ELECTRONIC CIRCUIT ANALYSIS

Faculty Engineering and Technology

Department Electrical Engineering

Course Electronics

Title Electronics 1 (EEELE1A & EELEC1B)

Compiled By Musiiwa Mugwabana

Year 2022

NQF Level 5

Credits 10

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Series-Parallel Circuits

Analyse series-parallel resistive circuit using electronic laws and principles.

Circuit: An interconnection of electronic components that provide a closed path for current to flow.
Circuit diagram: A schematic representation of the interconnection of electronic components.
Electronic components are modelled and represented using symbols.
A simple circuit has a voltage source, conductor and load.
Other electronic circuit components may be included in a circuit for controlling, protection and
monitoring capabilities.
Voltage source: Provide the electrical energy (voltage) required to cause the movement of electrons
through the electronic circuit.
Most common voltage sources are batteries, generators and power supplies.
Conductor: a wire that connects source and load or provides a path for current to flow.
Load: Device (or circuit) that consumes, uses or absorbs the energy supplied by the power source, eg
resistor, inductor, capacitor, etc.
The flow of electric current can be described by conventional flow or electron flow.

Three basic types of circuit configurations:

1. Series
2. Parallel and
3. Combinational (Series-parallel)

Series Circuit

A circuit with only one path for current to flow.

Figure 1

Characteristics:
 Current is the same throughout the circuit.
 There is a voltage drop across each resistor.
 The voltage drop across each resistor depends on the resistances.

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Parallel Circuit

A circuit with multiple paths (referred to as branches) for current flow.

Figure 2
Characteristics:
 Currents, known as branch currents, depend on the branch resistances.
 Voltage is the same across each branch resistor in the circuit.

Series-Parallel Circuit

This configuration combines series and parallel circuits into one.

Figure 3

Node/Junction: Any point where two or more circuit components are connected together

Ohm’s Law

Describe the relationship between the three electrical quantities – current (I), voltage (V) and resistance
(R).

“The current (I) that flows in a resistor is directly proportional to the voltage drop (V) across the
resistor and inversely proportional to the resistance (R)”.

Mathematical expression
𝑰𝜶𝑽 and 𝟏 therefore 𝑽
𝑰𝜶 𝑰=
𝑹 𝑹

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Kirchhoff’s Laws

Deals with the conservation of charge and energy within electronic circuits.

Kirchhoff’s Current Law (KCL)

Deals with the conservation of charge within electronic circuit.

This law is also referred to as the conservation of charge.

The law applies to currents in parallel circuits.

Parallel circuits are also referred to as current dividers.

“The current flowing towards a junction equals the current flowing away from the junction”.

𝐈𝐓 = 𝐈𝟏 + 𝐈𝟐 + … + 𝐈𝐍

The branch current is determined using the current-divider formula:

𝑹𝒀
𝑰𝑿 = ( )𝑰
𝑹𝑿 + 𝑹 𝒀 𝑻

This formula applies only to two resistors in parallel.

IX = current flowing in branch x.

RX = resistance of branch x
RY = resistance of branch y

Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law

Deals with the conservation of energy within electronic circuits.

This law is also referred to as the conservation of energy.

The law applies to the voltage drops in series circuits.

Series circuits are also referred to as voltage dividers.

“The voltage applied to a series circuit is equal to the sum of the voltage drops in the circuit”.
𝐕𝐓 = 𝐕𝟏 + 𝐕𝟐 + … + 𝐕𝐍

The voltage drop across each resistor is determined using the voltage-divider formula:
𝐑𝐗
𝐕𝐗 = ( )𝐕
𝐑𝟏 + 𝐑𝟐 + … + 𝐑𝐍 𝐒

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Consider the following series-parallel circuit shown in figure 4.

Figure 4
Determine
1. All the currents in the circuit.
2. The voltage at node A with respect to ground.
The E12 Range and Power Rating
Resistors are available in a number of standard ranges, referred to as E series.
E series: E3, E6, E12, E24, E48, E96 and E192.
These series are logarithmic and are derived from the resistor tolerances.
The calculated resistor value may have to be rounded to an E-series value, which is the value closest
to the calculated one.
It is advisable to round up to the next higher value.
A value smaller than calculated could overload a component such as in current limiting resistors.
Use the E12 series (Table 1).
Table 1: E12 series (Fill in the resistance values)

1R0 Ω 10 Ω 100 Ω 1k0 Ω 10 kΩ 100 kΩ 1 MΩ 10 MΩ

1R2 Ω 12 Ω 120 Ω

1R5 Ω 15 Ω 150 Ω

1R8 Ω 18 Ω 180 Ω

2R2 Ω 22 Ω 220 Ω

2R7 Ω 27 Ω 270 Ω

3R3 Ω 33 Ω 330 Ω

3R9 Ω 39 Ω 390 Ω

4R7 Ω 47 Ω 470 Ω

5R6 Ω 56 Ω 560 Ω

6R8 Ω 68 Ω 680 Ω

8R2 Ω 82 Ω 820 Ω

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Resistor Power Rating
It is also referred to as resistors wattage rating.
This is the amount of heat that a resistive element can dissipate for an indefinite period of time without
degrading its performance.
The power rating of a resistor indicates how much power a resistor can handle before it becomes too
hot and burns.
The power rating of a resistor is measured in watts, ⅛W, ¼W, ½W, and 1W, are typical.

Circuit Measurements
Three (basic) electrical quantities of a circuit that can be measured are voltage (V), current (I) and
resistance (R).
A digital multi-meter (DMM) is (commonly) used to measure these quantities.

Voltage Measurement
The measuring instrument (DMM) is connected across the resistor.

Figure 5
Current Measurement
The measuring instrument (DMM) is connected in the conduction path.

Figure 6

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Resistance Measurement

Disconnect the resistor.

Figure 7
The measuring instrument is connected across a disconnected electrical component.

Figure 8
The Loading Effect

Consider a DMM connected to measure a voltage drop across a resistor as shown in figure 9.

Figure 9
DMMs have an internal resistance, denoted RM.
The internal resistance appears in parallel with the resistor (figure 10).

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 Figure 10
Hence, the voltage drop across the resistor R3 will be determined by R3||RM (figure 11).

Figure 11
The higher the resistance of the resistor across which the voltage is measured, the more the reduction
in voltage. Hence, the more the loading effect. That is, the higher the resistance…The more the loading
effect.
The loading effect of the DMM will be minimal if the internal resistance is much larger than the resistance
of the resistor.
Ideally, the voltmeter resistance should be infinite, but practically, DMMs have a resistance of 10 MΩ
Determine and briefly explain how the voltmeter affects the voltage in figure 12. Ignore the internal
resistance of voltmeter V1 and assume that voltmeter V2 has an internal resistance of 10 MΩ.

Figure 12

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Superimposed Voltages
Both AC and DC voltage sources may be connected in an electronic circuit (figure 13).

Figure 13

In this case, both AC and DC must be taken into consideration when determining the output voltage or
the voltage drop across the (load) resistor.
AC (Alternating Current): The type of current which (continuously and (un)periodically) changes
direction.
DC (Direct Current): The type of current which flows consistently in one direction.

Table 2: Graphic Representation

AC DC

Note: Not all AC are

represented in sinusoidal
form. Others could be
triangular, Square, etc.

The output waveform (for figure 13) illustrated in figure 14 is the algebraic sum of AC and DC with AC
‘riding’ on the DC level.

Figure 14

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Thus, the maximum and minimum peak voltages of the AC voltage are altered from their original values.
𝑽𝒑(𝒎𝒂𝒙) = 𝑽𝑫𝑪 + 𝑽𝒑
𝑽𝒑(𝒎𝒊𝒏) = 𝑽𝑫𝑪 − 𝑽𝒑

If VDC > Vac, the ac voltage signal never crosses the zero axis. Therefore, it is non-alternating.

Figure 15

Note: The AC notation uses lowercase subscript and DC uses uppercase subscript.

Sketch a correctly labelled voltage waveform as seen across RL in figure 16.

Figure 16

Circuit Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting involves identifying and isolating an electrical fault (failure).

A digital multimeter (or oscilloscope) may be used to perform the troubleshooting exercise.
The most common faults in resistive circuits are open and short circuits.
These faults negatively affect (or degrade) the performance of the circuit.
For a short circuit, the voltage drop across a resistor is zero.
For an open circuit, the voltage drop across a resistor is equal to the source voltage.

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Determine whether or not there is a fault in the circuit based on the reading of DMMs. If any, identify
the failing component (s) and the type (s) of the fault.

Figure 17

Exercises
1. Consider the figures given below, Redraw the circuits and indicate the direction of the current
flow.
2. Calculate the total resistance of the circuits.
3. By using Current Divider Rule, calculate the current flowing through each resistor where
necessary.
4. By using Voltage Divider Rule, calculate the voltage across each resistor where necessary.

Figure 18

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Figure 19

Figure 20

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