Physics: Reference Works

Guide for Library Research in Physics

Why Reference Works?

Reference works are an excellent first stop in your research and are incredibly useful for the following:

  • Getting an overview of a topic
  • Getting ideas for a paper topic or narrowing your topic
  • Brainstorming keywords for searching and learning the vocabulary used by authors in that area
  • Discovering the key works on a given topic
  • Discovering the key authors on a given topic

Online Resources

Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

Handbooks