Circuit Lab -

Put the following lab in your lab book. Make sure it’s neat and complete.

Go to the following Circuit Lab on PHET

Circuit Lab

Procedure:

● Create the following circuit:

● You can adjust the voltage and resistance by clicking on them.

● You can see that the current above reads 0.50 A

● Let’s perform an experiment where we see how the current depends on the voltage.
Let's keep the resistance the same.

Independent variable - Voltage (V)

Dependent variable - Current (A)
Control variable - Resistance (20 ohms)

● So go ahead and start changing the voltage to see how the current changes. Perform
the experiment. Let’s collect about 10 data points.
Data Table:

Voltage Current

10 V 0.50 A

● Graph the data. Put the Voltage on the y-axis and current on the x-axis. Yes, this is
backwards from what we normally do. Make sure and label the graph with variables and
units.

Analysis:

● Create a model for the data. Make sure and include correct variables and units.
● Explain the meaning of the slope in your own words.

Questions:
1.) Is the relationship you found ohmic? (you can look this up)
2.) If the slope of the graph were steeper, what would that represent? Explain.

Use your model to answer the following.

1.) If your circuit has a resistance of 20 ohms and voltage of 30 V, determine the current.
2.) Do some research and find the power of this circuit.
3.) If this resistor was turned on for 20 s, how much energy would be dissipated?