What to study for GRE Specialized Topics

[faradayslaw]

What to study for GRE "Specialized Topics"

Hi,

I am planning on taking the physics GRE and I have reviewed the topic list on the GRE's http://www.ets.org/gre/subject/about/content/physics" . I am wondering if anyone has any good suggestions of physics books to study to prepare for the "Specialized Topics" list
"Nuclear and Particle physics (e.g., nuclear properties, radioactive decay, fission and fusion, reactions, fundamental properties of elementary particles), Condensed Matter (e.g., crystal structure, x-ray diffraction, thermal properties, electron theory of metals, semiconductors, superconductors), Miscellaneous (e.g., astrophysics, mathematical methods, computer applications)"
everything except the mathematical methods and comp. apps. I could use some good reveiw on. Is Kittel's "Introduction to Solid State Physics" a good book to look at for the condensed matter stuff, and then Griffith's Elementary Particles for particle physics stuff? And I was also wondering how much astrophysics I should study?

Thanks

 

[R.Mesri]

for your help.Yes, Kittel's "Introduction to Solid State Physics" and Griffith's Elementary Particles are both excellent resources for the topics mentioned, and should provide an excellent base for your studies. As for Astrophysics, it depends on what you are comfortable with. If you have some background in this field already, then studying a few of the more specialized topics shouldn't be too difficult. However, if you have no background in astrophysics, then you may need to invest a bit more time in it. In either case, a good introductory textbook will be helpful in getting you up to speed quickly.