Fundamentals

of Electricity
Everything, whether natural or
man-made, can be broken down
into either an element or a
compound.
 ELECTRICITY
• It is a form of energy generated by friction,
induction or chemical change, having magnetic
and radiant effect. In short, electricity is electron
in motion.
• Contrary to some belief, electricity is not new. It
has been here with us ever since and, its
existence is as old as the universe which was
discovered accidentally, by ancient Greeks
sometime in 600 BC.
• William Gilbert is the father of electricity, an
English Physicist.
MATTER, ELEMENTS, AND
COMPOUNDS
• Matter - anything that occupies space and has weight
• Element - a substanceAng aa be decomposed any
that cannot
further by chemical action
- is the basic building block of nature
• Compound- a combination of two or more elements
• Molecule- the smallest part of the compound that still
retains the properties of the compound
- is the chemical combination of two or more
atoms
• Atom- is the smallest particle of an element that retains
the characteristic of the element
• Mixture- the physical combination of elements and
compounds
MATTER, ELEMENTS AND COMPOUND
ELEMENT 1 ELEMENT 2
MOLECULES

Atom Atom
Atom 1 2
1 Atom
2

Atom
1
Atom Atom
Atom 2 2
1

COMPOUND
• Nucleus- every atom has nucleus
- is located at the center of an atom
- it contains positive charge and uncharged particles
• Atomic number- the number of proton in the nucleus of the
atom
• Atomic weight- each element also has a atomic weight
- is the mass of the atom
- it is determined by the total number of proton
and neutrons in the nucleus

“Earth is more negative and atmosphere is more positive”

PARTS OF AN ATOM

ELECTRON

PROTON

NEUTRON

ORBIT
NUCLEUS
• Conductors- materials that contains a large
number of free electron
- materials with a low resistance
- it offer little resistance to current flow
• Insulators- materials with a high resistance
- Have a few free electrons and offer high
resistance to current flow
• Semiconductor- halfway between conductors and
insulators
- Neither good conductors nor good
insulators but are important because they can be
altered to function as a conductors or insulators
Ex: silicon and germanium
Insulation properties of various
materials used as insulator
Materials Insulation properties
Mica High
Glass
Teflon
Paper ( paraffin )
Rubber
Bakelite
Oils
Porcelain
Air Low
 ELECTRIC CHARGE
• unit is coulomb(C)
• a body is said to be charge if it has either an
excess or deficit of electrons from its normal
values due to sharing.
• Charles Coulomb
18
• 1 C = 6.24 x 10 electrons
• cation is more protons (positive charge)
• anion is more electrons (negative charge)
• Two electrons together or protons represent
“like” charge. Like charges resist being brought
together and instead move away from each other.
This movement is called repelling.
• First law of electrostatic: like charges repel each
other
• Second law of electrostatic: unlike charges attract
each other
• An electric current consist of the drift of
electrons from an area of positive charge. An
ampere represents the amount of current in an
conductor when 1 coulomb of charge moves
past a point in 1 second. The relationship
between amperes and coulombs per second can
be expressed as:
I=Q/T
Where: I= current measured in ampere
Q= quantity of electrical charge in coulomb
T= time in second
 ELECTRIC CURRENT
• Intensity of charge
• unit is ampere (A)
• one ampere is equivalent to one coulomb of
charge past a given point in on second
• is a flow of free electrons
• generally called charge in motion
• Symbol in (I)
• The ampere is named for a French physicist name
Andre Marie Ampere (1775-1836).
• Current is measured in ampere.
Andre Marie Ampere (1775-1836)
• Electric current is classified as:
1. Direct Current (DC)
2. Alternating Current (AC)
• Direct Current- the DC electricity, flow in one
direction. The flow is said to be from negative
to positive. The normal source of a DC
electricity, is the dry cell of storage battery.
• Led by Thomas Edison
• Alternating Current- the AC electricity
constantly reverse its direction of flow. It is
generated by machine called generator.
• Led by George Westinghouse
 VOLTAGE
• unit is volt (V)
• sometimes called electromotive force and voltage
• Is the electrical pressure that causes the
electrons to move through the conductor (wire).
In other words, voltage is electromotive force.
• Volts was named after Alessandro Volta, an
Italian scientist who discovered that electrons
flow when two different metals are connected by
a wire and then dipped into a liquid that conduct
or carry electrons.
• Inventor of the first cell to produce electricity.
Alessandro Volta
 It is important to note that energy is not
created; rather, there is simply a transfer of
energy from one form to another. The source
supplying the voltage is not simply a source of
electrical energy. Instead, it is the means of
converting some other form of energy into
electrical energy. The six most common voltage
sources are friction, magnetism, chemicals,
light, heat, and pressure.
• Friction is the oldest known method of
producing electricity. A glass rod can become
charged when rubbed with a piece of fur or silk
• Magnetism is the most common method of
producing electrical energy today. If a wire is
passed through a magnetic field, voltage is
produced, as long as there is motion between
the magnetic field and the conductor. A device
based on this principle is called generator.
• Chemical cell it is the most common method of
producing electrical energy today. The
combination of two or more cells forms a
battery. Cells that cannot be recharged are
called primary cells. Cells that can be recharge
are called secondary cells.
• Light energy can be converted directly to
electrical energy by light striking a
photosensitive substance in a photovoltaic cell.
• Heat can be converted directly to electricity
with a device called thermocouple.
• Two types of voltage
– Voltage rise is a potential energy, or voltage,
introduced into a circuit.
– Voltage drop is the energy given up.
Ground as a voltage reference level
Ground is a term used to identify zero potential.
All other potentials are either positive or negative
with respect to ground. There are two types of
grounds: earth and electrical.
Earth ground, in the home, all electrical circuits
and appliances are earth grounded.
Electrical grounding is used in automobiles. Here
the chassis of the automobile is used as a ground.
Ground serves as a part of the complete circuit.
 RESISTANCE
• unit is ohm ( Ώ )
• opposition to charge flow
• it is the energy shared by its electron
• After George S. Ohm
• Resistance (R) is measured in ohm
• Resistance of an electric circuit is expressed by
the symbol R
• Ω omega- Greek letter used to represent ohms
George S. Ohm
 RESISTANCE
• Every materials offers some resistance or
opposition to the flow of current. Some
conductors offer very little resistance to
current flow. Insulator offer high resistance to
current flow. The size and type of wire in an
electric circuit are chosen to keep the
electrical resistance as low as possible. This
allows the current to flow easily through the
conductor. In an electric circuit, the larger the
diameter of the wire, the lower the electrical
resistance to current flow.
Resistance of several conductor of the
same length and cross-sectional area
CONDUCTOR MATERIALS RESISTIVITY
silver 1.000
copper 1.0625
lead 1.3750
gold 1.5000
aluminum 1.6875
iron 6.2500
platinum 6.2500

Carbon is an exception because the resistance decreases as the temperature

increases. Certain alloys of metal (Manganin and Constantan) have resistance that
does not change with temperature.
 CONDUCTANCE
• It is opposite in resistance
• Is ability of materials to pass electrons
• Unit of conductance is Mho
• Symbol used to represent conductance is the
inverted Greek letter omega
• Is the reciprocal of resistance and is measured in
Siemens (S). A reciprocal is obtained by dividing
the number in to one.
R= 1/G or G= 1/R
Ex: What is the conductance of a 100- ohm resistor?
 Ohm’s Law
• Is the relationship among current, voltage and
resistance was first observed by George S.
Ohm in 1827
• State that the current in an electric circuit is
directly proportional to the voltage and
inversely proportional to the resistance in a
circuit
 Formula of Ohm’s Law
Current = voltage
resistance
or
I=E
R
Where: I= current in ampere
E= voltage or volts
R= resistance
Example: How much current flows
in the circuit if the resistance is 1
kΩ and the source is 12 V.
 Electrical Measurements- Meters
• Meters are the means by which the invisible
action of electrons can be detected and
measured
types of meters according to display
• Analog meter, which uses a graduated scale with
a pointer.
• Digital meter, which provides a reading in
number and it is easier to read and provide a
better graphic display of rapid changes in current
or voltage
 TYPES OF METERS
• Ammeter- is used to measure current in a circuit
- it considered a flow meter
- it measures the number of electrons flowing past a given
point in a circuit
• Voltmeter- is used to measure voltage between two points
in a circuit
- it can be considered a pressure gauge, used to measure
electrical pressure
• Ohmmeter- it can measure resistance
- to measure resistance, a voltage is placed across the device
to be measured, inducing a current flow through the device
 Multimeter
- To eliminate the need for several meters, the
voltmeter, ammeter and ohmmeter can be
combined into a single instrument called a
multimeter
 MULTITESTER PARTS AND FUNCTION
Pointer
Scale

Zero-ohm adjustment knob

Adjustment screw

Range selector knob Test probe positive(red)

(selector switch) Negative (black)
• Pointer the needle shape rod that moves over
the scale. It is mechanically connected to the
moving coil.
• Range selector knob makes it possible to
select different functions and range of the
meter.
• Adjustment knob make it possible to adjust
the pointer to the zero position of the scale.
• Scale is a series of marking used for reading
the value of a quantity. Can have different
types of scale, for voltage, resistance and
current readings the scales.
• Test probe positive and negative is used to
connect the circuit to the electrical
components being tested.
• Zero-ohm adjusting knob is used to zero-in
the pointer before measuring resistance
 POWER
electrical or mechanical power relates to the rate at
which work is being done
• Electric power rate- the instantaneous rate at
which work is done
• Power can be defined at the rate which energy is
dissipated in a circuit.
• Basic unit of power is the watt it is equal to the
voltage across a circuit multiplied by the current
through the circuit.
P=IxE
 THREE BASIC TYPES OF CIRCUIT
• Series circuit- provides only one path for current flow. The factor
governing the operation of a series are:
1. The same current flows through each component in a series
circuit.
IT= IR1 = IR2 = IR3……
2. The total resistance in a series circuit is equal to the sum of the
individual resistances.
RT = R1 + R2 + R3……
3. The total voltage across a series circuit is equal to the sum of the
individual voltage drops.
ET = ER1 + ER2 + ER3…..
4. The voltage drop across a resistor in a series circuit is proportional to the
size of the resistor
I = E/R
5. The total power dissipated in a series circuit is equal to the sum of the
individual power dissipations
PT = PR1 + PR2 + PR3…..
• Parallel circuit- is defined as a circuit having more than one current
path
The factors governing the operations of a parallel circuit are:
1. The same voltage exist across each branch of the parallel circuit
and is equal to that of the voltage source.
ET = ER1 = ER2 = ER3…..
2. The current through each branch of a parallel circuit is inversely
proportional to the amount of resistance of the branch ( I = E/R )
3. The total current in a parallel circuit is the sum of the individual
branch currents.
IT = IR1 + IR2 + IR3…..
4. The reciprocal of the total resistance in a parallel circuit is equal to
the sum of the reciprocals of the individual resistances.
1 = 1 + 1 + 1 ……
RT R1 R2 R3
5. The total power consumed in a parallel circuit is equal to the sum
of the power consumed by the individual resistor.
PT = PR1 + PR2 + PR3…..
• Most circuits consist of both series and parallel
circuit. The solution of most series-parallel circuit
is simply a matter of applying the laws and rules
discussed earlier. Series formula are applied to
the series part of the circuit, and parallel
formulas are applied to the parallel parts of the
circuit.