<p>While the preferences with respect to undergraduate schools by PhD programs is opaque (each PhD granting department likely has its own preferences based on its own experiences), remember the difference between general public prestige (defined by the worst students at the school) and prestige for PhD program admissions (defined by the best students in the major at the school).</p>
<p>You may want to find out from the physics departments of various schools where students have gone to for PhD study.</p>