Chapter 4.

Circuits Theorem
Source Transformation,
Superposition and Thevenin/Norton
Theorem
 In this chapter, Source transformation will be
covered.
 The concept of superposition will also be
introduced.
 Thevenin and Norton’s theorems will be covered.
 Examples of applications for these concepts will be
presented.

2
 Much like the delta-wye transformation, it is possible
to transform a source from one form to another
 This can be useful for simplifying circuits
 The principle behind all of these transformations is
equivalence

3
 A source transformation is the process of replacing a
voltage source vs in series with a resistor R by a
current source is in parallel with a resistor R, or vice
versa.

4
 These transformations work because the two
sources have equivalent behavior at their terminals
 If the sources are turned off the resistance at the
terminals are both R
 From this we get the following requirement:

vs
vs = is R or is =
R

5
 Source transformation also applies to dependent
sources
 But, the dependent variable must be handled carefully
 The same relationship between the voltage and current
holds here:

6
 Note that the arrow of the current source is directed
towards the positive terminal of the voltage source
 Source transformation is not possible when R=0 for
an ideal voltage source
 For a realistic source, R0
 For an ideal current source, R= also prevents the
use of source transformation

7
The principle of superposition
• is anceptual aid that can be very useful in visualizing the
behavior of a circuit containing multiple sources.
• applies to any linear system and for a linear circuit may
be stated as follows:

In a linear circuit containing N sources, each branch voltage and current is the
sum of N voltages and currents each of which may be computed by setting
all but one source equal to zero and solving the circuit containing that single
source.

8
An elementary illustration of the
concept may easily be obtained by
simply considering a circuit with
two sources connected in series,
as shown
VB1 + VB2 VB1 VB2
i= = +
R R R

9
 Using superposition means applying one independent
source at a time
 Dependent sources are left alone

 The steps are:

1.Turn off all independent sources except one source. Find the
output (voltage or current) due to that active source.
2.Repeat step 1 for each of the other independent sources.
3.Find the total contribution by adding algebraically all the
contributions due to the independent sources.

1
0
 Developed by a French Telegraph Engineer, M.
Leon Thevenin in 1883
 Thevenin’s theorem is very powerful in circuit
analysis.
 It allows one to simplify a circuit
 A large circuit may be replaced by a single
independent voltage source and a single resistor.
 The equivalent circuit behaves externally exactly the
same as the original circuit.

11
 Thevenin’s theorem states that a
linear two terminal circuit may be
replaced with a voltage source and
resistor

 The voltage source’s value is equal

to the open circuit voltage at the
terminals

 The resistance is equal to the

resistance measured at the terminals
when the independent sources are
turned off.

12
 There are two cases to consider when finding the
equivalent resistance
 Case 1: If there are no dependent sources, then the
resistance may be found by simply turning off all the
sources

13
 FOCUS ON METHODOLOGY
Computation of Equivalent Resistance of a One-Port Network
1. Remove the load.
2. Zero all independent voltage and current sources.
3. Compute the total resistance between load terminals, with
the load removed. This resistance is equivalent to that
which would be encountered by a current source
connected to the circuit in place of the load.
 Case 2: If there are
dependent sources, we still
turn off all the independent
sources.

 Now apply a voltage v0 (or

current i0) to the terminals
and determine the current i0
(voltage v0).

15
 Similar to Thevenin’s
theorem, Norton’s theorem
states that a linear two
terminal circuit may be
replaced with an equivalent
circuit containing a resistor
and a current source

 The Norton resistance will be

exactly the same as the
Thevenin

16
 The Norton current IN is found by short circuiting
the circuit’s terminals and measuring the resulting
current
I N = isc

17
 These two equivalent circuits can be related to
each other
 One need only look at source transformation to
understand this
 The Norton current and Thevein voltage are
related to each other as follows:
VTh
IN =
RTh

18
Definition
The Norton equivalent current is equal to the short-circuit current that
would flow were the load replaced by a short circuit.

FOCUSONMETHODOLOGY
Computing the Norton Current
1. Replace the load with a short circuit.
2. Define the short circuit current, iSC, to be the Norton equivalent
current.
3. Apply any preferred method (e.g., nodal analysis) to solve for iSC.
4. The Norton current is iN = iSC.

19
The Thévenin and Norton models imply that some of the power generated
by the source will necessarily be dissipated by the internal circuits within the
source.

Given VT and RT, what value of RL will allow for

maximum power transfer?

20
• Loads drawing large amount of current will dissipate or
use a large amounts of power.
• speakers, motors, displays - low output resistance - large current.
• The Internal resistance of the circuit in series with a load
dissipates some of the power in the circuit.
• Circuit design must always consider the efficiency at
which the power is supplied to a load.
• GOAL: Maximize the power transferred to the load
(PLOAD is as large as possible).

21
 PL = I L2  RL
and that the load current is given by the
familiar expression

VT
IL =
RL + RT
Combining the two expressions, we can
compute the load power as

VT2
PL =  RL
( RL + RT ) 2

22
To find the value of RL that maximizes the expression for PL (assuming
that VT and RT are fixed), the simple maximization problem must be
solved

dPL Computing the derivative, we obtain the following

=0 expression:
dRL
dPL VT2 ( RL + RT )2 − 2VT2 RL ( RL + RT )
= =0
dRL (RL + RT ) 4

which leads to the expression

VT2 (RL + RT )2 − 2VT2 RL (RL + RT ) = 0

( RL + RT ) − 2 RL = 0 RL = RT

23
 We can use the Thevenin equivalent
circuit for finding the maximum
power in a linear circuit
 We will assume that the load
resistance can be varied
 Looking at the equivalent circuit
with load included, the power
transferred is:

2
 VTh 
p=  RL
 RTh + RL 

24
 For a given circuit, VTH and RTH are
fixed. By varying the load
resistance RL, the power delivered
to the load varies as shown
 You can see that as RL approaches
0 and  the power transferred goes
to zero.
 In fact the maximum power
transferred is when RL=RTH

25