PHYS 2202 LAB: Physics II

Week 09
Ohm’s Law
by
[Insert Student’s Name]

Due Date:
Objective
The main objective of this lab is to verify Ohm's Law on series, parallel and series-
parallel combination of resistors.
Equipment Used
 Resistance board
 Battery box
 Voltmeter
 Ammeter
 Electrical connectors
Theory
Ohm's Law is V =I R where the proportionality constant, R, is the resistance of the
device and depends upon the composition and the geometry of the conductor. If V
and I are measured in volts and amperes respectively then R will be in ohms. Two
resistors in series, the voltage across the combination is
V =V 1+V 2 =I 1 R1+ I 2 R2=I ( R 1+ R 2) =I R eff . For any number of resistors in series, the
effective resistance is simply the sum of the resistors. For parallel resistors, the total
current is split among several paths so the effective resistance is determined by
noting that the voltage differences across several devices connected in parallel must
all be equal as shown in Figure 2 below. So, the total current is

( )
V1 V2 1 1
I =I 1+ I 2= + =V + =VR eff . For any number of resistors in parallel, the
R1 R 2 R1 R2
1
effective resistance is simply the sum of the resistors. Power dissipated in a
Rn
2
2 V
resistor is calculated from P=VI =I R= .
R
Procedure
 Use the experimental setup in the lab to perform this lab
 Determine the nominal value of each resistor on the circuit board and record
using the resistor color code.
 Set switches s1, s2 and s3 to the open position.
 Connect the power supply and meters into the circuit and turn on the power
supply.
 Set the meters to lower ranges where appropriate.
 Record the currents I and voltages V.
 Plot a graph of V vs. I and from the slope of the curve determine the
resistance of R4.
 Set power supply voltage to 4V and make one measurement of the current
when R1 alone is connected to the power supply to calculate the resistance of
R1.
 Repeat the above process for R2 and R3 and record the values.
 Close switches s1, s2 and s3 to produce resistance combinations R4 + R 1,
R4 + R 2 and R4 + R 3 using a fixed value of voltage to verify the expression of R eff
in series combination by measuring current I for each combination and
calculating Reff for each of the three resistor combinations.
  Repeat the above process for parallel combination of resistors and series +
parallel combination of resistors by closing different pairs of switches and
record the results.
Data Analysis
Part Resist Voltage Current I Resistanc Resistance Nominal Percen
or V (amps) e determined Resistance t Error
(volts) determine from determined
d from Ohm’s law from color
graph R=V/I code and
(ohms) (ohms) uncertainty
B R4 2 0.004 500 - 470 ohms ± 5% 6.38%
4 0.00825
6 0.012
8 0.01625
10 0.02
C R1 4 0.033 - 121 120 ohms ± 5% 0.83%
R2 4 0.0045 891 820 ohms ± 5% 8.65%
R3 4 0.004 1000 1000 ohms ± 0.00%
5%

Part Resistors Voltag Current I Effective Resistance Nominal

and eV (amps) Experimentall Theoretical Resistance
Connection (volts) y measured Value determined
s value using Reff =Ri + R j from color
Reff=V/I code and
(ohms)
(ohms) uncertainty
D Series
 R4 & R1 6 0.01 600 580 3%

R4 & R2 6 0.004 1500 1280 17%

R4 & R 3 6 0.004 1500 1460 3%

E Parallel
R1 & R 2 6 0.054 111.11 104.68 6%
R1 & R3 6 0.052 115.38 107.14 8%
R2 & R3 6 0.014 438.57 450.85 5%
R 1 & R2 & R 3 6 0.060 100 94.76 6%
F Series -
Parallel
R 1 & R2 & R 3 6 0.01 600 554.76 8%
& R4
Table 2
Question 1:
The resistance of R4 is 470 ohms and the voltage is 9 volts. I = V / R = (9 volts) /
(470 ohms) = 0.019 amps. P = I ｘ V = (0.019 amps) ｘ (9 volts) = 0.171 Watts. So,
0.171 Watts are dissipated.
Question 2:
House lights are in parallel to each other so that each light does not depend on
another light to turn on or off.
Question 3:
Light Bulbs are rated by two numbers, power and voltage, e.g., 110 watt, 110 Volts.
Part (a)
R = (V2 / POWER) = ((110 volts)2 / (110 Watts)) = 110 ohms
Part (b)
When the bulb is on, it has a resistance of 110 ohms and when it is off, the bulb has
a resistance of 5 ohms. The difference is much less because the resistance is
directly proportional to potential difference according to Ohm’s Law. The current will
not flow when the bulb is off so there will be a low potential difference.
Question 4:
The resistance of the first resistor is 50 ohms. The resistance of the second resistor
is 188 ohms and the resistance of third resistor is 44 ohms.
Conclusion
We performed this lab to verify Ohm's Law on series, parallel and series-parallel
combination of resistors. All the data and calculation results are recorded in the data
analysis portion of the lab report in the tabular form. The percent analysis verifies
that that there is a little difference between the theoretical and experimental results.
So, the lab experiment results are verified. One source of error that could affect this
lab experiment is the usage of our apparatus.