Definition of Transformer

A transformer is a static machine used for transforming power from one circuit to another without
changing frequency. This is a very basic definition of transformer.

History of Transformer
The history of transformer was commenced in the year 1880. In the year 1950, 400KVelectrical
power transformer was introduced in high voltage electrical power system. In the early 1970s, unit
rating as large as 1100MVA was produced and 800KV and even higher KV class transformers were
manufactured in year of 1980.

Use of Power Transformer

Generation of electrical power in low voltage level is very much cost effective. Henceelectrical
power is generated in low voltage level. Theoretically, this low voltage level power can be transmitted
to the receiving end. But if the voltage level of a power is increased, theelectric current of the power
is reduced which causes reduction in ohmic or I 2R losses in the system, reduction in cross sectional
area of the conductor i.e. reduction in capital cost of the system and it also improves the voltage
regulation of the system. Because of these, low level power must be stepped up for
efficient electrical power transmission. This is done by step up transformer at the sending side of the
power system network. As this high voltage power may not be distributed to the consumers directly,
this must be stepped down to the desired level at the receiving end with the help of step down
transformer. These are the uses ofelectrical power transformer in the electrical power system.

Types of Transformer
Transformers can be categorized in different ways, depending upon their purpose, use, construction
etc. The types of transformer are as follows,
1. Step Up Transformer & Step Down Transformer - Generally used for stepping up and
down the voltage level of power in transmission and distribution power network.
2. Three Phase Transformer & Single Phase Transformer - Former is generally used in three
phase power system as it is cost effective than later but when size matters, it is preferable to
use bank of three single phase transformer as it is easier to transport three single phase unit
separately than one single three phase unit.

3. Electrical Power Transformer, Distribution Transformer & Instrument Transformer Transformer is generally used in transmission network which is normally known aspower
transformer, distribution transformer is used in distribution network and this is lower rating
transformer and current transformer & potential transformer, we use for relay and protection
purpose in electrical power system and in different instruments in industries are called
instrument transformer.
4. Two Winding Transformer & Auto Transformer - Former is generally used where ratio
between high voltage and low voltage is greater than 2. It is cost effective to use later where
the ratio between high voltage and low voltage is less than 2.
5. Outdoor Transformer & Indoor Transformer - Transformers that are designed for installing
at outdoor are outdoor transformers and transformers designed for installing at indoor are
indoor transformers

What is Circuit Breaker?

Definition of circuit breaker : - Electrical circuit breaker is a switching device which can be
operated manually as well as automatically for controlling and protection of electrical powersystem
respectively. As the modern power system deals with huge currents, the spacial attention should be

given during designing of circuit breaker to safe interruption of arc produced during the operation
of circuit breaker. This was the basic definition of circuit breaker.

Introduction to Circuit Breaker

The modern power system deals with huge power network and huge numbers of associated
electrical equipment. During short circuit fault or any other types of electrical fault these equipment
as well as the power network suffer a high stress of fault electric current in them which may damage
the equipment and networks permanently. For saving these equipment and the power networks the
fault electric current should be cleared from the system as quickly as possible. Again after the fault is
cleared, the system must come to its normal working condition as soon as possible for supplying
reliable quality power to the receiving ends. In addition to that for proper controlling of power system,
different switching operations are required to be performed. So for timely disconnecting and
reconnecting different parts of power system network for protection and control, there must be some
special type of switching devices which can be operated safely under huge electric currentcarrying
condition. During interruption of huge current, there would be large arcing in between switching
contacts, so care should be taken to quench these arcs in circuit breakerin safe manner. The circuit
breaker is the special device which does all the required switching operations during electric
current carrying condition. This was the basicintroduction to circuit breaker.

What is Circuit Breaker?

Definition of circuit breaker : - Electrical circuit breaker is a switching device which can be
operated manually as well as automatically for controlling and protection of electrical powersystem
respectively. As the modern power system deals with huge currents, the spacial attention should be
given during designing of circuit breaker to safe interruption of arc produced during the operation
of circuit breaker. This was the basic definition of circuit breaker.

Introduction to Circuit Breaker

The modern power system deals with huge power network and huge numbers of associated
electrical equipment. During short circuit fault or any other types of electrical fault these equipment
as well as the power network suffer a high stress of fault electric current in them which may damage
the equipment and networks permanently. For saving these equipment and the power networks the
fault electric current should be cleared from the system as quickly as possible. Again after the fault is
cleared, the system must come to its normal working condition as soon as possible for supplying
reliable quality power to the receiving ends. In addition to that for proper controlling of power system,

different switching operations are required to be performed. So for timely disconnecting and
reconnecting different parts of power system network for protection and control, there must be some
special type of switching devices which can be operated safely under huge electric currentcarrying
condition. During interruption of huge current, there would be large arcing in between switching
contacts, so care should be taken to quench these arcs in circuit breakerin safe manner. The circuit
breaker is the special device which does all the required switching operations during electric
current carrying condition. This was the basicintroduction to circuit breaker.

Earth Leakage Circuit Breaker (ELCB)

An Earth Leakage Circuit Breaker (ELCB) is a device used to directly detect

currents leaking to earth from an installation and cut the power and mainly used in TT earthing
systems.
There are two types of ELCBs:
1. Voltage Earth Leakage Circuit Breaker (voltage-ELCB)
2. Current Earth Leakage Current Earth Leakage Circuit Breaker (Current-ELCB).
Voltage-ELCBs were first introduced about sixty years ago and Current-ELCB was first introduced
about forty years ago. For many years, the voltage operated ELCB and the differential current

operated ELCB were both referred to as ELCBs because it was a simpler name to remember. But
the use of a common name for two different devices gave rise to considerable confusion in the
electrical industry.
If the wrong type was used on an installation, the level of protection given could be substantially
less than that intended.
To ignore this confusion, IEC decided to apply the term Residual Current Device (RCD) to
differential current operated ELCBs. Residual current refers to any current over and above the load
current.
Top

Voltage Base ELCB

Voltage-ELCB is a voltage operated circuit breaker. The device will function when the
Current passes through the ELCB. Voltage-ELCB contains relay Coil which it being
connected to the metallic load body at one end and it is connected to ground wire at the
other end.
.
If the voltage of the Equipment body is rise (by touching phase to metal part or failure
ofinsulation of equipment ) which could cause the difference between earth and load body
voltage, the danger of electric shock will occur. This voltage difference will produce an
electric current from the load metallic body passes the relay loop and to earth. When voltage
on the equipment metallic body rose to the danger level which exceed to 50Volt, the flowing
current through relay loop could move the relay contact by disconnecting the supply current
to avoid from any danger electric shock.
.
The ELCB detects fault currents from live to the earth (ground) wire within the installation it
protects. If sufficient voltage appears across the ELCBs sense coil, it will switch off the
power, and remain off until manually reset. A voltage-sensing ELCB does not sense fault
currents from live to any other earthed body.

These ELCBs monitored the voltage on the earth wire, and disconnected the supply if the
earth wire voltage was over 50 volts.
.
These devices are no longer used due to its drawbacks like if the fault is between live and
a circuit earth, they will disconnect the supply. However, if the fault is between live and some
other earth (such as a person or a metal water pipe), they will NOT disconnect, as the
voltage on the circuit earth will not change. Even if the fault is between live and a circuit
earth, parallel earth paths created via gas or water pipes can result in the ELCB being
bypassed. Most of the fault current will flow via the gas or water pipes, since a single earth
stake will inevitably have a much higher impedance than hundreds of meters of metal
service pipes buried in the ground.
The way to identify an ELCB is by looking for green or green and yellow earth wires
entering the device. They rely on voltage returning to the trip via the earth wire during a
fault and afford only limited protection to the installation and no personal protection at all.
You should use plug in 30mA RCDs for any appliances and extension leads that may be
used outside as a minimum.

Advantages

ELCBs have one advantage over RCDs: they are less sensitive to fault conditions, and
therefore have fewer nuisance trips.
.
While voltage and current on the earth line is usually fault current from a live wire, this is
not always the case, thus there are situations in which an ELCB can nuisance trip.
.
When an installation has two connections to earth, a nearby high current lightning strike
will cause a voltage gradient in the soil, presenting the ELCB sense coil with enough voltage

to cause it to trip.
.
If the installations earth rod is placed close to the earth rod of a neighboring building, a
high earth leakage current in the other building can raise the local ground potential and
cause a voltage difference across the two earths, again tripping the ELCB.
.
If there is an accumulated or burden of currents caused by items with lowered insulation
resistance due to older equipment, or with heating elements, or rain conditions can cause
the insulation resistance to lower due to moisture tracking. If there is a some mA which is
equal to ELCB rating than ELCB may give nuisance Tripping.
.
If either of the earth wires become disconnected from the ELCB, it will no longer trip or the
installation will often no longer be properly earthed.
.
Some ELCBs do not respond to rectified fault current. This issue is common for ELCBs and
RCDs, but ELCBs are on average much older than RCB so an old ELCB is more likely to
have some uncommon fault current waveform that it will not respond to.
.
Voltage-operated ELCB are the requirement for a second connection, and the possibility
that any additional connection to earth on the protected system can disable the detector.
.
Nuisance tripping especially during thunderstorms.

Disadvantages
They do not detect faults that dont pass current through the CPC to the earth rod.
They do not allow a single building system to be easily split into multiple sections with
independent fault protection, because earthing systems are usually use common earth Rod.

They may be tripped by external voltages from something connected to the earthing system
such as metal pipes, a TN-S earth or a TN-C-S combined neutral and earth.

As electrically leaky appliances such as some water heaters, washing machines and
cookers may cause the ELCB to trip.

ELCBs introduce additional resistance and an additional point of failure into the earthing
system.
Can we assume whether Our Electrical System is protected against Earth Protection or not
by only Pressing ELCB Test Switch?

Checking the health of the ELCB is simple and you can do it easily by pressing TEST Push
Button Switch of ELCB. The test push-button will test whether the ELCB unit is working
properly or not. Can we assume that If ELCB is Trip after Pressing TEST Switch of ELCB
than your system is protected against earth protection? Then you are wrong.
.
The test facility provided on the home ELCB will only confirm the health of the ELCB unit,
but that test does not confirm that the ELCB will trip when an electric shock hazard does

occur. It is a really sad fact that all the while this misunderstanding has left many homes
totally unprotected from the risk of electric shocks.
.
This brings us or alarming us to think over second basic requirement for earth protection.
The second requirement for the proper operation of a home shock protection system is
electrical grounding.
.
We can assume that the ELCB is the brain for the shock protection, and the grounding
as the backbone. Therefore, without a functional grounding (Proper Earthing of Electrical
System) there is totally no protection against electrical shocks in your house even if You
have installed ELCB and its TEST switch show proper result. Looking after the ELCB alone
is not enough. The electrical Earthing system must also be in good working order for the
shock protection system to work. In addition to routine inspections that should be done by
the qualified electrician, this grounding should preferably be inspected regularly at shorter
intervals by the homeowner and need to pour Water in Earthing Pit at Regular interval of
Time to minimize Earth Resistance.

Diode
Semiconductor diodes

Electronic symbols
Main article: Electronic symbol
The symbol used for a semiconductor diode in a circuit diagram specifies the type of diode. There
are alternative symbols for some types of diodes, though the differences are minor.

Diode

Light Emitting Diode(LED)

Photodiode

Schottky diode

Transient Voltage Suppression (TVS)

Tunnel diode

Varicap

Zener diode

Typical diode packages in same alignment as diode symbol. Thin bar depicts the cathode.

Point-contact diodes
A point-contact diode works the same as the junction diodes described below, but their
construction is simpler. A block of n-type semiconductor is built, and a conducting sharp-point
contact made with some group-3 metal is placed in contact with the semiconductor. Some metal
migrates into the semiconductor to make a small region of p-type semiconductor near the contact.
The long-popular 1N34 germanium version is still used in radio receivers as a detector and
occasionally in specialized analog electronics.

Junction diodes
pn junction diode
Main article: pn diode

A pn junction diode is made of a crystal of semiconductor, usually silicon,

but germanium and gallium arsenide are also used. Impurities are added to it to create a region on
one side that contains negative charge carriers (electrons), called n-type semiconductor, and a
region on the other side that contains positive charge carriers (holes), called p-type semiconductor.
When two materials i.e. n-type and p-type are attached together, a momentary flow of electrons
occur from n to p side resulting in a third region where no charge carriers are present. This region is
called the depletion region due to the absence of charge carriers (electrons and holes in this case).
The diode's terminals are attached to the n-type and p-type regions. The boundary between these
two regions, called a pn junction, is where the action of the diode takes place. The crystal allows
electrons to flow from the N-type side (called the cathode) to the P-type side (called the anode), but
not in the opposite direction.

Electrical resistance and conductance

"Resistive" redirects here. For the term used when referring to touchscreens, see resistive
touchscreen.

Electromagnetism

Electricity
Magnetism

The electrical resistance of an electrical conductor is the opposition to the passage of an electric
current through that conductor. The inverse quantity is electrical conductance, the ease with which
an electric current passes. Electrical resistance shares some conceptual parallels with the
mechanical notion of friction. The SI unit of electrical resistance is the ohm (), while electrical
conductance is measured insiemens (S).
An object of uniform cross section has a resistance proportional to its resistivity and length and
inversely proportional to its cross-sectional area. All materials show some resistance, except
for superconductors, which have a resistance of zero.
The resistance (R) of an object is defined as the ratio of voltage across it (V) to currentthrough it (I),
while the conductance (G) is the inverse:

For a wide variety of materials and conditions, V and I are directly proportional to each other,
and therefore R and G are constant (although they can depend on other factors like temperature
or strain). This proportionality is called Ohm's law, and materials that satisfy it are called "Ohmic"
materials.
In other cases, such as a diode or battery, V and I are not directly proportional, or in other words
the IV curve is not a straight line through the origin, and Ohm's law does not hold. In this case,
resistance and conductance are less useful concepts, and more difficult to define. The ratio V/I is
sometimes still useful, and is referred to as a "chordal resistance" or "static resistance", [1][2] as it
corresponds to the inverse slope of a chord between the origin and an IV curve. In other
situations, the derivative

may be most useful; this is called the "differential resistance".

1 Introduction

2 Conductors and resistors

3 Ohm's law

4 Relation to resistivity and conductivity

o

4.1 What determines resistivity?

5 Measuring resistance

6 Typical resistances

7 Static and differential resistance

8 AC circuits
o

8.1 Impedance and admittance

8.2 Frequency dependence of resistance

9 Energy dissipation and Joule heating

10 Dependence of resistance on other conditions

o

10.1 Temperature dependence

10.2 Strain dependence

10.3 Light illumination dependence

11 Superconductivity

12 See also

13 References

14 External links

Introduction

The hydraulic analogy compares electric current flowing through circuits to water flowing through pipes. When a
pipe (left) is filled with hair (right), it takes a larger pressure to achieve the same flow of water. Pushing electric
current through a large resistance is like pushing water through a pipe clogged with hair: It requires a larger push
(electromotive force) to drive the same flow (electric current).

In the hydraulic analogy, current flowing through a wire (or resistor) is like water flowing through
a pipe, and the voltage drop across the wire is like the pressure drop that pushes water through
the pipe. Conductance is proportional to how much flow occurs for a given pressure, and
resistance is proportional to how much pressure is required to achieve a given flow.
(Conductance and resistance arereciprocals.)
The voltage drop (i.e., difference in voltage between one side of the resistor and the other), not
the voltage itself, provides the driving force pushing current through a resistor. In hydraulics, it is
similar: The pressure difference between two sides of a pipe, not the pressure itself, determines
the flow through it. For example, there may be a large water pressure above the pipe, which
tries to push water down through the pipe. But there may be an equally large water pressure
below the pipe, which tries to push water back up through the pipe. If these pressures are equal,
no water flows. (In the image at right, the water pressure below the pipe is zero.)
Two propertiesgeometry (shape) and materialmostly determine the resistance and
conductance of a wire, resistor, or other element.
Geometry is important because it is more difficult to push water through a long, narrow pipe than
a wide, short pipe. In the same way, a long, thin copper wire has higher resistance (lower
conductance) than a short, thick copper wire.
Materials are important as well. A pipe filled with hair restricts the flow of water more than a
clean pipe of the same shape and size. In a similar way, electrons can flow freely and easily
through a copper wire, but cannot as easily flow through asteel wire of the same shape and size,
and they essentially cannot flow at all through an insulator like rubber, regardless of its shape.
The difference between, copper, steel, and rubber is related to their microscopic structure
and electron configuration, and is quantified by a property called resistivity.

Conductors and resistors

A 65 resistor, as identified by itselectronic color code (bluegreenblack-gold). An ohmmeter could be used to

verify this value.

Substances in which electricity can flow are called conductors. A piece of conducting material of
a particular resistance meant for use in a circuit is called a resistor. Conductors are made of
high-conductivity materials such as metals, in particular copper and aluminium. Resistors, on the
other hand, are made of a wide variety of materials depending on factors such as the desired
resistance, amount of energy that it needs to dissipate, precision, and costs.

Ohm's law

The current-voltage characteristics of four devices: Two resistors, a diode, and a battery. The horizontal axis
is voltage drop, the vertical axis is current. Ohm's law is satisfied when the graph is a straight line through the
origin. Therefore, the two resistors are "ohmic", but the diode and battery are not.

Main article: Ohm's law

Ohm's law is an empirical law relating the voltage V across an element to the current I through it:

(V is directly proportional to I). This law is not always true: For example, it is false
for diodes, batteries, etc. However, it is true to a very good approximation for wires
and resistors (assuming that other conditions, including temperature, are held fixed).
Materials or objects where Ohm's law is true are called ohmic, whereas objects that do not
obey Ohm's law are non-ohmic.

Relation to resistivity and conductivity

A piece of resistive material with electrical contacts on both ends.

Main article: Electrical resistivity and conductivity

The resistance of a given object depends primarily on two factors: What material it is made
of, and its shape. For a given material, the resistance is inversely proportional to the crosssectional area; for example, a thick copper wire has lower resistance than an otherwiseidentical thin copper wire. Also, for a given material, the resistance is proportional to the
length; for example, a long copper wire has higher resistance than an otherwise-identical
short copper wire. The resistance R and conductance G of a conductor of uniform cross
section, therefore, can be computed as

where

is the length of the conductor, measured in metres [m], A is the cross-

section area of the conductor measured insquare metres [m], (sigma) is

the electrical conductivity measured in siemens per meter (Sm1), and (rho) is
theelectrical resistivity (also called specific electrical resistance) of the material,
measured in ohm-metres (m). The resistivity and conductivity are proportionality
constants, and therefore depend only on the material the wire is made of, not the
geometry of the wire. Resistivity and conductivity are reciprocals:

Resistivity is a measure of the material's ability to oppose electric current.

This formula is not exact: It assumes the current density is totally uniform in the
conductor, which is not always true in practical situations. However, this formula still
provides a good approximation for long thin conductors such as wires.

Another situation for which this formula is not exact is with alternating current (AC),
because the skin effect inhibits current flow near the center of the conductor. Then,
the geometrical cross-section is different from the effective cross-section in which
current actually flows, so resistance is higher than expected. Similarly, if two
conductors near each other carry AC current, their resistances increase due to
the proximity effect. At commercial power frequency, these effects are significant for
large conductors carrying large currents, such as busbars in an electrical substation,
[3]

or large power cables carrying more than a few hundred amperes.

What determines resistivity?

Main article: Electrical resistivity and conductivity
The resistivity of different materials varies by an enormous amount: For example,
the conductivity of teflon is about 1030times lower than the conductivity of copper.
Why is there such a difference? Loosely speaking, a metal has large numbers of
"delocalized" electrons that are not stuck in any one place, but free to move across
large distances, whereas in an insulator (like teflon), each electron is tightly bound
to a single molecule, and a great force is required to pull it away. Semiconductorslie
between these two extremes. More details can be found in the article: Electrical
resistivity and conductivity. For the case of electrolyte solutions, see the
article: Conductivity (electrolytic).
Resistivity varies with temperature. In semiconductors, resistivity also changes
when light is shining on it. These are discussed below.

Measuring resistanc
Main article: ohmmeter
An instrument for measuring resistance is called an ohmmeter. Simple ohmmeters
cannot measure low resistances accurately because the resistance of their
measuring leads causes a voltage drop that interferes with the measurement, so
more accurate devices use four-terminal sensing.

Typical resistances
See also: Electrical resistivities of the elements (data page) and Electrical resistivity
and conductivity

Component

1 meter of copper wire

with 1mm diameter

1 km overhead power line

(typical)

AA battery (typical
internal resistance)

Incandescent light bulb

filament (typical)

Human body

Static and differential resistance

Resistance ()

0.02[4]

0.03[5]

0.1[6]

200-1000[7]

1000 to 100,000[8]

The IV curve of a non-ohmic device (purple). The static resistance at point A is

the inverse slope of line Bthrough the origin. The differential resistance at A is the inverse slope
of tangent line C.

The IV curve of a component withnegative differential resistance, an unusual phenomenon where

the IV curve is non-monotonic.

See also: Small-signal model

Many electrical elements, such as diodes and batteriesdo not satisfy Ohm's law.
These are called non-ohmicor nonlinear, and are characterized by an IV curve,
which is not a straight line through the origin.
Resistance and conductance can still be defined for non-ohmic elements. However,
unlike ohmic resistance, nonlinear resistance is not constant but varies with the
voltage or current through the device; its operating point. There are two types:[1][2]

Static resistance (also called chordal or DC resistance) - This corresponds to

the usual definition of resistance; the voltage divided by the current

.
It is the slope of the line (chord} from the origin through the point on the curve. Static
resistance determines the power dissipation in an electrical component. Points on
the IV curve located in the 2nd or 4th quadrants, for which the slope of the chordal line is
negative, have negative static resistance. Passive devices, which have no source of energy,
cannot have negative static resistance. However active devices such as transistors or opamps can synthesize negative static resistance with feedback, and it is used in some circuits
such as gyrators.

Differential resistance (also called dynamic, incremental or small

signal resistance) - Differential resistance is the derivative of the
voltage with respect to the current; the slope of the IV curve at a point

.
If the IV curve is nonmonotonic (with peaks and troughs), the curve has a negative slope in
some regionsso in these regions the device has negative differential resistance. Devices
with negative differential resistance can amplify a signal applied to them, and are used to
make amplifiers and oscillators. These include tunnel diodes, Gunn diodes, IMPATT
diodes, magnetron tubes, and unijunction transistors.

Impedance and admittance

The voltage (red) and current (blue) versus time (horizontal axis) for
a capacitor (top) and inductor(bottom). Since the amplitude of the current and
voltage sinusoids are the same, the absolute value ofimpedance is 1 for both
the capacitor and the inductor (in whatever units the graph is using). On the
other hand, the phase difference between current and voltage is -90 for the
capacitor; therefore, the complex phase of the impedance of the capacitor is
-90. Similarly, the phase difference between current and voltage is +90 for
the inductor; therefore, the complex phase of the impedance of the inductor is
+90.

Main articles: Electrical impedance and Admittance

When an alternating current flows through a circuit, the relation
between current and voltage across a circuit element is
characterized not only by the ratio of their magnitudes, but also the

difference in theirphases. For example, in an ideal resistor, the

moment when the voltage reaches its maximum, the current also
reaches its maximum (current and voltage are oscillating in phase).
But for a capacitor or inductor, the maximum current flow occurs as
the voltage passes through zero and vice-versa (current and
voltage are oscillating 90 out of phase, see image at
right). Complex numbers are used to keep track of both the phase
and magnitude of current and voltage:

where:

t is time,

V(t) and I(t) are, respectively, voltage and current as a

function of time,

V0, I0, Z, and Y are complex numbers,

Z is called impedance,

Y is called admittance,

Re indicates real part,

is the angular frequency of the AC current,

is the imaginary unit.

The impedance and admittance may be expressed as complex

numbers that can be broken into real and imaginary parts:

where R and G are resistance and conductance

respectively, X is reactance, and B is susceptance. For
ideal resistors, Zand Y reduce to R and G respectively, but

for AC networks
containing capacitors and inductors, X and B are nonzero.
for AC circuits, just as

for DC

circuits.

Frequency dependence of
resistance
Another complication of AC circuits is that the resistance
and conductance can be frequency-dependent. One
reason, mentioned above is the skin effect (and the
related proximity effect). Another reason is that the
resistivity itself may depend on frequency (see Drude
model, deep-level traps, resonant frequency, Kramers
Kronig relations, etc.)

Energy dissipation and Joule heating

Running current through a material with high resistance creates heat,

in a phenomenon called Joule heating. In this picture, a cartridge
heater, warmed by Joule heating, is glowing red hot.

Main article: Joule heating

Resistors (and other elements with resistance) oppose the
flow of electric current; therefore, electrical energy is
required to push current through the resistance. This
electrical energy is dissipated, heating the resistor in the
process. This is calledJoule heating (after James Prescott
Joule), also called ohmic heating or resistive heating.

The dissipation of electrical energy is often undesired,

particularly in the case oftransmission losses in power
lines. High voltage transmission helps reduce the losses by
reducing the current for a given power.
On the other hand, Joule heating is sometimes useful, for
example in electric stovesand other electric heaters (also
called resistive heaters). As another example,incandescent
lamps rely on Joule heating: the filament is heated to such
a high temperature that it glows "white hot" withthermal
radiation (also called incandescence).
The formula for Joule heating is:

where P is the power (energy per unit time) converted

from electrical energy to thermal energy, R is the
resistance, and I is the current through the resistor.

Dependence of resistance on other conditions

Temperature dependence
Main article: Electrical resistivity and conductivity
Temperature dependence
Near room temperature, the resistivity of metals
typically increases as temperature is increased, while
the resistivity of semiconductors typically decreases as
temperature is increased. The resistivity of insulators
and electrolytes may increase or decrease depending
on the system. For the detailed behavior and
explanation, see Electrical resistivity and conductivity.
As a consequence, the resistance of wires, resistors,
and other components often change with temperature.
This effect may be undesired, causing an electronic
circuit to malfunction at extreme temperatures. In some
cases, however, the effect is put to good use. When

temperature-dependent resistance of a component is

used purposefully, the component is called aresistance
thermometer or thermistor. (A resistance thermometer
is made of metal, usually platinum, while a thermistor
is made of ceramic or polymer.)
Resistance thermometers and thermistors are
generally used in two ways. First, they can be used
as thermometers: By measuring the resistance, the
temperature of the environment can be inferred.
Second, they can be used in conjunction withJoule
heating (also called self-heating): If a large current is
running through the resistor, the resistor's temperature
rises and therefore its resistance changes. Therefore,
these components can be used in a circuit-protection
role similar to fuses, or for feedback in circuits, or for
many other purposes. In general, self-heating can turn
a resistor into a nonlinear andhysteretic circuit
element. For more details see Thermistor#Self-heating
effects.
If the temperature T does not vary too much, a linear
approximation is typically used:

where

is called the temperature coefficient of

resistance,

is a fixed reference temperature

(usually room temperature), and

resistance at temperature

is the

. The parameter

is

an empirical parameter fitted from measurement

data. Because the linear approximation is only an
approximation,

is different for different reference

temperatures. For this reason it is usual to specify

the temperature that
suffix, such as

was measured at with a

, and the relationship only holds

in a range of temperatures around the reference.[9]

The temperature coefficient

is typically

+3103 K1 to +6103 K1 for metals near room

temperature. It is usually negative for
semiconductors and insulators, with highly variable
magnitude.[10]

Strain dependence
Main article: Strain gauge
Just as the resistance of a conductor depends
upon temperature, the resistance of a conductor
depends upon strain. By placing a conductor
under tension (a form of stress that leads to strain
in the form of stretching of the conductor), the
length of the section of conductor under tension
increases and its cross-sectional area decreases.
Both these effects contribute to increasing the
resistance of the strained section of conductor.
Under compression (strain in the opposite
direction), the resistance of the strained section of
conductor decreases. See the discussion on strain
gauges for details about devices constructed to
take advantage of this effect.

Light illumination
dependence
Main articles: Photoresistor and Photoconductivity
Some resistors, particularly those made
from semiconductors, exhibit photoconductivity,
meaning that their resistance changes when light
is shining on them. Therefore they are
called photoresistors (or light dependent resistors).
These are a common type of light detector.

Superconductivity
Main article: Superconductivity

Superconductors are materials that have exactly

zero resistance and infinite conductance, because
they can have V=0 and I0. This also means there
is no joule heating, or in other words
no dissipation of electrical energy. Therefore, if
superconductive wire is made into a closed loop,
current flows around the loop forever.
Superconductors require cooling to temperatures
near 4 K with liquid helium for most metallic
superconductors like NbSn alloys, or cooling to
temperatures near 77K with liquid nitrogen for the
expensive, brittle and delicate ceramic high
temperature superconductors. Nevertheless, there
are many technological applications of
superconductivity, including superconducting
magnets.

Difference between Ammeter and Voltmeter

Ammeter
Connection

Voltmeter

It is to be connected in series

It is to be connected in parallel

mode

mode

Resistance

It has comparatively low resistance

It has high resistance

Uses

It is used to find the amount of

It is used to find the potential

current flowing in the circuit

difference in the circuit

Circuit must be disconnected in

Circuit does not need to be

order to attach the ammeter

disconnected

Considered as less accurate

Considered as more accurate

Circuit

Accuracy

compared to ammeter

Voltage, Current, Resistance, and Ohm's Low

Electricity Basics
When beginning to explore the world of electricity and electronics, it is vital to start by understanding
the basics of voltage, current, and resistance. These are the three basic building blocks required to

manipulate and utilize electricity. At first, these concepts can be difficult to understand because we
cannot see them. One cannot see with the naked eye the energy flowing through a wire or the
voltage of a battery sitting on a table. Even the lightning in the sky, while visible, is not truly the
energy exchange happening from the clouds to the earth, but a reaction in the air to the energy
passing through it. In order to detect this energy transfer, we must use measurement tools such as
multimeters, spectrum analyzers, and oscilloscopes to visualize what is happening with the charge in
a system. Fear not, however, this tutorial will give you the basic understanding of voltage, current,
and resistance and how the three relate to each other.

Georg Ohm

Covered in this Tutorial

How electrical charge relates to voltage, current, and resistance.

What voltage, current, and resistance are.

What Ohms Law is and how to use it to understand electricity.

A simple experiment to demonstrate these concepts.

Suggested Reading

What is Electricity

What is a Circuit?

Electrical Charge
Electricity is the movement of electrons. Electrons create charge, which we can harness to do work.
Your lightbulb, your stereo, your phone, etc., are all harnessing the movement of the electrons in
order to do work. They all operate using the same basic power source: the movement of electrons.
The three basic principles for this tutorial can be explained using electrons, or more specifically, the
charge they create:

Voltage is the difference in charge between two points.

Current is the rate at which charge is flowing.

Resistance is a materials tendency to resist the flow of charge (current).

So, when we talk about these values, were really describing the movement of charge, and thus, the
behavior of electrons. A circuit is a closed loop that allows charge to move from one place to another.
Components in the circuit allow us to control this charge and use it to do work.
Georg Ohm was a Bavarian scientist who studied electricity. Ohm starts by describing a unit of
resistance that is defined by current and voltage. So, lets start with voltage and go from there.

Voltage
We define voltage as the amount of potential energy between two points on a circuit. One point has
more charge than another. This difference in charge between the two points is called voltage. It is
measured in volts, which, technically, is the potential energy difference between two points that will
impart one joule of energy per coulomb of charge that passes through it (dont panic if this makes no
sense, all will be explained). The unit volt is named after the Italian physicistAlessandro Volta who
invented what is considered the first chemical battery. Voltage is represented in equations and
schematics by the letter V.
When describing voltage, current, and resistance, a common analogy is a water tank. In this analogy,
charge is represented by the water amount, voltage is represented by the waterpressure, and current
is represented by the water flow. So for this analogy, remember:

Water = Charge

Pressure = Voltage

Flow = Current

Consider a water tank at a certain height above the ground. At the bottom of this tank there is a
hose.

The pressure at the end of the hose can represent voltage. The water in the tank represents charge.
The more water in the tank, the higher the charge, the more pressure is measured at the end of the
hose.

We can think of this tank as a battery, a place where we store a certain amount of energy and then
release it. If we drain our tank a certain amount, the pressure created at the end of the hose goes
down. We can think of this as decreasing voltage, like when a flashlight gets dimmer as the batteries
run down. There is also a decrease in the amount of water that will flow through the hose. Less
pressure means less water is flowing, which brings us to current.

Current
We can think of the amount of water flowing through the hose from the tank as current. The higher
the pressure, the higher the flow, and vice-versa. With water, we would measure the volume of the
water flowing through the hose over a certain period of time. With electricity, we measure the amount
of charge flowing through the circuit over a period of time. Current is measured in Amperes (usually
just referred to as Amps). An ampere is defined as 6.241*10 18electrons (1 Coulomb) per second
passing through a point in a circuit. Amps are represented in equations by the letter I.
Lets say now that we have two tanks, each with a hose coming from the bottom. Each tank has the
exact same amount of water, but the hose on one tank is narrower than the hose on the other.

We measure the same amount of pressure at the end of either hose, but when the water begins to
flow, the flow rate of the water in the tank with the narrower hose will be less than the flow rate of the
water in the tank with the wider hose. In electrical terms, the current through the narrower hose is
less than the current through the wider hose. If we want the flow to be the same through both hoses,
we have to increase the amount of water (charge) in the tank with the narrower hose.

This increases the pressure (voltage) at the end of the narrower hose, pushing more water through
the tank. This is analogous to an increase in voltage that causes an increase in current.
Now were starting to see the relationship between voltage and current. But there is a third factor to
be considered here: the width of the hose. In this analogy, the width of the hose is the resistance.
This means we need to add another term to our model:

Water = Charge (measured in Coulombs)

Pressure = Voltage (measured in Volts)

Flow = Current (measured in Amperes, or Amps for short)

Hose Width = Resistance

Resistance
Consider again our two water tanks, one with a narrow pipe and one with a wide pipe.

It stands to reason that we cant fit as much volume through a narrow pipe than a wider one at the
same pressure. This is resistance. The narrow pipe resists the flow of water through it even though
the water is at the same pressure as the tank with the wider pipe.

In electrical terms, this is represented by two circuits with equal voltages and different resistances.
The circuit with the higher resistance will allow less charge to flow, meaning the circuit with higher
resistance has less current flowing through it.
This brings us back to Georg Ohm. Ohm defines the unit of resistance of 1 Ohm as the resistance
between two points in a conductor where the application of 1 volt will push 1 ampere, or
6.2411018 electrons. This value is usually represented in schematics with the greek letter , which
is called omega, and pronounced ohm.

Ohm's Law
Combining the elements of voltage, current, and resistance, Ohm developed the formula:

Where

V = Voltage in volts

I = Current in amps

R = Resistance in ohms

This is called Ohms law. Lets say, for example, that we have a circuit with the potential of 1 volt, a
current of 1 amp, and resistance of 1 ohm. Using Ohms Law we can say:

Lets say this represents our tank with a wide hose. The amount of water in the tank is defined as 1
volt and the narrowness (resistance to flow) of the hose is defined as 1 ohm. Using Ohms Law, this
gives us a flow (current) of 1 amp.
Using this analogy, lets now look at the tank with the narrow hose. Because the hose is narrower, its
resistance to flow is higher. Lets define this resistance as 2 ohms. The amount of water in the tank is
the same as the other tank, so, using Ohms Law, our equation for the tank with the narrow hose is

But what is the current? Because the resistance is greater, and the voltage is the same, this gives us
a current value of 0.5 amps:
So, the current is lower in the tank with higher resistance. Now we can see that if we know two of the
values for Ohms law, we can solve for the third. Lets demonstrate this with an experiment.

An Ohm's Law Experiment

For this experiment, we want to use a 9 volt battery to power an LED. LEDs are fragile and can only
have a certain amount of current flowing through them before they burn out. In the documentation for
an LED, there will always be a current rating. This is the maximum amount of current that can flow
through the particular LED before it burns out.

Materials Required
In order to perform the experiments listed at the end of the tutorial, you will need:

A multimeter

A 9-Volt battery

A 560-Ohm resistor(or the next closest value)

An LED

Dividing by zero gives us infinite current! Well, not infinite in practice, but as much current as the
battery can deliver. Since we do NOT want that much current flowing through our LED, were going to
need a resistor. Our circuit should look like this:
We can use Ohms Law in the exact same way to determine the reistor value that will give us the
desired current value: