Physics Scholastic Year _____ / _____

Studysheet (9)

4.4 Digital electronics-

4.5 Dangers of electricity

Student’s Name: _________________________

Grade: Grade 9 IG

Section ( )

Subject: Physics

Teacher’s Name: Ayman Mustafa

Form # QF12 -66e rev.a

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Objectives:

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Digital electronics
Analogue and digital electronics
- In analogue circuits, voltages (and currents) can have any value within a certain
range over which they can be varied smoothly and continuously, as shown in Figure
below.
- A variable resistor is an analogue device which, in a circuit with a lamp, allows the
lamp to have a wide range of light levels.

- In digital circuits, voltages have only one of two values, either ‘high’ (e.g. 5 V) or ‘low’
(e.g. near 0 V), as shown in Figure below.
- A switch is a digital device which allows a lamp to be either ‘on’ or ‘off’.

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Logic gates
- Logic gates are switching circuits used in computers and other electronic systems.
- They ‘open’ and give a ‘high’ output voltage, i.e. a signal (e.g. 5 V).
- There are five basic types, all made from transistors in integrated circuit form.
Type pf Symbol Function Truth table
logic
gate
1 NOT
gate or Whatever the input, the
inverter gate inverts it.

2 OR gate output is 1 if input A OR

input B OR both are 1

3 NOR output is 1 if neither

gate input A NOR input B is 1

4 AND output is 1 if input A

gate AND input B are 1

5 NAND output is 1 if input A

gate AND input B are NOT
both 1

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Dangers of electricity
a) Electric shock
- Electric shock occurs if current flows from an electric circuit through a person’s body
to earth.
- It happens because of
1. damaged insulation
2. faulty wiring
- The typical resistance of dry skin is about 10000 Ω, so if a person touches a wire
carrying electricity at 240 V, an estimate of the current flowing through them to
earth would be 24 mA.
- For wet skin, the resistance is lowered to about 1000 Ω so the current would
increase to around 240 mA.
- The strength of an electric shock depends on
1. The size of the current.
2. The length of time for which it acts.
- A current of 100 mA through the heart is likely to be fatal.
- Damp conditions increase the severity of an electric shock because water lowers the
resistance.
- How to reduce the severity of an electric shock
1. Wearing shoes with insulating rubber soles increases the resistance between a
person and earth.
2. standing on a dry insulating floor increases the resistance between a person and
earth.
To avoid the risk of getting an electric shock:
1. Switch off the electrical supply to an appliance before starting repairs.
2. Use plugs that have an earth pin and a cord grip; a rubber or plastic case is preferred.
3. Do not allow appliances or cables to come into contact with water.
4. Do not have long cables trailing across a room, under a carpet that is walked over
regularly or in other situations where the insulation can become damaged.
In case of an electric shock, take the following action:
1. Switch off the supply.
2. Send for qualified medical assistance.
3. If breathing or heartbeat has stopped, commence CPR (cardiopulmonary
resuscitation) by applying chest compressions at the rate of about 100 a minute until
there are signs of chest movement or medical assistance arrives.

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 b) Fire risks
- If the electrical wiring in the walls of a house becomes overheated, a fire may start.
- Wires become hot when they carry electrical currents. The larger the current, the
hotter the wire will become.
To reduce the risk of overheating the cables, follow these precautions:
1. Use plugs that have the correct fuse.
2. Do not attach too many appliances to a circuit.
3. Don’t overload circuits by using too many adapters.
4. Appliances such as heaters use large amounts of power (and hence current). So, use
thick wires which have a lower resistance.
The factors leading to fi re or electric shock can be summarized as follows:
1. damaged insulation → electric shock and fire risk.
2. overheated cables → fire risk.
3. damp conditions → increased severity of electric shocks.

Fuses
- A fuse is a short length of wire of
material with a low melting point.
- It protects a circuit.
- It melts and breaks the circuit when
the current in it exceeds a certain
value.
- Two reasons for excessive currents
1. short circuits
2. overloaded circuits
- A fuse should ensure that the current-carrying capacity of the wiring is not
exceeded.
- Calculation of a current in a device allows the correct size of fuse to be chosen.

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Circuit breakers
- Used instead of fuses in consumer units.
- They contain an electromagnet which, when the current exceeds the rated value of
the circuit breaker, becomes strong enough to separate a pair of contacts and breaks
the circuit.
- They operate much faster than fuses.
- They can be reset.

Earthing
- It is a connection to the metal case of the appliance which is thus joined to earth by
a path of almost zero resistance.
- It is a safety precaution to prevent electric shock.
- If the appliance is not earthed, the case would become ‘live’ and anyone touching it
would receive a shock which might be fatal.