Circuit Lab

1808 -​ Humphry Davy invented the first effective “arc lamp.” The arc lamp was a piece
of carbon that glowed when attached to a battery by wires.
1820 -​ Separate experiments by Hans Christian Oersted, A.M. Ampere, and D.F.G.
Arago confirmed the relationship between electricity and magnetism.
1821 - ​The first electric motor was invented by Michael Faraday.
1826 -​ Georg Ohm defined the relationship between power, voltage, current and
resistance in “Ohms Law.”
1831 -​ Using his invention the induction ring, Michael Faraday proved that electricity can
be induced (made) by changes in an electromagnetic field. Faraday’s experiments
about how electric current works, led to the understanding of electrical transformers and
motors.
Joseph Henry separately discovered the principle of electromagnetic induction but didn’t
publish his work. He also described an electric motor.
1832 - ​Using Faraday’s principles, Hippolyte Pixii built the first “dynamo,” an electric
generator capable of delivering power for industry. Pixxi’s dynamo used a crank to
rotate a magnet around a piece of iron wrapped with wire. Because this device used a
coil of wire, it produced spikes of electric current followed by no current.
1835 -​ Joseph Henry invented the electrical relay, used to send electrical currents long
distances.
1837 -​ Thomas Davenport invented the electric motor, an invention that is used in most
electrical appliances today.
1839 -​ Sir William Robert Grove developed the first fuel cell, a device that produces
electrical energy by combining hydrogen and oxygen.
1841 -​ James Prescott Joule showed that energy is conserved in electrical circuits
involving current flow, thermal heating, and chemical transformations. A unit of thermal
energy, the Joule, was named after him.
1844 -​ Samuel Morse invented the electric telegraph, a machine that could send
messages long distances across wire.
1860 -​ Mathematical theory of electromagnetic fields was published. J.C. Maxwell
created a new era of physics when he unified magnetism, electricity and light. Maxwell’s
four laws of electrodynamics (“Maxwell’s Equations”) eventually led to electric power,
radios, and television.
1876 - ​Charles Brush invented the “open coil” dynamo (or generator) that could produce
a steady current of electricity.
1878 -​ Joseph Swan, and Englishman, invented the first incandescent lightbulb (also
called an “electric lamp”). His lightbulb burned out quickly.
Charles Brush developed an arc lamp that could be powered by a generator.
Thomas Edison founded the Edison Electric Light Co. (US), in New York City. He
bought a number of patents related to electric lighting and began experiments to
develop a practical, long-lasting light bulb.
1879 -​ After many experiments, Thomas Edison invented an incandescent light bulb
that could be used for about 40 hours without burning out. By 1880 his bulbs could be
used for 1200 hours.
1879 -​ Electric lights (Brush arc lamps) were first used for public street lighting, in
Cleveland, Ohio.
California Electric Light Company, Inc. in San Fransicso was the first electric company
to sell electricity to customers. The company used two small Brush generators to power
21 Brush arc light lamps.
1881 -​ The electric streetcar was invented by E.W. v. Siemens
1882 -​ Thomas Edison opened the Pearl Street Power Station in New York City. The
Pearl Street Station was one of the world’s first central electric power plants and could
power 5,000 lights. The Pearl Street Station was a direct current (DC) power system,
unlike the power systems that we use today which use alternating current (AC).
The first hydroelectric station opened in Wisconsin.
Edward Johnson first put electric lights on a Christmas tree.
1883 -​ Nikola Tesla invented the “Tesla coil”, a transformer that changes electricity from
low voltage to high voltage making it easier to transport over long distances. The
transformer was an important part of Tesla’s alternating current (AC) system, still used
to deliver electricity today.
1884 -​ Nikola Tesla invented the electric alternator, an electric generator that produces
alternating current (AC). Until this time electricity had been generated using direct
current (DC) from batteries. AC electrical systems are better for sending electricity over
long distances.
Steam turbine generator, capable of generating huge amounts of electricity, was
invented by Sir Charles Algernon Parsons.
1886 -​ William Stanley developed the induction coil transformer and an alternating
current electric system.
1888 - ​Nikola Tesla demonstrated the first “polyphase” alternating current (AC) electrical
system. His AC system includes everything needed for electricity production and use:
generator, transformers, transmission system, motor (used in appliances) and lights.
George Westinghouse, the head of Westinghouse Electric Company, bought the patent
rights to the AC system.
The first use of a large windmill to generate electricity was built by inventor Charles
Brush. He used the windmill to charge batteries in the cellar of his home in Cleveland,
Ohio.
1893 -​ The Westinghouse Electric Company used an alternating current (AC) system to
light the Chicago World’s Fair.
A 22 mile AC powerline was opened, sending electricity from Folsom Powerhouse in
California to Sacramento.
1896 - ​An AC powerline that transmits power 20 miles from Niagra Falls to Buffalo, New
York was opened.
1897 -​ The Electron discovered by Joseph John Thomson.
1900 -​ Highest voltage transmission line 60 Kilovolt.
1901 -​ First power line between USA and Canada at Niagra Falls.
1902 -​ 5-Megawatt turbine for Fisk St. Station (Chicago).
1903 -​ First successful gas turbine (France).
World’s first all turbine station (Chicago).
Shawinigan Water & Power installs world’s largest generator (5,000 Watts) and world’s
largest and highest voltage line—136 Km and 50 Kilovolts (to Montreal).
1908 -​ Electric vacuum cleaner – J. Spangler.
Electric washing machine- A. Fisher.
1909 -​ First pumped storage plant (Switzerland).
1911 -​ Electric air conditioning – W. Carrier.
1913 -​ T. Murray created the first air pollution control device, the “cinder catcher.”
Electric refrigerator – A. Goss.
1920 -​ Federal Power Commission (FPC).
1921 -​ Lakeside Power Plant in Wisconsin becomes the world’s first power plant to burn
only pulverized coal.
1922 -​ Connecticut Valley Power Exchange (CONVEX) starts, pioneering
interconnection between utilities.
1923 -​ Photoelectric cells were discovered.
1928 -​ Construction of Boulder Dam begins.
Federal Trade Commission begins investigation of holding companies.
1933 - ​Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) established.
1935 -​ Public Utility Holding Company Act.
Federal Power Act.
Securities and Exchange Commission.
Bonneville Power Administration.
First night baseball game in major leagues (Reds vs. Phillies) was played in Ohio on
May 24th.
1936 -​ Highest steam temperature reaches 900 degrees Fahrenheit vs. 600 degrees
Fahrenheit in early 1920s.
Boulder (Hoover) Dam was completed. A 287 Kilovolt power line stretched 266 miles to
Boulder (Hoover) Dam.
Rural Electrification Act.
1947 -​ Transistor invented by scientists at Bell Telephone Laboratories.
1953 -​ First 345 Kilovolt transmission line.
First nuclear power station ordered in England.
1954 -​ World’s first nuclear power plant (Russia) started generating electricity.
First high voltage direct current (HVDC) line (20 megawatts/1900 Kilovolts, 96 Km).
The Atomic Energy Act of 1954 allows private ownership of nuclear reactors.
1957 -​ Shippingport Reactor in Pennsylvania was the first nuclear power plant to
provide electricity to customers in the U 
 
 
 ● Voltage = 12V
● R1 = 4 Ohm
● R2 = 4 Ohm
● R3 = 2 Ohm

Remember that "Rt" means Total resistance of the

circuit.

R1, R2, etc. are Resistor one, Resistor two, etc.

Now we will apply the formula above to this example:

1 1 1 1
—-+ —-+ —-
—- R1 R2 R3
=

Rt

Therefore:

1 1 1 1
—-+ —-+ —-
—- 4 4 2
=

Rt

It is easiest to change the fractions into decimal numbers (example 1 divide by 4

equals .25):

● 1/Rt = .25 + .25 + .5

● 1/Rt = 1

Now you have to get rid of the 1 on the left side so...

● Rt = 1/1
● Rt = 1 Ohms

NOW, Let's try a more complex one:

● Voltage = 12 Volts
 ● R1 = 10 Ohms
● R2 = 20 Ohms
● R3 = 10 Ohms
● R4 = 1 Ohms
● 1/Rt = 1/10 + 1/20 + 1/10 + 1/1
● 1/Rt = .1 + .05 + .1 + 1
● 1/Rt = 1.25
● Rt = 1/1.25 = .8 Ohms

Before we move on to the last rule here's how easy

it is to calculate the amperage through each path
using OHM'S LAW.

In the example we see a 12 and 24 ohm resistor in

parallel with a 12 volt source. First we figure out the
total resistance of the circuit:

1/Rt = 1/12 + 1/24

Rt = 8 Ohms
Now that you know this you can figure out the total amperage (It) using Ohm's Law:

I total (It) = 12V / 8 Ohms = 1.5 Amps

Therefore the total amperage between the two resistive paths must equal 1.5 Amps
(Rule 3). Now we can figure out exactly what each path is pulling using Ohm's Law
once more. Remember that the voltage is the same everywhere in a parallel circuit.
So we know the voltage and the resistance:

I1 = 12V / 12 Ohm = 1 A

I2 = 12V / 24 Ohm = .5 A

We figured the total amperage (It) previously, so now we can double check if the
figures are correct:

I1 + I2 = It

1A + .5A = 1.5A - check

The total ​resistance​ of a ​series circuit​ is equal to the sum of individual resistances. 
Voltage applied to a ​series circuit​ is equal to the sum of the individual voltage 
drops. The voltage drop across a resistor in a ​series circuit​ is directly proportional 
to the size of the resistor.
Kirchhoff's​ Voltage ​Law​ (KVL) is ​Kirchhoff's second law​ that deals with the 
conservation of energy around a closed circuit path. ... His voltage l​ aw​ states that 
for a closed loop series path the algebraic sum of all the voltages around any closed 
loop in a circuit is equal to zero. 

Norton's Theorem​ states that it is possible to simplify any linear circuit, no matter 
how complex, to an equivalent circuit with just a single current source and parallel 
resistance connected to a load. 

Thevenin's Theorem​ states that “Any linear circuit containing several voltages and 
resistances can be replaced by just one single voltage in series with a single 
resistance connected across the load“. 

The s​ uperposition theorem​ states that in a linear circuit with several sources, the 
current and voltage for any element in the circuit is the sum of the currents and 
voltages produced by each source acting independently. 

An ​inductor​, also called a coil, choke, or reactor, is a passive two-terminal electrical 

component that stores energy in a magnetic field when electric current flows 
through it. An ​inductor​ typically consists of an insulated wire wound into a coil 
around a core. 

Logic gates are the basic building blocks of any digital system. It is an electronic
circuit having one or more than one input and only one output. The relationship
between the input and the output is based on a certain logic. Based on this, logic
gates are named as AND gate, OR gate, NOT gate etc.

AND Gate
A circuit which performs an AND operation is shown in figure. It has n input (n >= 2)
and one output.

Logic diagram
Truth Table

OR Gate
A circuit which performs an OR operation is shown in figure. It has n input (n >= 2)
and one output.

Logic diagram

Truth Table
NOT Gate
NOT gate is also known as Inverter. It has one input A and one output Y.

Logic diagram

Truth Table

NAND Gate
A NOT-AND operation is known as NAND operation. It has n input (n >= 2) and one
output.
Logic diagram

Truth Table

NOR Gate
A NOT-OR operation is known as NOR operation. It has n input (n >= 2) and one
output.

Logic diagram

Truth Table
XOR Gate
XOR or Ex-OR gate is a special type of gate. It can be used in the half adder, full
adder and subtractor. The exclusive-OR gate is abbreviated as EX-OR gate or
sometime as X-OR gate. It has n input (n >= 2) and one output.

Logic diagram

Truth Table
XNOR Gate
XNOR gate is a special type of gate. It can be used in the half adder, full adder and
subtractor. The exclusive-NOR gate is abbreviated as EX-NOR gate or sometime
as X-NOR gate. It has n input (n >= 2) and one output.

Logic diagram

Truth Table

​Electrical Units

Electrical & electronic units of electric current, voltage, power, resistance,

capacitance, inductance, electric charge, electric field, magnetic flux, frequency:

● Electrical & electronic units table

● Units prefix table

 ● Electrical units definitions

Electrical & electronic units table

Unit Name Unit Symbol Quantity

Ampere (amp) A Electric current​ (I)

Volt V Voltage​ (V, E)

Electromotive force (E)

Potential difference (Δφ)

Ohm Ω Resistance​ (R)

Watt W Electric power​ (P)

Decibel-milliwatt dBm Electric power​ (P)

Decibel-Watt dBW Electric power​ (P)

Volt-Ampere-Reactive var Reactive power​ (Q)

Volt-Ampere VA Apparent power​ (S)

Farad F Capacitance​ (C)

Henry H Inductance​ (L)

siemens / mho S Conductance (G)

Admittance (Y)

Coulomb C Electric charge​ (Q)

Ampere-hour Ah Electric charge​ (Q)

Joule J Energy (E)

Kilowatt-hour kWh Energy (E)

Electron-volt eV Energy (E)

Ohm-meter Ω·m Resistivity (​ρ​)

siemens per meter S/m Conductivity (​σ​)

Volts per meter V/m Electric field (E)

Newtons per coulomb N/C Electric field (E)

Volt-meter V⋅m Electric flux (Φ​e​)

Tesla T Magnetic field (B)

Gauss G Magnetic field (B)

Weber Wb Magnetic flux (Φ​m​)

Hertz Hz Frequency (f)

Seconds s Time (t)

Meter / metre m Length (l)

Square-meter m​2 Area (A)

Decibel dB

Parts per million ppm

Units prefix table

Prefix Prefix Prefix Example

Symbol factor

pico p 10​-12 1pF = 10​-12​F

nano n 10​-9 1nF = 10​-9​F

micro μ 10​-6 1μA = 10​-6​A

milli m 10​-3 1mA = 10​-3​A

kilo k 10​ 3 1kΩ = 1000Ω

mega M 10​ 6 1MHz = 10​6​Hz

giga G 10​ 9 1GHz = 10​9​Hz

Electrical units definitions

Volt (V)

Volt​ is the electrical unit of ​voltage​.

One volt is the energy of 1 joule that is consumed when electric charge of 1 coulomb

flows in the circuit.

1V = 1J / 1C

Ampere (A)

Ampere​ is the electrical unit of ​electrical current​. It measures the amount of

electrical charge that flows in an electrical circuit per 1 second.

1A = 1C / 1s

Ohm (Ω)

Ohm​ is the electrical unit of resistance.

1Ω = 1V / 1A

Watt (W)

Watt​ is the electrical unit of ​electric power​. It measures the rate of consumed

energy.

1W = 1J / 1s
1W = 1V ⋅ 1A

Decibel-milliwatt (dBm)

Decibel-milliwatt​ or ​dBm​ is a unit of ​electric power​, measured with logarithmic scale

referenced to 1mW.

10dBm = 10 ⋅ log​10​(10mW / 1mW)

Decibel-Watt (dBW)

Decibel-watt​ or ​dBW​ is a unit of ​electric power​, measured with logarithmic scale

referenced to 1W.

10dBW = 10 ⋅ log​10​(10W / 1W)

Farad (F)

Farad​ is the unit of capacitance. It represents the amount of ​electric charge​ in

coulombs that is stored per 1 volt.

1F = 1C / 1V

Henry (H)

Henry is the unit of inductance.

1H = 1Wb / 1A

siemens (S)

siemens is the unit of conductance, which is the opposite of resistance.

1S = 1 / 1Ω

Coulomb (C)
Coulomb is the unit of ​electric charge​.

1C = 6.238792×10​18​ electron charges

Ampere-hour (Ah)

Ampere-hour is a unit of ​electric charge​.

One ampere-hour is the electric charge that flow in electrical circuit, when a current

of 1 ampere is applied for 1 hour.

1Ah = 1A ⋅ 1hour

One ampere-hour is equal to 3600 coulombs.

1Ah = 3600C

Tesla (T)

Tesla is the unit of magnetic field.

1T = 1Wb / 1m​2

Weber (Wb)

Weber is the unit of magnetic flux.

1Wb = 1V ⋅ 1s

Joule (J)

Joule is the unit of energy.

1J = 1 kg ⋅ m​2​ / s​2

Kilowatt-hour (kWh)

Kilowatt-hour​ is a unit of energy.

1kWh = 1kW ⋅ 1h = 1000W ⋅ 1h

Kilovolt-amps (kVA)

Kilovolt-amps​ is a unit of power.

1kVA = 1kV ⋅ 1A = 1000 ⋅ 1V ⋅ 1A

Hertz (Hz)

Hertz is the unit of frequency. It measures the number of cycles per second.

1 Hz = 1 cycles / s
Let's take an example of a battery, for now. The battery has a positive (+) end, and a
minus ( - ) end. When you touch a wire onto both ends of the battery at the same
time, you have created a circuit. (It is generally ill advised to attempt this experiment.
Not only will there be nothing to see, but short-circuiting a battery is potentially
dangerous). What just happened? Current flowed from one end of the battery to the
other through the wire. Therefore, the definition of a circuit can simply be a
never-ending looped pathway for electrons (the battery counts as a pathway!).
The Requirement of a Closed Conducting Path
There are two requirements which must be met to establish an electric circuit. The
first is clearly demonstrated by the above activity. There must be a closed
conducting path which extends from the positive terminal to the negative terminal. It
is not enough that there is a closed connecting loop; the loop itself must extend from
the positive terminal to the negative terminal of the electrochemical cell. An electric
circuit is like a water circuit at a water park. The flow of charge through the wires is
similar to the flow of water through the pipes and along the slides of the water park.
If a pipe gets plugged or broken such that water cannot make a complete path
through the circuit, then the flow of water will soon cease. In an electric circuit, all
connections must be made and made by conducting materials capable of carrying a
charge. Metallic materials are conductors and can be inserted into the circuit to
successfully light the bulb. There must be a closed conducting loop from the positive
to the negative terminal in order to establish a circuit and to have a current.

Basic Electrical DC Circuit Theory

Current

Current​ is rate of flow of charge past a particular point or region. In the context of
electric circuits, charge is normally carried by electrons, so we consider current to be
the rate of flow of electrons past a certain point in the circuit. In most conductors, the
atoms are bonded in such a way so that the electrons are able to move around the
material without being localized to a particular atom. This allows the electrons to
"flow."
As it turns out, the movement of individual electrons within a conductor (known as
the electron's ​drift velocity​ is quite slow (around several micrometers/second for 1
A in a 2mm diameter copper wire.) However, electricity (or electric current) moves at
the speed of light. To rationalize this, imagine a long, thin tube (representing the
wire) filled with a single-file row of ball bearings (representing the electrons).
Pushing a ball bearing into the tube on one end causes another bearing to fall out
the other end almost immediately. Thus the "effect" of the current transfers almost
immediately through the tube, but each individual bearing travels much slower.
This atomic view of current also helps explain the need for a closed loop in order to
create a circuit. This means that you cannot simply attach a wire to one end of a
battery and expect electrons to flow through it. There must exist a closed loop. On
the atomic scale, it is not possible (within reasonable conditions) for electrons to just
flow off a wire into free space. Furthermore, electrons cannot accumulate within the
circuit because a large buildup of negative charge would quickly cause any current
flow to cease. Therefore, for every electron put into a circuit by a particular device
(like a battery), it must accept an electron if any kind of flow is to be achieved.

Current Flow and Direction

When Benjamin Franklin was first investigating the properties of electricity, he

observed that there were positive and negative charges at play in this phenomenon
and that there was some flow occurring. However, he had no way of knowing if the
positive charges or the negative charges were flowing. He arbitrarily selected
positive charges as the mobile charge carrier. With more advanced technology, we
now know that it is in fact the negatively charged particles (i.e. electrons) that flow in
a circuit. The problem is that by that time, positive charge flow had already become
the convention. This became known as ​conventional flow notation​ while the
opposite direction became known as ​electron flow notation​. This distinction does
not fundamentally change any circuits or much of the underlying circuit theory. The
only thing that changes is the direction the arrow is drawn when we draw current
flow. In other words, are the charge carriers flowing out of the positive end of a
battery or the negative end?
Just as where in mathematics subtracting a negative is equivalent to adding a
positive, so also a flow of positive charges in one direction is the exact same current
as a flow of negative charges in the opposite direction. As such in most applications,
the choice of current direction is an arbitrary convention.
In nearly every context you will encounter (including this wiki page), circuits will be
discussed in conventional flow notation. To convert to electron flow notation, you
can simply reverse the current directions in all branches.

Voltage

Electrons do not simply move on their own. They move only in response to a force.
This notion of the ability to move a charged particle describes ​voltage​. If an electric
field exists in space (from any source), a point charge in this space will feel a force
from this field. The strength of this force will depend on the strength of the field at
the charge's location as well as the magnitude of the charge. Voltage describes the
force caused by this field for a unit charge. In other words, it describes the potential
of the electric field to move a unit charge at a particular point in space. In this sense,
voltage describes the "push" a circuit gives to the electrons. An equivalent analogy
is a hilly piece of land. The gravitational potential would be the amount of potential
energy a ball has at various elevations per kilogram. Similarly, the electric potential
(voltage) describes the amount of potential energy a charged particle has per unit
charge.
The important take-aways from this analogy are that voltage, in general, describes
the ability of an electric field to move a particle and that voltage as a single quantity
is irrelevant. It must be given with respect to a reference point. For example, a table
on the second floor of a building could be four feet high relative to the floor but could
be 20 feet high relative to the ground floor. Similarly, the voltage at a particular point
in the circuit must be given with a particular reference point. Normally, we choose
one point in the circuit as ground from which we reference all other voltages.
However, we will sometimes refer to the voltage across a component. This means
we choose one side of the component as reference and see what the potential on
the other side of the component is.
How do voltages fit into the context of a circuit? A battery is a very common voltage
source. What this means is that some mechanism inside the battery pushes
negatively charged electrons out of the negative terminal and into the wire. This
"push" provided by the battery is the voltage. In the gravity analogy, the negative
side of the battery is the "uphill" side and the positive terminal is the "downhill" side
for the electrons. These electrons then bump electrons in the atoms of the wire over
and over until finally, electrons arrive back at the positive end of the battery.
Batteries accomplish this with a chemical reaction, but there are a number of ways
to generate a voltage. In conventional current form, the battery pushes positive
charges out the positive side of the battery, through the circuit, and back into the
negative side. This is the way circuits will generally be notated, so you will see the
current flowing out of the positive side of the battery, and we will say that the
positive terminal of a battery is at a higher voltage or potential than the negative
terminal.

Voltage, Resistance, and Amperes

For more in-depth information, see ​Circuit Lab (Episodes),​ written by a user for the
old wiki (pre-2009 season)

Amperes

To understand Amps, the coach of a baseball team can be used as an analogy. A

coach wants to make his/her team the best that it can be. There are two ways they
can do this: making the team score as much as possible and making the opposing
team score as little as possible. Focusing on both would be impossible so naturally,
the coach is going to have to choose one area to focus on. Say the coach wants to
score more runs; this circumstance can be related to the concept of "amperes." The
number of runs the team makes is the score - the more they get, the better their
chance of winning. Similarly, amperes measure the amount of current flowing per
second through an area.
On the other hand, if the coach wants to win the game, he/she doesn't necessarily
have to have the team score a whole lot of runs, the team just needs to score more
than the opponent. So, maybe the coach's resistance to their scoring of runs will be
high, which means that the number of runs needed to achieve the same goal is
less.Resistance to current flowing is also one of the important terms.

Now, how do these concepts of amperes and resistance relate? If resistance is

multiplied by the amperes, the product would be the voltage of a circuit. This
relationship was discovered by Georg Simon Ohm, and it says, simply, that:

V=I×R

V=I×R

Or
Voltage = Current times Resistance
 ● Sometimes E is used in place of V, for electromotive force (EMF)

Voltage

Imagine a battery as a super-soaker, and the water that comes out of it as voltage.
The harder someone pumps that super-soaker, the harder the stream is going to be
when it comes out of the gun. Voltage is the potential for that water exit the gun
quickly: the more the gun is pumped, more "voltage" is added in, the faster that
water will go.
But sometimes, there will be a "multi-functioning" nozzle which even allows for
adjustments of the water speed even further. For a "wider" and "bigger" stream of
water, the nozzle may have to be changed to one with a bigger opening. A nozzle
with a bigger opening increases the amount of space that the water is allowed to go
through. The water still has a high "voltage", or potential for speed and force but the
overall pressure of the water is decreased due to the stream's increased spread.
The bigger the nozzle gets (think of it like the resistance), the smaller the hitting
power (current, which is a speed in electricity too) is.
Voltage is technically electrical potential. While in many cases it is treated as an
absolute, it is important to remember that in circuits mostly the difference in voltage
is discussed, a potential difference, and that things like Ohm's laws only apply to
potential ​differences​, not just electrical potential. However, in the context of circuits,
Voltage is often used in reference to potential difference.

Resistance (Ω)

A resistor is just a piece of metal, and the piece in the center is what provides the
resistance. A resistor limits the flow of electrical current.
And as for what resistance is itself - it is the force against the flow of the electrons.
They transform the electrical energy they absorb into heat energy.
Imagine electrons - flowing along the wire, pushing new electrons to flow on, and so
on. This wire is not very hard to flow in - it's made of a material that's very
conductive. But what would happen if something was placed in the middle of the
wire that was harder for the electrons to flow through? They're going to be bumping
into all the atoms in the material, which will cause the atoms to vibrate. This, in turn,
will cause nearby air molecules to take some energy. That energy is in the form of
heat. Thus, heat would be created from the electrons bumping into atoms inside the
resistor.

Other Analogy

The other way that these three are explained is using water as an example. Imagine
the basic components of a circuit, a battery, wire, and a resistor. In the water
analogy, this translates to a pump (because the battery pushes electrons around the
circuit), some large pipe (wire), and a section of much smaller pipe (resistor). In the
water analogy, the flow rate of the pump is the same as the voltage of the battery,
and the pressure in the tubing if the same as the current in the circuit. This is a
pretty simple way to explain voltage, current, and resistance. If the voltage is
increased, but the resistance (pipe size) remains the same, it logically takes more
pressure. However, if the flow rate the remains same and put in large pipes, it takes
a lot less pressure to so the same job. Conversely, if the pressure is dropped, but
the pipe size remains the same, the flow rate goes down, and if a constant pressure
is maintained, but the pipe size increases, the flow rate goes up. And that's all there
is to it. Thus one can easily comprehend the relationships in Ohm's law.

It may help to read the derived units section to understand the units used on the
water side.

Application of Ohm's Law

 This is the basic circle.

This section doesn't teach any theory behind Ohm's law, but this is one of the
easiest ways to apply the law (or the power law, P=IV, or any similar law). Basically,
take a circle and divide into half, then divide one of the halves in half again, so there
is half a circle at the top, and two quarters at the bottom.
Then an equation would be added (any equation in the form a=bc). In the case of
the power law, P would go into the half circle, and I and V would go into quarter
circles. Now a certain value can be covered up to determine how to solve for the
covered value. For example, for finding I using P and V, P and V are uncovered
since P is on top of V, it can be determined that

I=P/V

I=P/V. If the letters are next to each other (i.e. finding P from I and V) then simply
multiply. Sure, the math behind it is very simple, but in a competition, this method
goes a lot quicker than rearranging equations.
Here's another very useful and much more detailed circle.

Base and Derived Units

SI base units are the base quantities that are independent. There is a total of seven
units, but the ones important to this event are meters (m, length), kilograms (kg,
mass), amperes (A, electric current), and seconds (s, time). Derived units are units
that come from a combination of the base units. The ones important to this event are
newtons, joules, watts, coulombs, volts, farads, siemens, and ohms. The table
below shows how each of the units is related.

Quantity measured Unit Unit Expression in other Base SI

name symbol SI Units Units

Electrostatic Force Newton N - kg*m*s​-2

Energy, work Joule J N*m m​2​*kg*s​-2

Power Watt W J/s m​2​*kg*s​-3

Electric Charge Coulom C - s*A

b
Electric Potential Volt V W/A m​2​*kg*s​-3​*A​-
1
Difference

Capacitance Farad F C/V s​4​*A​2​*m​-2​*k

g​-1

Electric Resistance Ohm Ω V/A m​2​*kg*s​-3​*A​-

2

Electric Conductance Sieman S A/V s​3​*A​2​*m​-2​*k

g​-1

Another important derived quantity that does not have a special unit name is the
electric field strength, measured in V/m.
One coulomb is also equal to the charge of 6.24 x 10​18​ electrons.

Circuit Elements

Conductors and Insulators

A pre-requisite to understanding what conductors and insulators are is

understanding the phrase "electron conductivity." This phrase is essentially the
measure of a substance to transport electrons. Conductors have a high electron
conductivity while insulators have a low electron conductivity. Conductors are
substances which transmit electrons (electricity) relatively easily with little
resistance. On the other hand, insulators do not transmit electrons easily and if they
do, they have a lot of resistance. Bear in mind, not all conductors have the same
electron conductivity and not all insulators have the same electron conductivity.
Some common examples of conductors and insulators are below.

Sources

● Voltage Source​: a theoretical component which outputs a precise,

constant voltage regardless of current. Their primary usage is in modeling
real components. For example, a battery can be modeled as a voltage
source in series with a resistor equal to its internal resistance.
● Current Source​: a theoretical component which outputs a precise,
constant current, regardless of the voltage.
Resistors

This is a basic ¼ watt resistor, the actual resistor is the part in between the two
silver leads

The color bands around the resistor signify what the resistance is, and what the
tolerance is (how accurate it is). The color codes are:

Color Valu
e

Black 0

Brown 1

Red 2

Orange 3
Yellow 4

Green 5

Blue 6

Purple 7
(Indigo)

Gray 8

White 9

Gold .1

Silver .01

Color Percen
t

Silver 10%

Gold 5%

Red 2%

Brow 1%
n

The most common tolerance is Gold, followed by Brown, but this doesn't rule out the
other possibilities. To convert the color codes into resistance values on a resistor
with 3 bands and a tolerance band, read the first two bands off in order, and then
multiply that by 10^(color of third band). In the picture it would be green, then blue,
thus 56, and then multiply it by 10^0 which is 56 x 1, or 56 ohms. If the resistor has
4 or more bands, read the first however many necessary, usually 3, until you only
have one color (not tolerance) left, and multiply by 10^(color of last band).
 Resistor Networks

Networks of resistors between two points can be simplified into an equivalent single
resistor, for which the resistance can be calculated according to the configuration
and values of the resistors within the network.

Series Resistance

The resistance of a resistor is directly proportional to the length of the resistive

material. As such, because placing resistors in series effectively adds the lengths,
resistances add in series. Therefore, for a chain of resistors, the equivalent
resistance is equal to the sum of individual resistors.

Parallel Resistance

In parallel, it is not the resistances that add, but the conductances. An analogy for
this is to imagine a crowd of people trying to get through a door. A single door will
allow so many people per minute, but if a second, adjacent, identical door is
opened, the same number of people per minute will simultaneously move through
that door. Therefore, twice the number of people will move through the doors per
minute. Similarly, two identical resistors in parallel will conduct twice the current as a
single one. Therefore the total conductance is equal to the sum of individual
conductances in parallel. As conductance is the reciprocal of resistance, the usual
formula is that

+
1

+...+

1Rt=1R1+1R2+...+1Rn for n resistors in parallel.

Networks Containing Both Series and Parallel

Many real circuits will contain a combination of both series and parallel components.
To simplify these networks, one must find parts of the networks that are purely one
or the other and simplify them according to the formulas above. One can repeat this
process until the network is simplified into a single equivalent resistor.

Wheatstone Bridge

A wheatstone bridge is used to measure an unknown resistance value to a high

degree of accuracy. It uses 4 resistors set up in a diamond fashion (shown below)
and a voltmeter. In the schematic below, Rx is the unknown resistance, R1 and R3
are fixed resistance values (generally the same, but they don't have to be the same,
also generally >1% tolerance, but again, not always) and R2 is a variable resistor
(potentiometer, this is not always the case, see below). By adjusting R2 until the
voltmeter reads 0 volts, you know that the ratio between the R1/R2 and R3/Rx is
equal.
Wheatstone Bridge Schematic (Courtesy Wikipedia)

To understand this, think of a circuit with two resistors of equal value in series,
connected to a +5v source, because the resistances are equal, the voltage drop is
equal, this kind of circuit is called a voltage divider, because the voltage in between
the two resistors is 1/2 the input voltage. Again, imagine a circuit with 2 resistors in
series connected to a +5v source, however this time, the resistors are 50 ohms and
25 ohms, because the total resistance is 75 ohms, at 5v, we can calculate the
current, and from there calculate the voltage drop from each resistor, you should
have gotten 3.33 volts across the first, and 1.66 for the second one; the voltage
happens to be in the same ratio as the resistance values; now that we've proved
that, we can apply it to the wheatstone bridge.

With that in mind, we now know that the ratio of the resistors is what controls the
voltage at the midpoint, so if two sets of resistors have the same ratio, then they
would have the same voltage. When the voltage across the bridge is 0, the sets of
resistors (R1/R2 and R3/Rx) have the same voltage, and thus the same ratio of
resistance values! Since we know the ratio of the first leg (R1/R2, remember we set
R2 to a known value to balance the bridge) and we know R3, it's fairly simple to
solve for Rx.

What if you don't want to have to change R2? Then, using the same principle, you
can take the voltage across the bridge, and calculate Rx from that. Basically, by
applying all the concepts discussed here (Kirchhoff's laws, Ohm's law, etc) you end
up at the equation

=(

VG=(RxR3+Rx−R2R1+R2)

Capacitors
Capacitors are, in DC at least, a device that stores a charge. When capacitors are in
a circuit, they are said to resist change in voltage (i.e. if the voltage in a circuit goes
up, the capacitor charges, taking away the excess voltage. If the voltage drops, the
capacitor discharges, adding back to the circuit to make up the difference. There are
many types of capacitors (Mylar, polystyrene, electrolytic, etc), but they all do the
same basic job. At the most basic level, a capacitor is comprised of two plates
separated by a dielectric (insulating material) that stores a charge, there are a few
basic concepts it may be helpful to know. First off, look at the charging circuit below,
the capacitor is uncharged in the beginning, but when the switch is closed, it begins
to charge, as it starts to charge, the resistance across it is small (thus a current
flows through the circuit, charging the capacitor), however as the voltage of the
capacitor reaches

V0, the current decays exponentially, because the voltage is smaller, less current
flows (remember?). This can also be shown by trying to measure the resistance of a
capacitor (see below, because the meter puts out a small current, that charges the
capacitor). It's useful to in some cases calculate the voltage for a capacitor as it is
charging or discharging, for which 2 formulas are incredibly helpful. For a charging
capacitor in an RC circuit:

(1−

−t/(RC)

)
 Vc=Vo(1−e−t/(RC))

For a discharging one:

−t/(RC)

).

Vc=Vo(e−t/(RC)).

Charging circuit, from wikipedia

Other Analogy
In the water analogy, a capacitor is simulated as a piece of rubber blocking the pipe.
Using this example, we can see that a DC current would flow for a time, but when
the rubber reached its elastic limit, it would stop, the same as the capacitor charge
curve discussed above. However, an AC current (imagine the water moving back
and forth very fast) would simply move the rubber back and forth, never stopping the
rubber on the other side from flowing (this is true for electricity, but in an effort to not
drone on too long, it's not in there).

Kirchhoff's Laws

Kirchhoff has two well-known laws of circuits: ​Kirchhoff's Current Law​ (KCL) and
Kirchhoff's Voltage Law​ (KVL). They are simplifications of Maxwell's Laws of
Electromagnetism that are valid for most practical circuits.

Kirchhoff's Current Law

A ​node​ is a junction in a circuit where two or more electrical components meet.

Kirchhoff's Current Law​ states that sum of currents entering a node is equal to the
sum of currents leaving the node. This is based on the assumption that charges
cannot accumulate in a node of the circuit. Equivalently, if one designates the
direction of the currents with a sign (eg all currents leaving the node are negative),
the sum of currents at each node equals zero.

Node Method

The ​Node Method​ is a powerful tool of circuit analysis that is based upon Kirchhoff's
Current Law. Basically, one writes the equation for every node in the circuit based
upon unknown variables. Then from the resultant system of equations, one can
calculate all the unknown variables and solve the circuit. It is often unnecessary for
simple circuits but becomes quite convenient for large circuits.
Detailed method:
1. Select a node to be your ​ground​ and assign it a voltage of zero. (N.B. The term
"ground" in the context of circuit analysis does not necessarily mean that it is
connected to the ground. Instead, it is a node designated at zero electrical potential
from which all other voltages are measured.)
2. Assign every other node in the circuit a variable voltage. You may in certain cases
be able to calculate a voltage for a few nodes (e.g. if the negative terminal of the
battery is connected to the ground, the node connected to the positive terminal will
have a known, positive voltage).
3. Write the KCL equation for every node in the equation. [Example soon].
4. Solve the resulting system of equations for all the unknown variables. At this
point, you know the voltage for every node in the circuit and should be able to easily
calculate anything else.

Kirchhoff's Voltage Law

Kirchhoff's Voltage Law​ (KVL) states that for any closed loop in a circuit, the sum
of voltages will be zero. One must be very careful with sign convention for this to
work. For example, in a simple series circuit of resistors and voltage sources, one
must choose either the voltage sources or the resistors to have negative voltages.
This is based on the assumption that there is no changing magnetic field.

Mesh Method

The ​Mesh Method​ is another technique of circuit analysis based upon Kirchhoff's
Voltage Law. Essentially, one designates a variable for a current circulating through
every loop in the circuit, and then writes an equation for each of these in terms of
KVL.

Equivalent circuits

Just as networks of individual resistors can be simplified into a single equivalent

resistor, so also can more complicated networks. Any network containing resistors,
current sources, and voltage sources can be transformed into a Thevenin or Norton
equivalent. This is especially useful when analyzing circuits containing other
components, as the entire rest of the circuit around the component may be a
network which has an equivalent.

Thevenin equivalent

The Thevenin equivalent circuit between two points consists of a voltage source in
series with a resistor. In order to find the Thevenin voltage, you must find the
open-circuit voltage across the two points (ie when it is broken open). The
resistance is found by removing all the power sources (replacing current sources
with shorts and voltage sources with breaks) and finding the equivalent resistance of
the resultant resistor network.

Norton equivalent
The network can also be represented by a Norton equivalent. It consists of a resistor
in parallel with a current source. The Norton resistance is equal to the Thevenin
resistance. The Norton equivalent current is equal to the current that passes
between the two points if you short circuit them.

Digital Logic

In digital logic in circuits, a current corresponds to a "true" or "1", and no or very little
current corresponds to a "false" or "0". A ​logic gate​ will take 1 or more of these
signals, perform a logical operation on it, and then either send a true or a false on its
way.
A simple example of a logic gate is a transistor. If it receives very little current
(false/0), then it does not allow current to pass through it (false/0). If it receives a
current (true/1), then it allows current to pass through it (true/1).

Gate Description Boolean Distinctive Rectangular Truth Table

Operato Shape Shape
r

NOT Turns true A

into false
and false INPU OUTPU
¯
into true. T T

Commonly ¯
A NOT A
called an
inverter. ¯
0 1
¯

1 0
A¯ or ~

A
AND Outputs true A⋅B
only when
all inputs INPU OUTPU
A⋅B or
are true. T T

A
A B A AND
B
A&

B 0 0 0

B 0 1 0

1 0 0

1 1 1

OR Outputs true A+B

if any inputs
are true. INPU OUTPU
A+B
T T

A B A OR B

0 0 0

0 1 1

1 0 1
 1 1 1

NAN Outputs A⋅B

D false when
all inputs INPU OUTPU
¯
are true. T T

¯
A B A
NAND
¯
B

¯
0 0 1
¯
0 1 1
¯

1 0 1
¯

1 1 0
¯

A⋅B¯ or

A|B
 A|B

NOR Outputs A+B

false when
any inputs INPU OUTPU
¯
are true. T T

¯
A B A NOR
B
¯

¯ 0 0 1

¯ 0 1 0

¯
1 0 0

¯
1 1 0

¯
 A+B¯ or

A−B

A−B

XOR Outputs true A⊕B

when
exactly one A⊕B INPU OUTPU
input is true. T T

A B A XOR
B

0 0 0

0 1 1

1 0 1

1 1 0

XNO Outputs true A⊕B

R when input
signals are ¯ INPU OUTPU
the same. T T

¯
A B A
XNOR
¯
B
 ¯ 0 0 1

¯
0 1 0

¯
1 0 0

¯
1 1 1
¯

A⊕B¯ or

A⊙B

A⊙B

Information Source

Alternating Current (AC)

As of the 2013 season, Alternating Current is a disallowed topic under the rules.
However, as of the 2018 season, Alternating Current is a allowed topic under the
rules to a certain extent.""
Up until now, the entire discussion (minus a mention when talking about capacitors)
has dealt with DC, or direct current. In a DC circuit, current flows from the positive to
the negative terminals of a battery or other source, that it (electrons flow the
opposite, see above). However, the power in your house is AC, not DC. AC, or
alternating current, is much more complicated. Basically, the direction of the current
flow change, if voltage vs time is plotted, instead of a line (for DC), a sine wave is
graphed. This yields many advantages, namely, the use of transformers for voltage
step-up/step-down.

Single Phase

Single phase AC (only one wire that's 'hot' or has voltage in it) is most of what's in
your home. It has a hot and neutral line. The hotline varies between the minimum
and maximum voltage, and neutral stays around 0v. The switch direction does not
matter much for simple devices like light bulbs, but more complicated devices
generally convert AC into DC before use through a rectifier (usually a diode bridge).
As a side note, an inverter is used to convert DC into AC. The benefit of this is that
AC enables the use of transformers to easily step-up and step-down the voltage.

Transformers

The diagram of a transformer is as shown below:

On the left hand side of the diagram is the primary circuit, where the the initial AC
voltage source provides power to the circuit. The primary coil (on the left hand side
of the transformer) and secondary coil (on the right hand side of the transformer) are
wrapped around the iron core. These coils are both considered to be
electromagnetic inductors. The changing magnetic field in primary coil then induces
a voltage in the secondary coil according to the formula
VpNp=VsNs

VpNp=VsNs,where ​VpVp and VsVs are the voltages of the primary and secondary
coils respectively, and Np Np and Ns

Ns are the number of turns on the primary and secondary coils respectively. Thus, it
can be seen that the voltage of the each coil is directly proportional to the number of
turns in that coil.

It isn't possible to build a DC transformer because the magnetic field of the primary
coil would be constant. Remember that, according to Faraday's law, constant
magnetic fields can't induce the voltage needed to create a current in the secondary
coil, only changing magnetic fields can.

Phase Shift

Imagine a sine wave. Now, put another sine wave on top of it, only flipped. These
waves are said to be 180 degrees out of phase - either wave could be moved 180
degrees along the x-axis and the waves would line up. This is phase shift.

Power Factor

Power Triangle, the power factor is the angle between apparent power and real
power, from wikipedia

In a normal AC waveform graph, there is both a voltage vs. time waveform and a
current vs. time one. The two are normally in sync and always have positive power
(signs switch as the zero-crossing, so the product is always positive). This occurs in
a purely resistive load like a perfect lightbulb, and when the two are in sync, the
power factor is always 1, a perfect power factor. However, this never happens. On
the other hand, when the voltage and current are 90 degrees out of phase, the
power transfer is half negative and half positive, so there is no net power transfer.
This occurs in a purely inductive or capacitive load (i.e. a motor), and the power
factor is 0. This also never happens. In the real world, every wire has resistance,
inductance, and capacitance (they are very negligible, small wire is in the 1-10
milliohms/ft), which causes the power factor to never be perfect.
Although there are many units that go along with AC, the most important are: watts,
which are real power, the work that can be done through a motor; volt-amps (VA)
are apparent power, the power that wires and cables must handle;
volt-amps-reactive (VAR) are the power the wires must carry, but cannot do real
work. These three main units are related in the power triangle shown to the right.
Most power companies do not want reactive power, charging more for businesses
with low power factor loads (bigger wires are needed), and inductors or capacitors
can be placed to correct for the bad power factor. However, there are some uses for
reactive power. For example, in drilling rigs, when a rig holds the top drive, most rigs
using AC motors don't actually use any power. They only use enough to overcome
the resistive losses in the wire/control system (VFD) and motor, approximately 50A
at 60V, or 30KVA. This is a tiny amount of power to hold a block weighing a little
over a million pounds. This occurs because about 1200A (720KVA) flows between
the motor and the VFD, but the motor is almost a purely inductive load, so no real
power is used.

Polyphase

Although a complex-sounding word, polyphase has a simple meaning. Whereas a

single phase system has one wire with changing voltage, a polyphase (many-phase)
system has multiple wires carrying current at a time, shifted (time delayed) by a
certain amount. The most common is 3-phase power, which is used in many
factories and industrial places, anywhere where large motors are involved. In this
system, there are 3 wires carrying power, each of them shifted 120 degrees from the
other. In this case, there is always a voltage between the phases (due to the shift)
and a neutral is not required. The benefit to this is that the power through the system
is constant, instead of varying like single phase (add up the magnitude of the 3
waves at any point and it will always be the same number). Polyphase is also useful
in motors because the motors become self-starting; in an AC motor, the magnetic
field must come from two points, and there must be a phase shift between the two
so that the field 'rotates' around the stator (motor shaft). In a single phase system,
this isn't possible, so most motors need to be moving to start (so the stator is
already moving through the field), in three phase, the phase shift is already present,
so the motor can start itself, it can also apply full torque without any speed, because
the field can 'hold' the stator in place. This is useful in cranes and oil derricks,
removing the need for a mechanical break. Systems that use more than 3 phases
exist, but almost solely for motor applications where higher speeds are required.

Other Topics

Inductors

An inductor is essentially an electromagnet that exhibits special characteristics in a

circuit. It can be described as the opposite of a capacitor, but this is slightly
misleading. An inductor can store a charge in a magnetic field (capacitors store it in
an electric field) and can maintain a constant current in a circuit (capacitors maintain
a constant voltage). An inductor easily conducts DC (capacitors easily conduct AC),
but it AC is put through an inductor, the magnetic field grows and collapses with the
rise and fall of the current, which tends to opposes the flow of AC through an
inductor.
In the water analogy from above, an inductor is a waterwheel, with a constant flow of
water through it. The waterwheel spins normally. However, with an alternating flow,
the water wheel continuously tries to turn back and forth, limiting the flow of water.

Diodes

The defining feature of a diode is that it primarily allows current to flow through it in
one direction. Applying voltage in the direction that causes current to flow is known
as ​forward-biasing​ the diode. Applying a voltage in the other direction across the
terminals is known as ​reverse-biasing​. An ideal diode has zero resistance in the
forwards direction and infinite resistance in the backwards direction.
Most diodes today are formed from the junction of P-type and N-type silicon. Other
materials such as Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) and Germanium are also used to make
diodes.
The schematic symbol for a P-N diode is an arrow with a line across the tip. This
indicates that conventional current can flow in the direction of the arrow but is
blocked in the reverse direction.
In the water analogy, the diode is simply a check-valve (one-way valve).

Characteristics

Forward Voltage
All practical (non-ideal) diodes exhibit a ​forward voltage drop​. In other words,
when a diode is forwards biased, it will exhibit a voltage drop across it. For a typical
P-N junction diode, this forward voltage drop will be around 0.7 V. This also means
that it requires more than 0.7 V across the terminals of the diode to actually get any
significant current flow through the diode (i.e. the diode "turns on" at 0.7 V). An ideal
diode has zero forward voltage drop.
Reverse Recovery Time
Reverse recovery time​ describes the amount of time it takes for the diode to stop
current flow in the reverse direction. In other words, when switching from forward to
reverse biasing, this is the amount of time it takes for the diode to switch from
conducting to non-conducting or to "turn off". For P-N diodes, the reverse recovery
time will be around 1 microsecond.
Breakdown (Avalanche or Zener) Voltage
The last major characteristic of diodes is the ​breakdown voltage​, the maximum
amount of voltage the diode can withstand without breaking down and conducting
when reverse biased. An ideal diode has an infinite breakdown voltage, but practical
diodes will break down when a sufficiently high voltage is used to reverse-bias the
diode. For P-N diodes, this can be anywhere from around 50 V to hundreds, if not
thousands, of volts. While there are subtle differences, generally both "avalanche"
and "zener" will refer to diode breakdown. These are simply two different
mechanisms responsible for the breakdown of the junction.

Types

P-N Diode
These diodes are common, general-purpose diodes that are formed from the
junction of P-type and N-type semiconductors.
Schottky Diode
Schottky diodes are formed from the junction of a semiconductor with a metal. They
tend to have a very fast reverse recovery time (often around 0.1 - 10 ns) and lower
forward voltage drop than P-N diodes. However, they are often limited by a relatively
low reverse breakdown voltage.
Light Emitting Diode (LED)
Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) are diodes designed to produce light at the junction.
Generally, LEDs producing shorter wavelength colors have higher forward voltage
drops.
Zener Diode
While most diodes should not be operated near their breakdown voltage, zener
diodes are designed to break down repeatedly at a precisely set voltage. So a 1.2 V
zener diode will breakdown when a reverse voltage exceeding 1.2 V is applied to it.
They are often used to clamp or limit voltages to a certain amount since the reverse
voltage across a zener diode will not exceed its rated reverse voltage.

Circuit Analysis with Ideal Diodes

Ideal diodes can generally be approximated by either a short or a break in the

circuit. To analyze a circuit with an ideal diode, and educated guess must be made
on whether or not the diode conducts. Once a solution is found for this circuit, one
much check if it makes sense. If the diode is assumed to conduct, one must make
sure it is conducting current in the correct direction. If the diode is assumed not to
conduct, one must check to make sure the voltage across the non-conducting diode
is such that it would not conduct. If this is not the case, the assumptions must be
switched and the circuit recalculated.
For first-order diode approximations, diodes may be assumed to have a 0.7 V
forward voltage. If this is specified in the problem, you will need to take this voltage
drop into account when writing out the equations for KVL and KCL. As before, make
an educated guess about the biasing of the diode and check these assumptions
afterwards.

Lab Component

Breadboards

Fullsize breadboard
 Connections within the breadboard

Breadboards​ are a common tool used when prototyping electronics. They are a
plastic boards with an array of sockets that electronic components can plug into.
Underneath the sockets are copper clips that serve to hold any inserted components
in place as well as make electrical connections between components.
Breadboards facilitate prototyping by making it easy to make temporary connections
between components. Along each long edge of the board are two columns of
sockets, often indicated by the colored lines and shown by the red arrows in the
image. These are known as the power rails or as bus strips. Each column in the
power rails is fully connected by the copper clips underneath the board. This makes
them easily accessible from anywhere on the board and hence makes them useful
for supplying power to components. Some larger breadboards will have a split in the
middle of the power rail. This can be checked quickly with a multimeter. All the other
sockets on the board are connected in groups horizontally, in 1x5 rows. This space
is generally used to connect components together.

Multimeters
 Fluke 287 multimeter, note the separate jacks for measuring current.

Multimeters​ are devices that can measure various electrical properties of circuits
and electronic components. The most common measurements are voltage,
resistance, and current. Multimeters are a combination of voltmeters, ohmmeters,
and ammeters. Modern multimeters include the ability to measure many other
properties such as capacitance, temperature, and frequency of AC signals.

Basic Usage

First, identify the desired quantity to be measured (e.g. volts, amps, ohms). Most
meters will have 3-4 sockets along the bottom to plug in the probes. Plug the black
probe into the COM socket. This is COMmon ground. Plug the red probe into the
socket corresponding to the property you are measuring. On most meters, there will
be two options for current: mA and 10A. These ports are normally protected by a
fuse. The limit of the fuse should be indicated next to the socket. Generally, the mA
socket will be fused to around 200 mA. If expected measurement exceeds the rating
of the fuse, use the 10A socket. If the expected measurement exceeds 10A (and the
10A socket is fused for 10A), a different device will be required to perform the
measurement. (If this wiki is your primary source of information, then you should
definitely not be measuring anything in the range of 10A as this is an extremely
dangerous amount of current.)
Once the probes have been plugged in, turn the dial on the meter to the
corresponding symbol of the property being measured. Some multimeters will have
various units for each type of measurement (e.g. uA, mA, A). Estimate the
magnitude of the quantity you are measuring and pick the correct range. If you have
any doubts, choose the highest value. Note that on most meters, the high-current
setting will only read from the high-current socket.
When reading the meter, it is important to keep track of units. Misjudging the units
being measured can cause calculations to be off by several orders of magnitude.
For example, if you are on the mV setting, then the number displayed will be in mV.
Also, if using a meter that has different precision levels, make sure to use the level
of precision that provides the most unique digits; a reading of 1 V is less helpful than
a reading of 1123 mV. Finally, as with all pieces of equipment, typical safety
procedures and measures should be taken when using meters. Generally, most
multimeters are easy and safe to use, but common sense still applies.
Measuring Voltage
The ​Voltmeter​ measures the voltage between two points in a circuit. As a result, the
circuit should be powered on when measuring voltage (otherwise all points on the
circuit will have a voltage of 0V). With the circuit on, touch the black lead to one
point and the red lead to the other point. This is called placing the meter in 'parallel'
to the circuit. The number displayed is the voltage at the red probe relative to the
voltage at the black probe. Remember that voltage refers to a potential ​difference
between two points.
When the voltmeter is placed in parallel to the circuit, a small amount of current will
be siphoned off the circuit and into the meter to actually make the measurement.
However, the Voltmeter has a very high internal resistance, around

10MΩ

10MΩ, so it has minimal impact on the circuit (i.e. siphons off a minimal amount of
current) when placed in parallel.

Measuring Current
The ​Ammeter​ measures the current through a section of a circuit. To use an
Ammeter, find the segment of the circuit being measured and break the circuit apart
at that location. Place one lead on one end of the break and the other lead on the
other end. This is referred to as placing the meter in 'series' with the circuit.
It is necessary for the current to pass through the meter in order to measure it. To
prevent the meter from dropping a large amount of voltage and impacting the rest of
the circuit, the Ammeter has a very low internal resistance. Because of this fact, ​it is
essential that the multimeter NOT be placed in parallel with the circuit.​ Doing
 so is equivalent to placing a low-resistance wire in parallel with the component. In
some situations, this can cause large amounts of current to flow through the
multimeter and damage it. As a preventative measure, multimeter designers put
fuses on these sockets which will blow when too much current is passed through. If
this occurs, find the rating of the fuse on the face of the meter and replace the fuse
with one of the same size and rating.
Measuring Resistance
The ​Ohmmeter​ measures the resistance of a circuit element. It can be placed either
in series or parallel to the element. If an Ohmmeter is not provided, one can also
place a Voltmeter parallel to the element and an Ammeter in series with the element
and apply Ohm's Law to calculate the resistance.

(Ohm’s Law)Voltage/Resistance = I (Amps) V= I x R

​Coulomb’s law​ states. The magnitude of the electrostatic force of attraction or 
repulsion between two point charges is directly proportional to the product of the 
magnitudes of charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between 
them. 
Gustav Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law​ is the second of his fundamental laws we can use for 
circuit analysis. His voltage law states that for a closed loop series path the algebraic 
sum of all the voltages around any closed loop in a circuit is equal to zero. This is 
because a circuit loop is a closed conducting path so no energy is lost. 

 
 
Voltage(V)​- Unit of electric potential or how much 
the charge is being “pushed”. Batteries are 1.5 to 25 v. Home electricity is 110 to 220 v. 
Lightning can be millions. Also called potential difference. Is the force behind the 
electrons. 
Ampere/Amp(A​)- Unit of electric current or how many electrons go past a given point in 
a second. Amperage can heat up a wire to the point where it melts or starts a fire. 
Direct Current(DC)​- An electric current of constant direction. All batteries are DC. Most 
circuit lab problems are DC.  
Alternating Current(AC)​- Electric current that regularly changes direction. House 
electricity and power lines are AC. AC is more dangerous than DC. AC has less power 
loss to heat so it is used for generation and transmission. AC is transmitted at very high 
voltages and stepped down using a transformer. 
Resistance( Ω ​ )​- Many resistors and conductors have a uniform cross section with a 
uniform flow of electric current, and are made of one material. Increase in resistance: 
longer lengths, less/smaller cross section, higher temperature, less conductive material. 
Decrease in resistance: shorter lengths larger area/cross section, lower temperature, 
more conductive material. 
 
  
Alessandro Volta​ , in full Conte Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio Volta, (born 
February 18, 1745, Como, Lombardy [Italy]—died March 5, 1827, Como), Italian physicist 
whose invention of the electric battery provided the first source of continuous current. 
 
André-Marie Ampère​, (born January 22, 1775, Lyon, France—died June 10, 1836, 
Marseille), French physicist who founded and named the science of electrodynamics, 
now known as electromagnetism. His name endures in everyday life in the ampere, the 
unit for measuring electric current. 
 
Charles-Augustin de Coulomb​, (born June 14, 1736, Angouleme, France—died August 
23, 1806, Paris), French physicist best known for the formulation of Coulomb’s Law 
which states that the force between two electrical charges is proportional to the 
product of the charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between 
them. Coulombic Force is one of the principal forces involved in atomic reactions. 
CALCULATING THE POWER SUPPLIED TO A CIRCUIT 
Use Ohm’s law(V=I/R) Use the amps gained from the equation and multiply it by the 
voltage to determine the power. 
 
Gustav Kirchhoff’s Current Law​ is one of the fundamental laws used for circuit analysis. 
His current law states that for a parallel path the total current entering a circuits junction 
is exactly equal to the total current leaving the same junction. This is because it has no 
other place to go as no charge is lost. 
 
 
 
 
Georg Ohm​, in full​ ​Georg Simon Ohm, (born March 16, 1789, Erlangen, 
Baveria[Germany]—died July 6, 1854, Munich), German physicist who discovered the 
law, named after him, which states that the current flow through a conductor is directly 
proportional to the potential difference (voltage) and inversely proportional to the 
resistance. 
 
Gustav Kirchhoff​, in full Gustav Robert Kirchhoff, (born March 12, 1824, Konigsberg, 
Prussia [now Kaliningrad, Russia]—died October 17, 1887, Berlin, Germany), German 
physicist. In 1845 Kirchhoff first announced Kirchhoff’s Laws which allow calculation of 
the currents, voltages, and resistances of electrical networks. Extending the theory of 
the German physicist Georg Somin Ohm he generalized the equations describing 
current flow to the case of electrical conductors in three dimensions. In further studies 
he demonstrated that current flows through a conductor at the speed of light. 
 
Nikola Tesla​, (born July 9/10, 1856, Smiljan, Austrian Empire [now in Croatia]—died 
January 7, 1943, New York, U.S.), Serbian American inventor and engineer who 
discovered and patented the rotating magnetic field, the basis of most 
alternating-current machinery. He also developed the three-phase system of electric 
power transmission. He immigrated to the United States in 1884 and sold the patent 
rights to his system of alternating-current dynamos, transformers, and motors to 
George Westinghouse In 1891 he invented the Tesla coil, an induction coil widely used 
in radio technology. 
 
Michael Faraday​, (born September 22, 1791, Newington, Surrey, England—died August 
25, 1867, Hampton Court, Surrey), English physicist and chemist whose many 
experiments contributed greatly to the understanding of electromagnetism. His major 
contribution, however, was in the field of electricity and magnetism. He was the first to 
produce an electric current from a magnetic field, invented the first electric motor and 
dynamo, demonstrated the relation between electricity and chemical bonding, 
discovered the effect of magnetism on light, and discovered and named diamagnetism, 
the peculiar behaviour of certain substances in strong magnetic fields. He provided the 
experimental, and a good deal of the theoretical, foundation upon which James Clerk 
Maxwell erected classical electromagnetic field theory. 
OBJECTIVES 
Verifying experimentally Kirchoff’s laws and Ohm’s law in a series-parallel circuit. 
Establishing experimental error limits within which the laws can be verified with the 
instruments in the laboratory. 
 
 
PRELAB 
Write Kirchoff’s Voltage Law (KVL) for two loops, and Kirchoff’s Current Law (KCL) for 
one of the nodes in the circuit shown in Fig. 2. Make a brief plan for verifying these laws 
(what to measure? how to show that the laws are true?).  
 
Redraw the circuit in Fig. 2 including connections to a voltmeter and an ammeter 
needed to show that the measured voltage and current satisfies Ohm’s Law applied to 
resistors R1. Repeat for resistor R4. 
 
LABORATORY 
Equipment needed: ECE291 parts kit, a protoboard, leads. 
 
Select four resistors in the 1k to 20k range from the parts kit, not using more than two 
resistors of the same nominal value. Nominal values can be determined from the color 
code but measure precisely each resistor with the digital meter at your bench. Using 
these resistors, assemble the circuit shown in Fig. 2 on a proto-board. Connect leads 
from the DC power supply to the terminals on the board and connect the terminals to 
the circuit with small wires by pushing their ends into the holes in the board. Set the 
voltage on the power supply to a few volts. 
 
Network of resistors with svs 
Fig. 2. A network of resistors with a single voltage source 
 
1. KIRCHOFF’S VOLTAGE LAW 
Measure voltages with the DVM across all resistors(V1 to V4). Switch the voltmeter to 
an appropriate range for a given voltage, so that you can measure it with the best 
precision that the meter can provide (maximum number of digits on the display). 
Measure also the source voltage Vs with the same meter. 
 
HINT: Voltage between two points in a circuit can be measured by touching them with 
the ends of voltmeter leads, provided that you can make a good and steady contact at 
the time of reading (easy in a two person team). If you need to make a continuous 
contact to a circuit point on a proto-board, do not grab circuit elements (resistors) with 
spring clips at the end of the leads. The parts can be pooled from the board holes 
loosing contact or even damaged. It is much better to insert an extra small wire to an 
adjacent hole in the board and clip the meter lead to that wire. 
 
Using the measured voltage values show that KVL applies to two loops in the circuit in 
Fig. 2. Write the law in the form of an equation with the source voltage on one side and 
the sum of appropriate voltages on the other. Substitute the measured voltages into the 
equation. If both side of the equation are not equal, express their difference in percent. 
The difference should not be much larger than the precision of your instruments. 
 
ADVICE: make calculations in your notebook in the laboratory. If there is a serious 
discrepancy between calculated and measured values you can verify your results. It will 
be too late when you discover problems writing the report at home. 
 
2. KIRCHOFF’S CURRENT LAW 
Verify now KCL for one of the nodes in the circuit in Fig. 2. Instead of measuring 
voltages across resistors, measure now currents flowing through resistors. Remember 
that an ammeter must be connected differently than a voltmeter. You can not connect it 
across a circuit element as this would make a parallel circuit with very different currents 
in each branch. It may be even dangerous to the meter and the circuit since an 
ammeter has a very low resistance; it is practically a short circuit. Instead you need to 
connect an ammeter in series with a circuit, so that the same current flows through the 
meter and a given resistor. This is somewhat more involved than voltmeter 
measurements because you need to break a circuit branch and to insert the ammeter in 
the break. Again, it is better not to grab resistors with the spring clips at the end of the 
meter leads but to attach the clips to small wires inserted into contact holes on the 
board. 
 
Verify that KCL applies to the selected circuit node by inserting the measured current 
values to an appropriate equation and analyzing a numerical difference between the two 
sides. 
 
3. OHM’S LAW 
Now that you measured voltages across all resistors in the circuit and currents flowing 
through them, it is easy to check if Ohms law applies to the circuit. Prepare a table 
listing the voltages and currents for all four resistors. In one of the columns list 
resistances calculated from these voltages and currents using Ohm’s law. In next 
column list the resistances measured with the digital ohmmeter. The last column 
should give the relative difference (in percent) between the two resistance columns, 
which indicate to what extend your measurements agree with Ohm’s law.  
Finally, calculate the total resistance of the (series-parallel) circuit using the resistances 
measured with the ohmmeter and verify that it agrees with the voltage and current from 
the source. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Definitions: 
Potential Difference​ – when subatomic particles are separated and want to reform 
together, the force of that reformation; difference in voltage between any 2 points 
(voltage drop). 

Electrical Circuit​ – Electrons want to naturally go toward protons and this flow is called 
electrical circuit. 

Voltage​ – potential energy stored in the form as electrical charge; essentially pushes 
electrons through a conductor. 

​Circuit​ – A circuit is a closed loop conducting path in which an electrical current flows. 
 
​Path​ – A single line of connecting elements or sources. 

​Node​ – A node is a junction, connection or terminal within a circuit were two or more 
circuit elements are connected or joined together giving a connection point between 
two or more branches. A node is indicated by a dot. 

Branch​ – A branch is a single or group of components such as resistors or a source 

which are connected between two nodes. 
 
Loop​ – A loop is a simple closed path in a circuit in which no circuit element or node is 
encountered more than once. 
 
Mesh​ – A mesh is a single open loop that does not have a closed path. There are no 
components inside a mesh. 

Notes: 
i. Historical perspective of the electricity discoveries made by Volta, Ohm, Tesla, Hertz, 
& Faraday 

Volta- “string current” and created the battery which are now measured in Volts. Volta's 
battery was the first available source of electrical current. 

Ohm ​- known for formulation Ohm’s Law 

- Ohm’s Law describes the mathematical relationship between electrical Current, 

resistance and voltage. Ohm’s law states that a steady current(I) flowing through a 
material of a given resistance is directly proportional to the applied voltage(V) and 
inversely proportional to the resistance(R). 

Tesla-had over 100 patents over the course of his life. Tesla pioneered radio technology, 
experimented with X-rays, invented the first boat controlled remotely, and was a great 
proponent of wireless communication. Developed alternating current (AC), created 
through the rotation of a magnetic field. 

Hertz​ - Discovered radio waves. Studied the behavior of radio waves and how it could be 
focused, diffracted, refracted and polarized. 

Faraday​ - the first to realize that an electric current could be produced by passing a 
magnet through a copper wire. The electric generator and motor are based on his 
principles. 

ii. Properties of electric charge/fields, sources/hazards of static electricity, Coulomb’s 

Law, capacitance, and Properties of electrical charge/fields. 

• Electric charge is the physical property of matter that causes it to experience force 
when placed in an electromagnetic field. 
• There are two types of electric charges; positive and negative (commonly carried by 
protons and electrons respectively). Like charges repel and unlike attract. AN object 
with an absence of net charge is referred to as neutral 

• Charge is in unit Columbs(c), it is always conserved.