The Basic Principles of Electricity

Electricity
Electricity, simply put, is the flow of electric current along a conductor. This electric current takes the
form of free electrons that transfer from one atom to the next. Thus, the more free electrons a
material has, the better it conducts. There are three primary electrical parameters: the volt, the
ampere and the ohm.

1. The Volt
The pressure that is put on free electrons that causes them to flow is known as electromotive force
(EMF). The volt is the unit of pressure, i.e., the volt is the amount of electromotive force required to
push a current of one ampere through a conductor with a resistance of one ohm.

2. The Ampere
The ampere defines the flow rate of electric current. For instance, when one coulomb (or 6 x 1018
electrons) flows past a given point on a conductor in one second, it is defined as a current of one
ampere.

3. The Ohm
The ohm is the unit of resistance in a conductor. Three things determine the amount of resistance in
a conductor: its size, its material, e.g., copper or aluminum, and its temperature. A conductor’s
resistance increases as its length increases or diameter decreases. The more conductive
the materials used, the lower the conductor resistance becomes. Conversely, a rise in temperature
will generally increase resistance in a conductor.

Ohm’s Law
Ohm’s Law defines the correlation between electric current (I), voltage (V), and resistance (R)
in a conductor.

Ohm’s Law can be expressed as: V = I × R

Where: V = volts, I = amps, R = ohms

Ampacity
Ampacity is the amount of current a conductor can handle before its temperature exceeds accepted
limits. These limits are given in the National Electrical Code (NEC), the Canadian Electrical Code
and in other engineering documents such as those published by the Insulated Cable Engineers
Association (ICEA). It is important to know that many external factors affect the ampacity of an
electrical conductor and these factors should be taken into consideration before selecting the
conductor size.
Coulomb's Law
 Coulomb's law formula

 Coulomb's law example

Coulomb's law formula

Coulomb's law calculates the electric force F in newtons (N) between two electric
charges q1 andq2 in coulombs (C)
with a distance of r in meters (m):

F is the force on q1 and q2 measured in newtons (N).

k is Coulomb's constant k = 8.988×109 N⋅m2/C2
q1 is the first charge in coulombs (C).
q2 is the second charge in coulombs (C).
r is the distance between the 2 charges in meters (m).

When charges q1 and q2 is increased, the force F is increased.

When distance r is increased, the force F is decreased.

Coulomb's law example

Find the force between 2 electric charges of 2×10 -5C and 3×10-5C with distance of 40cm
between them.
q1 = 2×10-5C
q2 = 3×10-5C
r = 40cm = 0.4m
F = k×q1×q2 / r2 = 8.988×109N⋅m2/C2 × 2×10-5C × 3×10-5C /
(0.4m)2 = 37.705N
DC circuit rules
Ohm's law
I=V/R
Joule's law
P = V · I = I2 · R = V2 / R
Series circuit rules
VT = V1 + V2 + V3 + ...
IT = I1 = I2 = I3 = ...
RT = R1 + R2 + R3 + ...
1/CT = 1/C1 + 1/C2 + 1/C3 + ...
LT = L1 + L2 + L3 + ...
Parallel circuit rules
VT = V1 = V2 = V3 = ...
IT = I1 + I2 + I3 + ...
1/RT = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3 + ...
CT = C1 + C2 + C3 + ...
1/LT = 1/L1 + 1/L2 + 1/L3 + ...
Voltage division
V1 = VT ⋅ R1 / (R1+R2+R3+...)
Current division
I1 = IT ⋅ (R2+R3+...) / (R1+R2+R3+...)
Kirchhoff's voltage law (KVL)
The sum of voltage drops at a current loop is zero:
∑ Vi = 0
Kirchhoff's current law (KCL)
The junction between several circuit elements is called a node.
The sum of the currents values at a node is zero:

∑ Ii = 0
Capacitance
C=Q/V
Parallel plate capacitor
C=ε⋅A/l
ε is the permittivity in farad per meter (F/m).

Permittivity
ε = ε 0 ⋅ εr
ε0 is the permittivity in vaccum.
εr is the relative permittivity or dialectric constant.

Current of capacitor
IC(t) = C dVC(t) / dt
Voltage of capacitor
VC(t) = VC(0) + 1/C ∫ IC(t)⋅dt
Voltage of capacitor
VL(t) = L dIL(t) / dt
Current of inductor
IL(t) = IL(0) + 1/L ∫VL(t)⋅dt
Energy of capacitor
W C = C⋅V 2 / 2
Energy of inductor
WL = L⋅I 2 / 2
Kirchhoff's Laws
Kirchhoff's current law and voltage law, defined by Gustav Kirchhoff, describe the relation of
values of currents that flow through a junction point and voltages in a an electrical circuit
loop, in an electrical circuit.
 Kirchhoff's current law (KCL)

 Kirchhoff's voltage law (KVL)

Kirchhoff's Current Law (KCL)

This is Kirchhoff's first law.
The sum of all currents that enter an electrical circuit junction is 0. The currents enter the
junction have positive sign and the currents that leave the junction have a negative sign:

Another way to look at this law is that the sum of currents that enter a junction is equal to
the sum of currents that leave the junction:
KCL example
I1 and I2 enter the junction
I3 leave the junction
I1=2A, I2=3A, I3=-1A, I4= ?

Solution:
∑Ik = I1+I2+I3+I4 = 0
I4 = -I1 - I2 - I3 = -2A - 3A - (-1A) = -4A
Since I4 is negative, it leaves the junction.

Kirchhoff's Voltage Law (KVL)

This is Kirchhoff's second law.
The sum of all voltages or potential differences in an electrical circuit loop is 0.
KVL example
VS = 12V, VR1 = -4V, VR2 = -3V
VR3 = ?
Solution:
∑Vk = VS + VR1 + VR2 + VR3 = 0
VR3 = -VS - VR1 - VR2 = -12V+4V+3V = -5V
The voltage sign (+/-) is the direction of the potential difference.
Ohm's Law
Ohm's law shows a linear relationship between the voltage and the current in an electrical
circuit.
The resistor's voltage drop and resistance set the DC current flow through the resistor.
With water flow analogy we can imagine the electric current as water current through pipe,
the resistor as a thin pipe that limits the water flow, the voltage as height difference of the
water that enables the water flow.
 Ohm's law formula

 Ohm's law for AC circuit

 Ohm's law calculator

Ohm's law formula

The resistor's current I in amps (A) is equal to the resistor's voltage V in volts (V) divided by
the resistance R in ohms (Ω):

V is the voltage drop of the resistor, measured in Volts (V). In some cases Ohm's law uses
the letter E to represent voltage. E denotes electromotive force.
I is the electrical current flowing through the resistor, measured in Amperes (A)
R is the resistance of the resistor, measured in Ohms (Ω)
Voltage calculation
When we know the current and resistance, we can calculate the voltage.
The voltage V in volts (V) is equal to the to the current I in amps (A) times the resistance R
in ohms (Ω):

Resistance calculation
When we know the voltage and the current, we can calculate the resistance.
The resistance R in ohms (Ω) is equal to the voltage V in volts (V) divided by the current I in
amps (A):

Since the current is set by the values of the voltage and resistance, the Ohm's law formula
can show that:
 If we increase the voltage, the current will increase.

 If we increase the resistance, the current will reduce.

Example #1
Find the current of an electrical circuit that has resistance of 50 Ohms and voltage supply of
5 Volts.
Solution:
V = 5V
R = 50Ω
I = V / R = 5V / 50Ω = 0.1A = 100mA
Example #2
Find the resistance of an electrical circuit that has voltage supply of 10 Volts and current of
5mA.
Solution:
V = 10V
I = 5mA = 0.005A
R = V / I = 10V / 0.005A = 2000Ω = 2kΩ
Ohm's Law for AC Circuit
The load's current I in amps (A) is equal to the load's voltage V Z=V in volts (V) divided by
the impedance Z in ohms (Ω):

V is the voltage drop on the load, measured in Volts (V)

I is the electrical current, measured in Amps (A)
Z is the impedance of the load, measured in Ohms (Ω)
Example #3
Find the current of an AC circuit, that has voltage supply of 110V∟70° and load of
0.5kΩ∟20°.
Solution:
V = 110V∟70°
Z = 0.5kΩ∟20° = 500Ω∟20°
I = V / Z = 110V∟70° / 500Ω∟20° = (110V / 500Ω) ∟ (70°-20°) = 0.22A
∟50°
Ohm's Law Calculator (short form)
Ohm's law calculator: calculates the relation between Voltage, Current and Resistance.
Enter 2 values to get the third value and press the Calculatebutton:

Enter Resistance: R = ohms (Ω)

Enter Current: I = amps (A)
Enter Voltage: V = volts (V)

Reset

Ohm's law calculator II ►

Voltage Divider
Voltage divider rule finds the voltage over a load in electrical circuit, when the loads are
connected in series.
 Voltage divider rule for DC circuit

 Voltage divider rule for AC circuit

 Voltage divider calculator

Voltage divider rule for DC circuit

For a DC circuit with constant voltage source V T and resistors in series, the voltage drop
Vi in resistor Ri is given by the formula:

Vi - voltage drop in resistor Ri in volts [V].

VT - the equivalent voltage source or voltage drop in volts [V].
Ri - resistance of resistor Ri in ohms [Ω].
R1 - resistance of resistor R1 in ohms [Ω].
R2 - resistance of resistor R2 in ohms [Ω].
R3 - resistance of resistor R3 in ohms [Ω].
Example
Voltage source of VT=30V is connected to resistors in series, R 1=30Ω, R2=40Ω.
Find the voltage drop on resistor R2.
V2 = VT × R2 / (R1+R2) = 30V × 40Ω / (30Ω+40Ω) = 17.14V
Voltage divider for AC circuit
For an AC circuit with voltage source VT and loads in series, the voltage drop V i in load Zi is
given by the formula:

Vi - voltage drop in load Zi in volts [V].

VT - the equivalent voltage source or voltage drop in volts [V].
Zi - impedance of load Zi in ohms [Ω].
Z1 - impedance of load Z1 in ohms [Ω].
Z2 - impedance of load Z2 in ohms [Ω].
Z3 - impedance of load Z3 in ohms [Ω].
Example
Voltage source of VT=30V∟60° is connected to loads in series, Z1=30Ω∟20°, Z2=40Ω∟-
50°.
Find the voltage drop in load Z1.
V2 = VT × Z1 / (Z1+Z2)
= 30V∟60° × 30Ω∟20° / (30Ω∟20°+40Ω∟-50°)
= 30V∟60° × 30Ω∟20° / (30cos(20)+j30sin(20)+40cos(-50)+j40sin(-50))
= 30V∟60° × 30Ω∟20° / (28.19+j10.26+25.71-j30.64)
= 30V∟60° × 30Ω∟20° / (53.9-j20.38)
= 30V∟60° × 30Ω∟20° / 57.62Ω∟-20.71°
= (30V×30Ω/57.62Ω) ∟ (60°+20°+20.71°)
= 15.62V∟100.71°

Voltage divider calculator ►