Physics - Modern Physics - High School and AP Physics

This course is one of several Mousseau Physics courses designed for students in high school physics, AP Physics, and introductory college physics. In this course we focus on modern physics, including the ideas that changed physics beyond classical mechanics, waves, and electricity. Students will study atomic models, light as photons, energy levels, spectra, the photoelectric effect, nuclear physics, radioactive decay, and related algebra based problem solving.

The videos and resources use clear lectures, diagrams, demonstrations, and worked out example problems. Students will learn how to connect conceptual models to equations, how to interpret what a quantum or nuclear model is saying, and how to solve problems involving energy, frequency, wavelength, photons, half-life, and nuclear reactions. The goal is to make modern physics approachable without hiding the important physical ideas.

This course is a strong fit for high school physics students, AP Physics students, and introductory college physics students working through algebra based modern physics. It does not require calculus. The course can be used as a full unit, a supplement to class, or a focused review when modern physics appears near the end of a school year.

By the end of the course, students should be more comfortable explaining why classical physics needed new models, using modern physics equations, interpreting atomic and nuclear processes, and solving the kinds of modern physics problems that appear in high school, AP, and introductory college physics courses.

Students can work straight through the course as a full unit or use individual lessons as targeted support alongside a class. The videos are built to be paused, rewound, and practiced with pencil and paper, so the course works well for homework help, test review, exam preparation, or rebuilding a topic that did not fully click the first time.