creative Physics Problems with Solutions] by Holics (USAPhO / IPhO level problems)
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Physics-Degree-G-Thomas/dp/9056992775 Physics to a Degree] by Thomas and Raine (USAPhO / IPhO level problems)
* [https://smile.amazon.com/Thinking-Like-Physicist-Undergraduates-1987-07-01/dp/B01K0RZDYK Thinking Like a Physicist] by Thompson (USAPhO / IPhO level problems)

== General interest ==
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0553380168/artofproblems-20 A Brief History of Time] by Steven Hawking
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0684813785/artofproblems-20 The Making of the Atomic Bomb] by Richard Rhodes
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0393316041/artofproblems-20 'Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!' (Adventures of a Curious Character)] by Richard P. Feynman, et al.
* [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0679776311/artofproblems-20 The Road to Reality: A Complete Guide to the Laws of the Universe] by Roger Penrose.

== See Also ==
* [[Science books]]
* [[Physics competitions]]
* [[Physics scholarships]]
* [[Physics]]