MDCAT Physics Syllabus 2026 — 36 MCQs (20%)
Physics carries 36 MCQs — 20% of the MDCAT — running from mechanics and waves through electricity, magnetism, and modern physics. It's the most numerical-heavy subject on the paper, so the syllabus below is worth reading chapter by chapter rather than skimmed, especially where a topic bridges into a numerical-heavy one.
Alternating Current
- AC Through Capacitor
- AC Through Inductor
- Phase of Alternating Current
- Resonance (RLC Circuits)
Atomic Spectra
- Atomic Spectra / Line Spectrum
- Bohr Model
- Emission
- Hydrogen
- Laser
- Series
Current Electricity
- Combination
- Current
- Current Electricity
- Drift Velocity
- EMF
- Electric Power and Heating Effect
- Energy
- Galvanometer and Ammeter/Voltmeter Conversion
- Internal Resistance of Sources
- Kirchhoff
- Kirchhoff's Rules
- Maximum Power Transfer
- Ohm's Law
- Power
- Rectification (Half and Full Wave)
- Resistance
- Resistivity
- Resistivity and Temperature Coefficient
- Resistor Color Code
- Steady Current
- Temperature
- Wheatstone
Dawn of Modern Physics
- Black Body Radiation (Wien's Law)
- Compton
- Discovery of Electron (Cathode Rays)
- Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle
- Lasers (Working Principle and Uses)
- Modern Physics
- Pair Production
- Photoelectric
- Photon
- Quantum Numbers
- Quantum Theory and Radiation (Photons)
- Relativity
- Special Theory of Relativity
- Uncertainty
- X-rays
- de Broglie
Deformation of Solids
- Elastic Limit
- Hooke's Law
- Metallic Bonding and Conduction
- Stress
- Young's Modulus
Electromagnetic Induction
- AC
- Electrical-Mechanical Analogies
- Electromagnetic Induction & AC
- Faraday
- Faraday's Law
- Inductance
- Lenz
- Lenz's Law
- Power Factor
- Reactance
- Resonance
- Transformer
Electromagnetism
- Dawn of Modern Physics
- Electromagnetic Induction
- Electromagnetic Spectrum
- Electromagnetism
- Field of Wire
- Force Between Parallel Conductors
- Force on Charge
- Force on Current-Carrying Conductor
- Force on Wire
- Galvanometer
- Magnetic Field
- Magnetic Flux
- Magnetic Flux Density
- Materials
- Motion in Field
- Motion of Charged Particle in Magnetic Field
- Solenoid
- Torque on Current Loop
- Torque on Loop
- Voltmeter
- X-rays (Production and Spectrum)
- e/m
Electronics
- Cathode Ray Oscilloscope (CRO)
- Electronics
- Logic Gates
- Op-Amp
- Operational Amplifiers (OP-AMP)
- PN Junction
- PN Junction (Forward and Reverse Bias)
- Rectification (Half and Full Wave)
- Semiconductors
- Semiconductors (p-type, n-type)
- Transistor
- Transistors (NPN/PNP)
Electrostatics
- Capacitance
- Charge
- Charging and Discharging of Capacitor
- Combination
- Conductor
- Coulomb's Law
- Electric Charge
- Electric Field
- Electric Field Due to Infinite Sheet
- Electric Flux (Gauss's Law)
- Electric Forces
- Electric Potential Energy and Potential
- Electron Volt
- Electrostatics
- Energy
- Field Lines
- Gauss's Law
- Potential
- Unit of Potential
Fluid Dynamics
- Bernoulli
- Bernoulli's Equation
- Continuity
- Density and Specific Gravity
- Equation of Continuity
- Fluid Drag
- Fluid Flow (Streamline, Turbulent)
- Fluid Mechanics
- Pascal's Law and Hydraulic Systems
- Pressure
- Stokes
- Surface tension
- Terminal Velocity
- Viscosity
Force and Motion
- Acceleration
- Collisions
- Collisions (Elastic and Inelastic)
- Displacement
- Dynamics
- Free Fall
- Gravitation and Escape Velocity
- Impulse
- Kinematics
- Momentum
- Newton's Laws
- Newton's Laws of Motion
- Newton's Second Law and Linear Momentum
- Newton's Third Law and Conservation of Momentum
- Perfectly Elastic Collision
- Projectile
- Projectile Height, Range, Time of Flight
- Projectile Motion
- Stress and Strain
- Uniform and Variable Acceleration
- Velocity
Measurements
- Base Quantities
- Dimensional Analysis
- Dimensions
- Errors
- Measurements & Units
- SI Units
- Significant Figures
Nuclear Physics
- Binding Energy
- Biological and Medical Uses of Radiation
- Composition of Atomic Nuclei
- Fission
- Fusion
- Half-Life
- Half-life and Rate of Decay
- Isotopes
- Mass Defect
- Nuclear Fusion
- Nuclear Physics
- Radioactivity
- Spontaneous and Random Nuclear Decay
Optics
- Brewster
- Diffraction
- Diffraction Grating
- Human Eye (Near Point, Far Point)
- Interference
- Lenses and Optical Instruments
- Magnification and Image Formation
- Nature of Light
- Optical Fibers and Total Internal Reflection
- Optics
- Polarization
- Young's Experiment
Rotational and Circular Motion
- Angular Displacement
- Angular Momentum
- Angular Quantities
- Angular Velocity
- Banking
- Centripetal
- Circular Motion
- Circular Motion & Gravitation
- Moment of Inertia
- Newton's Law
- Orbital Velocity
- Relation Between Angular and Linear Quantities
- Satellite
- Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM)
- Variation of g
- g
Thermodynamics
- Adiabatic
- Adiabatic Process
- Carnot Engine
- Carnot Engine and Efficiency
- Cp minus Cv Relation for Ideal Gas
- First Law
- First Law of Thermodynamics
- Gas Laws
- Heat Transfer
- Ideal Gas
- Isothermal Process
- Kinetic Theory of Gases
- Latent Heat
- Reversible and Irreversible Processes
- Second Law
- Solar Constant and Radiation
- Specific and Molar Specific Heat
- Temperature
- Thermal Equilibrium and Heat
- Thermodynamics
- Work in Thermodynamic System
Vectors and Equilibrium
- Addition of Vectors (Rectangular Components)
- Conditions of Equilibrium
- Cross Product
- Dot Product
- Scalar Product of Vectors
- Torque and Moment of Force
- Vector Addition
- Vector Components
- Vector Product of Vectors
- Vector Subtraction
- Vectors
- Vectors & Equilibrium
Waves
- Beats
- Characteristics of Waves
- Circular Motion and SHM
- Compton effect
- Diffraction Grating
- Doppler Effect
- EM Spectrum
- Energy in SHM
- Factors Affecting Speed of Sound
- Frequency Range
- Intensity
- Interference (Newton's Rings, Thin Films)
- Interference of Sound Waves
- Motion of Wave
- Organ Pipes
- Oscillations & Waves
- Pendulum
- Progressive Waves
- Resonance
- Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM)
- Speed of Sound (Newton's Formula)
- Spring
- Stationary Waves
- String
- Superposition of Waves
- Transverse vs Longitudinal Waves
- Types
- Ultrasonics
- Wave Equation
- Wave Speed
- Waves & Sound
- Young's Double Slit Experiment
Work and Energy
- Conservation
- Conservative and Non-conservative Forces
- Energy
- Energy Losses and Efficiency
- Escape Velocity
- Kinetic Energy
- Kinetic Energy and Work-Energy Theorem
- Potential Energy
- Power
- Work
- Work, Energy & Power
- Work-Energy Theorem in Resistive Medium