Physics at a glance

Physics is the most conceptual subject asked in JEE Advanced. Also it is the most scoring subject and majority of the top-rankers score atleast 90% in this subject. This subject has quite a few concepts and all the problems are designed revolving around those concepts only. Hence, it is an easy subject to master provided you are clear with the concepts.

So, to master this subject you have to be conceptual and try to logically answer as to why things happen the way they do. You should have an inquisitive mind and good problem-solving ability.
You should divide the time you devote to this subject into two categories- firstly you should focus on the core concepts and once you are thorough with the concepts, then you should proceed on with the problems.

The books of physics are divided into two categories, one which state the concepts and also the problems and the other which have only problems.

CONCEPT AND PROBLEMS

• If there is a 'Bible' in Physics then it has to be H C Verma. It gives good concept clarity and also has sufficient number of solved problems to get an idea of application of concepts. The problems are designed in an increasing level of difficulty so that even a beginner can benefit from them. Also it is NOT bulky i.e. whole physics summarised into two short books making it ideal for those who don't have sufficient time left for their preparation.
(Highly Recommended)

   
(Both Vol.1 and Vol.2)

• For those who prefer foreign-author books, the best book for Physics is 'Resnick Halliday Krane'. It is accepted as a standard book world-wide hence would be error-proof. It also lays the foundation of Olympiad Physics too hence making it ideal for those who are preparing for both JEE Advanced and Olympiads. By reading this book, you would gain a new perspective to physics since the curriculum is a bit different in India and other countries. So for the PHYSICS-LOVERS, this is the book to resort to.
(Recommended) 

   
(Vol.1)                      (Vol.2)

• NCERT book- I would recommend you to read whole NCERT of class XII and especially of Modern Physics. Most of the students, in their overconfidence do the mistake of not reading NCERT book seriously. But trust me class XII NCERT book is a gem and you would not regret reading it. Most of the top rankers read it at the time of boards. If you don't have much time then you can skip class XI NCERT books but class XII is a must. Needless to say, it is accepted as a standard in JEE in case of any controversy.
(Highly Recommended)

Class XI

                                     

(Part 1 containing Mechanics and Waves)(Part 2 containing Thermodynamics)

         Class XII

           

                     

(Part 1 having electrodynamics)(Part2 having Optics and Modern Physics)

PROBLEM BOOKS

• The best problem-book for JEE Advanced in Physics is Irodov. It is a foreign-author book and an old classic. There used to be a time when IIT-JEE used to give problems directly from this book(when this book was not popular). Although since the book is very popular in India now, direct questions don't come but still the essence of the problems remain the same. This book is also useful for olympiads. Though the book itlself doesn't have detailed solutions but its solutions are also available from other publishers. Though this is an excellent book for JEE and Olympiads but still since it is not written for JEE should should take care to skip the problems which are not in the syllabus, hence it would be helpful to also refer to the solutions by other publishers.
(Highly Recommended)

     
(Problems)              (Solutions Vol.1)      (Solutions Vol.2)

OLYMPIADS AND JEE
This section is for those who wish to prepare for olympiads(NSEP and INPhO) along with JEE.
As mentioned above Irodov is a good book to serve your purpose. Besides that the following books are also good.

• Another book for this purpose is 'Pathfinder'. It is a recently published book hence it is great for this purpose. This book is written by some of the best and most experienced physics teachers in the country. The aim behind making this book was to compile all the good questions of JEE and Olympiad level into a single book. This book is for extraordinary students or those who aim to be extraordinary since it is of very high difficulty level.
(Highly recommended for Perfectionists)

Krotov is also an Old Classic just like Irodov. It contains problems from the various Physics Olympiads conducted in Russia. The problems are quite ingenius and that is what Russia is famous for. The problems also have solutions within the book itself.(Recommended)

 

• For Olympiad level problems, another good collection is Arihant's book. It has a nice collection of problems sorted topic-wise. The best part is that this book is with solutions to all the problems. This book is the most relevant for those preparing for INPhO since it has exactly that type of problems asked in INPhO (long subjective problems) and the difficulty level is also almost same. 
(Highly recommended for INPhO aspirants)

ARCHIVE

• Archive/Past Year papers are a must for every JEE aspirant. It gives you an idea about the type of questions asked in the exam and also the difficulty level of the problems. It also gives you an idea about whether your preparation is sufficient or not. I would recommend you to solve this book chapter-wise when you feel that your preparation of that chapter is sufficient to crack JEE problems or not. This book is for both JEE Mains and JEE Advanced and it is with solutions too.  
(Highly Recommended)