VCE Physics involves investigating, understanding, and explaining the behaviour of physical phenomena in the Universe. Models, including mathematical models, are used to explore, simplify, and predict how physical systems behave at varying scales from the very small (quantum and particle physics) through to the very large (astronomy and cosmology).
Beginning with classical ideas and considering their limitations, and then introducing modern explanations of the world, provides a novel lens through which students experience the world around them.
Conceptual understanding is developed as students study topics including light, atomic physics, radiation, thermal physics, electricity, fields, mechanics, quantum physics and the nature of energy and matter. Students are given agency through a choice of options and in designing and undertaking their own investigations.
As well as increasing their understanding of scientific processes, students develop insights into how knowledge in physics has changed, and continues to change, in response to new evidence, discoveries and thinking. They develop capacities that enable them to critically assess the strengths and limitations of science, respect evidence- based conclusions and gain an awareness of the ethical contexts of scientific endeavours. Students consider how science is connected to innovation in addressing contemporary physics challenges. Through the study of VCE Physics, students continue to develop skills to describe, explain, analyse, and mathematically model diverse physical phenomena.
In this unit, students examine some of the fundamental ideas and models used by physicists to understand and explain energy. Models used to understand light, thermal energy, radioactivity, nuclear processes, and electricity are explored. Students apply these physics ideas to contemporary societal issues: communication, climate change and global warming, medical treatment, electrical home safety and Australian energy needs.
In this unit, students investigate the role of experimentation in the development of scientific models and theories. They explore how forces influence motion and equilibrium, apply physics concepts to real-world situations, and undertake investigations into contemporary applications of physics across a range of fields. Students develop scientific inquiry skills through practical investigations, data analysis and evidence-based reasoning, including a student-designed investigation involving the collection and analysis of primary data.
Students use Newton’s laws to investigate motion in one and two dimensions. They explore the concept of the field as a model used by physicists to explain observations of motion of objects not in apparent contact.
Students compare three fundamental fields: gravitational, magnetic and electric, and how they relate to one another. They consider the importance of the field to the motion of particles within the field. Students examine the production of electricity and its delivery to homes. They explore fields in relation to the transmission of electricity over large distances and in the design and operation of particle accelerators.
Students explore key concepts in modern physics, including the behaviour of light and matter, quantum theory and Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity. Students investigate wave and particle models of light through diffraction, interference and the photoelectric effect, and examine the wave-like behaviour of matter, photon energy and atomic spectra. Through practical investigations, analysis of experimental evidence and mathematical modelling, students develop an understanding of physical phenomena at atomic and relativistic scales and examine applications to modern technologies such as lasers, GPS systems and particle accelerators.
