Our main focus will be the GRE subject test but I hope that The Prodigal Physicist will act as a comprehensive guide for everyone. In regards to the test though, let’s look at what we’re up against.

The Physics GRE consists of 100 five-option multiple-choice questions (some of which are grouped and based on graphical elements or experimental data) and we are given 70 perspiration-drenched minutes to answer as many as possible. According to ETS, the mean score on tests given between July 1, 2000 and June 30, 2003 was a 660 out of 990 or 38.5 out of 100 correctly answered questions.

If you’re already getting antsy, here’s the full practice test (PDF) offered by ETS, but we’ll go through specific problems with explanations, (hopefully) discussion and all that jazz.

The topics covered with corresponding percentages are listed below but you can jump to any category with the links in the left sidebar. As we cover each topic, a permalink will become available so you can jump right to the section.

The test contains:

1. CLASSICAL MECHANICS (20%) such as kinematics, Newton’s laws, work and energy, oscillatory motion, rotational motion about a fixed axis, dynamics of systems of particles, central forces and celestial mechanics, three-dimensional particle dynamics, Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalism, non-inertial reference frames, elementary topics in fluid dynamics.
2. ELECTROMAGNETISM (18%) such as electrostatics, currents and DC circuits, magnetic fields in free space, Lorentz force, induction, Maxwell’s equations and their applications, electromagnetic waves, AC circuits, magnetic and electric fields in matter.
3. OPTICS AND WAVE PHENOMENA (9%) such as wave properties, superposition, interference, diffraction, geometrical optics, polarization, Doppler effect.
4. THERMODYNAMICS AND STATISTICAL MECHANICS (10%) such as the laws of thermodynamics, thermodynamic processes, equations of state, ideal gases, kinetic theory, ensembles, statistical concepts and calculation of thermodynamic quantities, thermal expansion and heat transfer.
5. QUANTUM MECHANICS (12%) such as fundamental concepts, solutions of the Schrödinger equation (including square wells, harmonic oscillators, and hydrogenic atoms), spin, angular momentum, wave function symmetry, elementary perturbation theory.
6. ATOMIC PHYSICS (10%) such as properties of electrons, Bohr model, energy quantization, atomic structure, atomic spectra, selection rules, black-body radiation, x-rays, atoms in electric and magnetic fields.
7. SPECIAL RELATIVITY (6%) such as introductory concepts, time dilation, length contraction, simultaneity, energy and momentum, four-vectors and Lorentz transformation, velocity addition.
8. LABORATORY METHODS (6%) such as data and error analysis, electronics, instrumentation, radiation detection, counting statistics, interaction of charged particles with matter, lasers and optical interferometers, dimensional analysis, fundamental applications of probability and statistics.
9. SPECIALIZED TOPICS (9%)
   1. Nuclear and Particle physics such as nuclear properties, radioactive decay, fission and fusion, reactions, fundamental properties of elementary particles,
   2. Condensed Matter such as crystal structure, x-ray diffraction, thermal properties, electron theory of metals, semiconductors, superconductors,
   3. Miscellaneous such as astrophysics, mathematical methods, computer applications.

And the math topics covered in one form or another include single and multivariable calculus, coordinate systems (rectangular, cylindrical, and spherical), vector algebra and vector differential operators, Fourier series, partial differential equations, boundary value problems, matrices and determinants, and functions of complex variables.