MULTIMEDIA UNIVERSITY OF KENYA

CIRCUIT THEORY
BRYAN MBIRI
ENG-218-005/2019
19/08/2021
OHMS LAW

OBJECTIVES
1. To verify ohms law
2. To learn how to use ohms law in cct. Analysis

INTRODUCTION
Ohms law states that in purely resistive circuit, the current through a conductor between two
points is directly proportional to the potential difference across the two points. Introducing the
constant of proportionality, the resistance, one arrives at the usual mathematical equation
that describes this relationship:

I=V/R
Where I is the current through the conductor in units of amperes.
V is the potential difference measured across the conductor in units of volts.
And R is the resistance of the conductor in units of ohms.
More specifically, ohms law states that the R in this relation is constant, independent of the
current.
The law was named after the German physicist Georg Ohm, who, in a treatise published in
1827, described measurements of applied voltage and current through simple electrical circuits
containing various lengths of wire. He presented a slightly more complex equation than the one
above to explain this experimental result. The above equation is the modern form of Ohms law.
In physics, the term Ohms law is also used to refer to various generalizations of the law
originally formulated by Ohm. The simplest example of this is:

J=@E
Where J is the current density at a given location in a resistive material,
E is the electric field at that location,
And @ is a material dependent parameter called the conductivity.
This reformulation of Ohms law is due to Gustay Kirchhoff.

TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
Ohms law has sometimes been stated as, “for a conductor in a given state, the electromotive
force is proportional to the current produced.” The qualifier “in a given state” is usually
temperature dependent. Because the conduction of current is related to joule heating of the
conducting body, according to joules first view, the temperature of a conducting body may
change when it carries a current. The dependence of resistance of resistance on temperature
therefore makes resistance depend upon the current in a typical experimental setup, making
the law of this form difficult to directly verify. Maxwell and others worked out several methods
to test the law experimentally in 1876, controlling for heating effects.

RESISTIVE CIRCUITS
Resistors are circuit elements that impede the passage of electric charge in agreement with
Ohms law, and are designed to have a specific resistance value R. An element (Resistor or
conductor) that behaves according to Ohms law over some operating range is referred to as an
ohmic device (Ohm ohmic resistor) because Ohms law and a single value for the resistance
suffice to describe the behavior of the device over that range.
Ohms law holds for circuits containing only resistive elements (no capacitances or inductances)
for all forms of driving voltage or current, regardless of whether the driving voltage or current is
constant (DC) or time- varying such as AC. At any instant of time Ohms Law is valid for such
circuits.
resistance” in order to apply Ohms law in analyzing the circuit.

REACTIVE CIRCUITS WITH TIME-VARYING SIGNALS

When reactive elements such as capacitors, inductors or transmission lines are involved in a
circuit to which AC or time -varying voltage or current is applied, the relationship between
voltage and circuit becomes the solution to a differential equation, so Ohms law (as defined
above) not directly apply since that form contains only resistances having R, not complex
impedances which may contain capacitance (“C”) OR INDUCTANCE (“L”).

LIST OF EQUIPMENTS
NO ITEM QUANTITY
1 Base XL 21001 1
2 Module KL13001 1
3 Digital multimeter 1
4 Potentiometer 1

PROCEDURE
The module KL13001 was set on the main unit KL21001 and block a located.
Ohmmeter was used to measure and record the resistance of R1 which was found to be=1.002
Kilo Ohms. It was measured within the nominal tolerance value. 0.051*1.002=0.0502
The voltmeter was connected across terminals +V and GND, the positive power was adjusted to
+10V.
Current 1.1 was calculated and recorded using Ohm law and the values of steps 2 and 3 and
resulted to= 10/1002=9.98mA
The milliammeter was connected in the cct. As shown on the figure and the value of current 1
measured and resulted to =5.0.02
The positive power was raised to obtain a reading 15mA on the ammeter.
Voltage E was calculated and recorded using Ohms law and the values of steps 2 and 6 and
resulted to=15.03V
The voltage between terminals +V and GND was measures using a voltmeter and recorded and
resulted to=7.57V
The voltmeter was connected across terminals +V and GND and the positive power was
adjusted to read +10V
VR1 was turned in a clockwise direction so as to read a current of 20mA on the milliammeter.
Resistor VR1 was calculated and recorded using Ohms law and the values of steps 9 and 10. It
resulted to=10
The resistance between terminals A and B of VR1 was measured and recorded using the
ohmmeter. It resulted to=0

CALCULATIONS
R1= 1.0002 Kilo Ohms
Tolerance 0.05*1.002=0.00502
V=10V
V=IR 10/1002=9.98Ma
Current =10mA
Tolerance 10-9.98=+0.02mA
E=15*10-3 *1002=15.03V
Step 8V=7.5V
I=20Ma, V=10V, R=V/I=500 Ohms
Step 12 R=986 Ohms
Difference 986-500=486 Ohms

SOURCES OF ERROR
Fluctuations in line voltage when reading the multimeter.
Observational errors during reading of the scale.
Uneven thickness of connecting wires may have caused different readings
Integrity of the lab equipment as so may be outdated and may cause different readings

RECCOMMENDATIONS

Use of standard updated lab equipment to ascertain measurements recorded.

Equivalent and standard connecting wires use the same thickness should be used.
Ensure all connections are accurate in order to avoid fluctuations in the readings.

CONCLUSION
Ohm's Law deals with the relationship between voltage and current in an ideal conductor. This
relationship states that: The potential difference (voltage) across an ideal conductor is
proportional to the current through it. The constant of proportionality is called the "resistance",
R. This can be expressed in an equation as V=IR and can be manipulated to find the other two
variables. (I and R). The lab report was a success as we were able to verify ohms law and learn
how to use ohms law in cct. Analysis

REFERENCES
 Electricity and magnetism (2nd Edition) Purcell, Edward ISBN 978-0-07-004908-6
 Introduction to electrodynamics (3rd Edition) Prentice Hall, ISBN 978-0-13-805326-0
 Electric Circuits. Alvin M. Halpern Erich Erlblach ISBN 978-0-13-198925-2