PHY101

ALTERNATING CURRENT
ELECTRICTY

BY CYNTHIA MWANSA
 OBJECTIVES
• Sources of A.C. currents
• Define the R.M.S. current and voltage
• Resistor and capacitors in A.C. circuits
• Circuits containing inductors
• RLC series circuits
• Resonance in RLC circuits
• Power in A.C. circuits
• Function of a transformer
 AC SOURCES
An AC circuit consists of circuit elements and a power source that provides an alternating
voltage ∆v. This time-varying voltage is described by

∆v = ∆Vmax sin ꞷt

where ∆Vmax is the maximum output voltage of the AC source, or the voltage amplitude.
The angular frequency of the AC voltage is
2π
ꞷ = 2π𝑓 =
𝑇
where f is the frequency of the source and T is the period. The source determines the
frequency of the current in any circuit connected to it. Commercial electric-power use a
frequency of 60 Hz, which corresponds to an angular frequency of 377 rad/s.
 AC SOURCE IS SINUSOIDAL
The voltage supplied by an AC source is sinusoidal with a period T. The
voltage is positive during one half of the cycle and negative during the
other half, as in Figure below. Because the output voltage of an AC source
varies sinusoidally with time,. Likewise, the current in any circuit driven by
an AC source is an alternating current that also varies sinusoidally with
time.
 A.C. CIRCUIT EPERESENTATION
Consider a simple AC circuit consisting of a resistor and an AC source. At any instant, the
algebraic sum of the voltages around a closed loop in a circuit must be zero (Kirchhoff’s loop
rule). Therefore, ∆v + ∆vR = 0, so that the magnitude of the source voltage equals the magnitude
of the voltage across the resistor:
SYMBOLS AND ILLUSTRATION
 INSTANTANEOUS VOLTAGE AND CURRENT
The magnitude of the voltage across the resistor is:
∆v = ∆vR = ∆Vmax sin ꞷt
where ∆vR is the instantaneous voltage across the resistor.
The instantaneous current in the resistor is:

where Imax is the maximum current:

Hence, the instantaneous voltage across the resistor is

 Ohm’s Laws in Resistor
Ohm’s law for an ac circuit is :

∆𝑽𝑹 = 𝑰𝑹

That is; rms voltage across a resistor is equal to

the rms current in the circuit times the resistance.
 RELATION BETWEEN I AND R IN AC CIRCUITS
PLOT OF V AND I VERSUS TIME IN A.C. CIRCUITS

• At point a, the current has a maximum value in one direction, arbitrarily called the positive direction. Between
points a and b, the current is decreasing in magnitude but is still in the positive direction.
• At b, the current is momentarily zero; it then begins to increase in the negative direction between points b and c.
At c, the current has reached its maximum value in the negative direction.
• The current and voltage are in step with each other because they vary identically with time. Because iR and ∆vR
both vary as sin ꞷt and reach their maximum values at the same time, as shown in the Figure above and are said
to be in phase
 POWER IN A.C. CIRCUIT
An alternating voltage from a generator is given by :

∆𝒗 = ∆𝑽𝒎 𝒔𝒊𝒏 𝟐𝝅𝒇𝒕

The power in a resistor connected in an A.C. circuit is given by

𝑷 = 𝒊𝟐 𝑹

Note : The current and voltage in an A.C. circuit are in phase and reach there
maximum values at the same time
 R.M.S VALUES OF VOLTAGE AND CURRENT
The rms (root mean square) current is the direct current that would dissipate the same
amount of energy in a resistor as it is dissipated by the actual alternating current.

𝐼𝑚
𝐼= = 0.707𝐼𝑚
2

Similarly rms. voltage is :

∆𝑉𝑚
∆𝑉 = = 0.707𝑉𝑚
2
 EXAMPLE 1
PURELY RESISTIVE CIRCUIT
An ac voltage source has an output of ∆v= 200V sin 2𝜋𝑓𝑡 . This
source is connected to a 100 - Ω resistor.

(a)Find the rms current in the resistor.

(b)Find the maximum current in the circuit.

 SOLUTION
The general form equation is ∆v = ∆Vmax sinꞷt, hence ∆Vmax = 200
V. Thus, the rms voltage is

And the rms current is

 ELECTRIC FIELDS AND CANCER TREATMENT
• The alternating electric fields are thought to affect the
process of mitosis, which is the dividing of the cell
nucleus into two sets of identical chromosomes.
• Alternating electric fields produced by alternating
currents in the range of 100 kHz can disrupt the cell
division cycle, either by slowing the division or by
causing a dividing cell to disintegrate.
• Electric field therapy is especially promising for the
treatment of brain tumors because healthy brain cells
don’t divide and therefore would be unharmed by the
alternating electric fields. Research on such therapy is
on-going.
 INDUCTOR IN A.C. CIRCUIT
Inductance is a measure of how much opposition a coil offers to a change in the current in the coil.
Model of Inductor Circuit is Illustrated below.

(a) Plots of the instantaneous current iL and instantaneous voltage ∆vL across an inductor as functions of time.
The current lags behind the voltage by 90°.
(b) Phasor diagram for the inductive circuit, showing that the current lags behind the voltage by 90°
 INDUCTORS IN A.C. CIRCUIT
The voltage and current in inductor in a.c. circuit are out of phase due to aback emf in the coil:

∆𝑰
∆𝒗𝑳 = 𝑳
∆𝒕

The Inductive reactance Dividing potential difference by charge gives

𝑿𝑳 ≡ 𝟐𝝅𝒇𝑳

Ohm’s law for voltage across inductor is:

∆𝑽𝑳 = 𝑰𝑿𝑳

An inductor is a component that allows DC, but not AC, to flow through it. The inductor stores electrical
energy in the form of magnetic energy
 APPLICATION OF INDUCTORS
The airport detector

An airport metal detector contains a large coil of wire around the frame. This coil has a
property called inductance. When a passenger carries metal through the detector, the
inductance of the coil changes, and the change in inductance signals an alarm to sound.
 EXAMPLE 2
Purely Inductive Circuit

In a purely inductive ac circuit, L = 25.0 mH and the rms voltage is 150V.

(i)Find the inductive reactance and rms current in the circuit if the frequency is 60.0 Hz.

(ii) Calculate the inductive reactance and rms current in the circuit if the frequency is 60 kHz.

Solution
(i) (ii)
 CAPACITOR IN A.C. CIRCUIT

(a) A circuit consisting of a capacitor of capacitance C connected to an AC source.

 RELATION BETWEEN Ic AND ∆Vc IN AC CIRCUITS

(a) Plots of the instantaneous current iC and instantaneous voltage ∆vC across a capacitor as
functions of time. The voltage lags behind the current by 90°.

(b) Phasor diagram for the capacitive circuit, showing that the current leads the voltage by 90
 Capacitive Reactance in A.C. circuit
The resistance due to the capacitor is called capacitive reactance and is
given by:
𝟏
𝑿𝒄 =
𝟐𝝅𝒇𝑪

The current in capacitor in a.c. circuit are out of phase due to a fact that it
lags behind the voltage
Ohm’s law for voltage across Capacitor is:
∆𝑽𝑪 = 𝑰𝑿𝑪
 EXAMPLE 3
PURELY CAPCITIVE CIRCUIT
An 8.00µF capacitor is connected to the terminals of an ac generator with an rms
voltage of 150 V and frequency of 60.0 Hz . Find the
(i) capacitive reactance and (ii) the rms current in the circuit
SOLUTION
ꞷ = 2πf = 2π x 60Hz = 377 /s
 THE SERIES RLC CIRCUIT
The RLC Series circuit comprises all three circuit elements, Resistor, Capacitor and
Inductor
 INSTANTANEOUS VOLTAGE ACROSS RESISTOR, CAPACITOR AND INDUCTOR

The instantaneous voltages across the three circuit elements as

The instantaneous voltage ∆v across the three elements equals the sum
 IMPEDANCE IN RLC CIRCUITS
The voltage and current in inductor in a.c. circuit are out of phase due to a back emf
in the coil:
∆𝑽 = ∆𝑽𝟐𝒓 + (∆𝑽𝒍 − ∆𝑽𝒄 )𝟐

By using Ohm’s Law for different elements we can get 𝑽 = 𝑰 𝑹𝟐 + (𝑿𝑳 − 𝑿𝑪 )𝟐

From which we define impedance as:

𝒁≡ 𝑹𝟐 + (𝑿𝑳 − 𝑿𝑪 )𝟐
 PHASE ANGLE RLC CIRCUITS
The phase angle ∅, between the current and voltage RLC circuits is :

𝑿𝑳 − 𝑿𝑪
𝒕𝒂𝒏 ∅ =
𝑹
From Pythagorean theorem
An impedance triangle
for a series RLC circuit
𝒁= 𝑹𝟐 + (𝑿𝑳 − 𝑿𝑪 )𝟐 gives the relationship
 PHASE ANGLES IN RLC CIRCUITS
Illustration of phase angle in RLC ac circuits

The vector sum of the voltage amplitudes ∆VR, ∆VL , and ∆VC equals a phasor whose length is the
maximum applied voltage ∆Vmax, and which makes an angle - with the current phasor Imax. The
voltage phasors ∆VL and ∆VC are in opposite directions along the same line, so we can construct
the difference phasor ∆VL - ∆VC, which is perpendicular to the phasor ∆VR.
 Overall Phase Angle in ac Circuit
The phase angle in RLC circuits
IMPEDANCE AND PHASE ANGLE IN RLC
 EXAMPLE 4
A series RLC circuit for which R=425 Ω, L=1.25 H, C = 3.50 µC, f= 60 Hz, and ∆V=150 V.

a) Determine the inductive reactance, the capacitive reactance, and the impedance of the
circuit.

b) Find the maximum current in the circuit.

c) Find the phase angle between the current and voltage.

d) Find both the maximum voltage and the instantaneous voltage across each element.
 SOLUTION TO EXAMPLE 4
(a) (d)

(b)

(c)
 POWER IN AN ac CIRCUIT
No power losses are associated with capacitors and pure inductors in an ac circuit.
𝟏
𝑷𝑬𝒄 = 𝑪(∆𝑽𝒎 )𝟐
𝟐
The capacitor charges in one cycle and discharges in the other cycle

𝟏 𝟐
𝑷𝑬𝑳 = 𝑳𝑰𝒎
𝟐
In an inductor the energy stored is returned in the circuit during the second cycle in ac
circuit

In this way the capacitor and inductors in ac circuit does not dissipate energy

Only the Resistor Dissipates Energy in ac circuits

𝑷𝒂𝒗 = 𝑰𝟐 𝑹
 RESONANCE IN A SERIES RLC CIRCUIT
A series RLC circuit is said to be in resonance when current I is maximum.
∆𝑽 ∆𝑽
𝑰= =
𝒁 𝑹𝟐 + (𝑿𝑳 − 𝑿𝒄 )𝟐
This shows that resonance occurs when current is maximum
𝟏 𝟐
𝑷 = 𝑳𝑰𝒎
𝟐
In an inductor the energy stored is returned in the circuit during the second cycle in
ac circuit

In this way the capacitor and inductors in ac circuit does not dissipate energy

Only the Resistor Dissipates Energy in ac circuits

𝑷𝒂𝒗 = 𝑰𝟐 𝑹
 RESONANCE IN A SERIES RLC CIRCUIT
MAXIMUM RMS CURRENT FOR THREE DIFFERENT MAXIMUM RMS CURRENT FOR TWO
RESISTANCE VALUES DIFFERENT RESISTANCE VALUES

(a) The rms current versus frequency for a series RLC circuit, for three values of R. The current
reaches its maximum value at the resonance frequency ꞷ0.
(b) Average power delivered to the circuit versus frequency for the series RLC circuit, for two
values of R.
 TRANFORMER AND POWER TRANSMISION
Ideal Transformer Circuit Diagram of Transformer

An ideal transformer consists of two coils wound on the same iron core. An alternating voltage ∆V1
is applied to the primary coil, and the output voltage ∆V2 is across the resistor of resistance R.
 RECTIFIERS AND FILTERS
The process of converting alternating current to direct current is called rectification, and the converting device is
called a rectifier. The diode acts as a half-wave rectifier because current is present in the circuit during only half of
each cycle. A diode is a circuit element that conducts current in one direction only.
• Rectifier connection • Filtered Rectified Wave

(a) A half-wave rectifier with an optional filter capacitor.

(b) Current versus time in the resistor. The solid curve represents the current with no filter
capacitor, and the dashed curve is the current when the circuit includes the capacitor.
 FILTER CIRCUIT AND WAVE
A plot of the ratio of the output voltage to the input voltage as a function of the logarithm of angular frequency
shows that at low frequencies ∆Vout is much smaller than ∆Vin, whereas at high frequencies the two voltages are
equal. Because the circuit preferentially passes signals of higher frequency while blocking low-frequency signals,
the circuit is called an RC high-pass filter. At low frequencies, the reactance of the capacitor and the voltage across
the capacitor is high. As the frequency increases, the voltage across the capacitor drops. Thus, this is an RC low-
pass filter.
• Low Pass Filter
• High Pass Filter
 RECTIFICATION OF A.C. CURRENT
FULL WAVE RECTIFIER
Smoothing is achieved by an RC circuit in electronics
A full wave diode rectifier circuit is also possible when
two or four diodes are connected.
COMPARING ELECTRICITY AND MECHANICS
 REFERENCES

• Serway and Faughn,(1999), College Physics,5ed., Brooks/Cole-

Thompson Learning.

• Serway, Physics for Scientists and Engineers, e- Book.

• Fundamentals of Physics, David Halliday, Robert-Resnick, Jearl-

Walker