Physics › Maths bridge

The maths bridge

These 8 short lessons cover the maths skills used most often in A-level physics. Each lesson explains one method and applies it to a physics example.

Start with any skill whose description applies to you. Each page ends with the lessons and practicals where that skill gets used.

Rearranging equations

If solving ε = I(R + r) for r makes you hesitate, start here.

Standard form and prefixes

If 450 nm as metres in standard form takes more than a beat, start here.

Proportional reasoning

If tripling the distance in an inverse-square law leaves you reaching for numbers, start here.

Gradients and areas under graphs

If you can find a gradient but not say what it means for those axes, start here.

Trigonometry and resolving vectors

If you cannot say instantly which component takes the cosine, start here.

Exponentials and logarithms

If solving 6.0 e−t/47 = 1.5 for t is unfamiliar, start here.

Combining uncertainties

If the effect of squaring a measurement on its uncertainty is hazy, start here.

Significant figures, units and checking

If checking an equation by its units is not yet a habit, start here.

For the physics itself, head back to the library; for practice, see Practise. And if the maths itself is the gap rather than the physics, InkMaths teaches the whole A-level maths course in the same style as this site.