The following is a selected list of resources for starting research in Physics. For further assistance, contact Judi Windleharth, a reference librarian.

Reference and web sites

Physics reference titles and useful books:.

CRC Handbook of chemistry and physics
QD65 .H3
Current year in the reference section. Previous years in book stacks.

Encyclopedia of physics
 QC5 .E545   REFERENCE

Handbook of physics
 QC61 .H37 2006  5th Floor Stacks

Handbook of exact solutions for ordinary differential equations
QA372 .P725 1995 REFERENCE

Web sites: Physics portals and web resources

CSUSM Physics Department
The CSUSM Physics Department web site provides information the courses, faculty, and events. Also lists links to physics news, societies, and career resources.

Eric Weisstein's World of Physics
Online physics encyclopedia written by Eric Weisstein and other contributors. This is a .com, and Weisstein includes some plugs for his software company, but overall provides a useful resource for physics concepts.

HyperPhysics Concepts
The Department of Physics and Astronomy at Georgia State University hosts this scholarly page of explanations of physics concepts.

Physical reference data
Provided by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, this .gov site has links to physical constants, the periodic table, and other useful data.

Physics to go
Physics portal provided by the American Physical Society, listing over 600 web pages.

Phys Link
Although this is a dot-com site, it does have a reference section, job info, and some other useful information.

Top

Journal articles

Search or browse these top physics journals. Note that for the most current articles from a physics periodical, some databases do not include the full-text until after a period of time, either a month or up to a year, however they are available in print in the library.

American Journal of Physics
This journal provides full-text access from 1933 to present.

Physics Today
Published by the American Institute of Physics, a highly recommended source for physics information. Full-text available, with the exception of the last 12 months.

• Most recent 12 months, call number: QC1 .P658 4th floor periodical section
• Articles from 1948-1975: request through interlibrary loan.

  If you know the name, journal title, and year of the article you are looking for, search for it directly.

  To search a number of journals, try these recommended databases:
  

  Most Useful Wiley Interscience Access to abstracts and full text for about 300 mainly science related journals. It includes life sciences, chemistry, physics, mathematics, psychology, earth sciences, and business among others. Coverage: 1996→current ScienceDirect Provides full text access to over 1,000 journals covering all fields of science. Coverage: 1995→current Academic Search Premier This scholarly collection offers information in nearly every area of academic study including: computer sciences, engineering, physics, chemistry, language and linguistics, arts & literature, medical sciences, ethnic studies, and many more. Also Useful MathSciNet Provides access to Mathematical Reviews and Current Mathematical Publications. Coverage: 1940-current See an article you want in one of these databases? Look for "Full Text" in PDF, HTML, Linked or   Fill out an Interlibrary Loan article request form. You'll get it within 5-10 days for FREE. Any time you need help, ask a librarian. Other recommended physics resources:: Physics World To access the full-text of this periodical you must be a member of the Institute of Physics, however the library can get the articles within 5-10 days through the free interlibrary loan service. Nature Physics For the full text of these articles, request for free through interlibrary loan. Top

Books

Books will give you background information and an overview of a topic/concept. You need this information in order to provide context to what you may be researching.

Quick tip: For physics, many of the relevant books will be in the "QC" section, on the fifth floor of the library.

Books at Cal State San Marcos

Library Catalog  [ Search Tips ]
Search our local collection of about 250,000 books.

Other Options

Circuit (1-3 day delivery)
Search the collections of other San Diego area libraries -- about 3,000,000 books. Find and request books directly online; pick them up at our Library in 1-3 days.

WorldCat (5-10 day delivery)
Search the collections of libraries world-wide -- about 52,000,000 books. Find a book in this database, and fill-out an Interlibrary Loan delivery request. Book will be delivered to Library for pickup.  

Top

Physics jobs

The CSUSM physics department provides this list of resources for jobs in the physics field.

AIP Style

The American Institute of Physics provides a free guide to writing in the field of physics:

AIP style guide