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AP Physics 2

Partially released · 6%
AP Physics 2 is the second algebra-based AP physics course. It is usually taken after AP Physics 1, but can be taken on its own as well. The course follows the current seven-unit AP Physics 2 sequence: Thermodynamics; Electric Force, Field, and Potential; Electric Circuits; Magnetism and Electromagnetism; Geometric Optics; Waves, Sound, and Physical Optics; and Modern Physics. This course is under development. We will start by releasing the content shared by the High School Physics (TEKS) course. This will be complete by the end of the summer. Then, throughout the fall of 2026, we will fill in the rest of the course: greater depth in all units, and extra full units of topics not covered by TEKs at all.

Aligned to AP Physics 2 Units 9-15 and the PhysicsGraph second-semester algebra-based physics sequence.

AP Physics 2 alignment: Coverage follows the AP Physics 2 course framework, exam topics, unit weights, and science practices.
College Board AP Physics 2: Official AP unit weighting and course framing.

AP Physics 2 Learning Outcomes

AP Unit 9: Thermodynamics

15-18% of exam
• Connect temperature, pressure, and thermal energy to microscopic particle motion and ideal-gas behavior.
• Use PV diagrams, the ideal gas law, and the first law of thermodynamics to reason about energy transfer, heating, cooling, and work.
• Treat entropy and the second law qualitatively, emphasizing energy spreading and thermal equilibrium.

AP Unit 10: Electric Force, Field, and Potential

15-18% of exam
• Use Coulomb's law and field models to reason about interactions among charged particles and simple charge distributions.
• Connect electric potential energy, electric potential, and electric fields across graphs, diagrams, and equations.
• Analyze parallel-plate capacitors and energy storage while respecting AP limits on high-symmetry or small-particle-count systems.

AP Unit 11: Electric Circuits

15-18% of exam
• Analyze current, resistance, potential difference, and power in DC circuits using circuit diagrams and measurements.
• Combine Kirchhoff-style reasoning with series and parallel relationships for resistors, batteries, meters, and capacitors.
• Describe RC charging and discharging qualitatively, focusing on initial and final states rather than full time-dependent models.

AP Unit 12: Magnetism and Electromagnetism

12-15% of exam
• Model magnetic fields produced by magnets and currents, and analyze magnetic forces on moving charges and current-carrying wires.
• Use magnetic flux, Faraday's law, and Lenz's law to explain induced currents and changing-field situations.
• Connect electromagnetic induction to generators, transformers, and energy transfer without requiring calculus-based field models.

AP Unit 13: Geometric Optics

12-15% of exam
• Use ray models to describe reflection, refraction, image formation, and optical instruments.
• Analyze plane mirrors, spherical mirrors, and thin lenses with diagrams and algebraic relationships.
• Connect image properties to physical setups: real versus virtual, upright versus inverted, magnification, and object distance.

AP Unit 14: Waves, Sound, and Physical Optics

12-15% of exam
• Describe mechanical waves, standing waves, sound, and resonance plus qualitative Doppler-effect situations.
• Use interference, diffraction, and path-length reasoning to explain physical optics phenomena.
• Relate electromagnetic waves to wavelength, frequency, spectrum ordering, and wave-matter interactions.

AP Unit 15: Modern Physics

12-15% of exam
• Use photon models, blackbody radiation, the photoelectric effect, and Compton scattering to reason about light-matter interactions.
• Interpret energy-level diagrams, emission and absorption spectra, and single-electron atomic transitions.
• Connect nuclear processes, mass-energy equivalence, and conservation laws at the AP algebra-based level.

Related courses

Easier versions
College Physics II
Algebra-based version intended for university students.
Harder versions
AP Physics C: Electricity & Magnetism
Calculus-based AP E&M.
University Physics II
University calculus-based E&M.
Similar courses
College Physics II
Second algebra-based physics path.
Previous course
AP Physics 1
AP algebra-based mechanics prerequisite.

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