Particles Overview
Both AS textbooks that we use (the Hodder eBook and the old modular edition of 'Breithaupt') cover this topic at the start of the book and in roughly the same order:
Firstly some basic nuclear background and revision including some underlying principles, then a treatment of the particles, however the eBook introduces quarks from the outset of the second chapter.
Page numbers in the eBook are 1 - 41. The folder Breithaupt Scans contains scans of most of the questions and some of the text from this book.
Different teachers may vary the order - some leave the topic of Feynman diagrams until the end because it is quite difficult.
However, Particle Physics overall is not a difficult topic. There are a lot of new names to learn. To this aim the document Particle Physics - the basics is a useful overview.
The other main resource for learning is the BIG AQA Particle Physics PowerPoint. If you have experienced 'Death by PowerPoint' then this is 'MegaDeath by MegaPowerPoint' - best digested in small slices - good cure for insomnia though! Seriously, however, you may find this a bit juvenile, as it was compiled from a series of PowerPoints written for a now defunct 'GEM' course for bright 14-16 year olds.
The IOP Resources folder contains worksheets that were produced for a pioneering course in Particle Physics by the Institute of Physics. Some of these are useful for our course, although the original programme covered all 6 quarks, and our specification only covers the first 3. The other big difference is that they give rest masses in GeV/c2 or Mev/c2,whereas the AQA formula sheet gives equivalent rest energies - the numbers are the same!
There are also many other Weblinks and PowerPoints that various members of the department have created over time. In particular, The Search for the W and Z Video, on the college eStream server is excellent and everyone should watch this. It not only explains exchange particles, but gives an overview of lots of other principles and concepts in this topic. However, this video carries a Health & Safety warning. It is an old Open University programme digitised from an already dodgy video tape. If you are susceptible to flicker, you should be aware that it breaks up in a number of places. The quality of the recording is rubbish, but the content is excellent!