Lab # 06 Kirchhoff Current Law

Engr Sara Hafeez

 KIRCHHOFF’S
CURRENT LAW (KCL)
This law is also called Kirchhoff's first law, Kirchhoff's
point rule, or Kirchhoff's junction rule (or nodal rule).

This fundamental law results from the conservation of

charge

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KIRCHHOFF’S CURRENT LAW

IT STATES THAT :
“At any node (junction) in
an electrical circuit, the
sum
of currents flowing into that node is
equal to the sum of currents flowing out
of that node, or The algebraic sum of
currents in a network of conductors 3
meeting at a point is zero.”
WHAT IS A JUNCTION OR
NODE

4
A junction is an intersection of
three or more conductors.

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KIRCHHOFF'S RULES: JUNCTION RULE
The algebraic sum of the currents into any junction is zero.
• I = 0 ( at any junction )
• I is + when it
enters a junction.
• I is - when it enters
a junction.

• I = 0
• I1 + I2 - I3 = 0
• I 1 + I2 = I 3

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KIRCHHOFF'S CURRENT LAW
 It also states that the sum of the currents
entering a node must equal the sum of the
currents leaving a node. This law is a
consequence of the conservation of charge
(electrons) in electrical networks.

I1 + I2 = I3 + I4 + I5 7
EXPLANATION OF
KIRCHHOFF'S
LAW WITH
EXAMPLE

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 SOME FUNDAMENTAL ASSUMPTIONS – NODES
RC
 A node is defined as a place
where two or more components
+ RD
are connected. vA
-
 The key thing to remember is that
RE
we connect components with
wires. It doesn’t how
matter wiresbeingareused; iB
RF

many matters it how

components
only are many
connected together.
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 HOW MANY NODES?

RC

 To test our RD
understanding of vA
+

nodes, let’s look at -

the example circuit RE

schematic given here.

 How many nodes are RF
iB
there in this circuit?

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 HOW MANY NODES – CORRECT ANSWER

 In this schematic, there RC

are three nodes.

These nodes are RD
+
shown in dark blue vA

here. -

 Some students count

RE

more than three nodes

in a circuit like this.
When they do, it is iB
RF

usually because they

have considered two
points connected by a
wire to be two nodes. 11
 HOW MANY NODES – WRONG ANSWER

Wire connecting two nodes

RC
means that these are really a
single node.
+ RD
vA
-
 In the example circuit RE
schematic given here,
the two red nodes are RF
iB
really the same node.
There are not four
nodes.
 connected
Remember,by a wire
two nodeswere
really only one node in the 12
first place.
 SOME FUNDAMENTAL ASSUMPTIONS – CLOSED
LOOPS
 A closed loop can be RC

defined in this way: Start at

any node and go in any RD
+
direction and end up where vA

you start. This is a closed - +

loop. vX

RE
 Note that this loop does not -

have to follow components.

It can jump across open RF
iB
space. Most of the time
we will follow components,
but we will also have
situations where we need
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to jump between nodes
that have no connections.
 HOW MANY CLOSED LOOPS
RC
 To test our
understanding of
closed loops, let’s vA
+ RD

look at the - +

example circuit vX

schematic given -
RE

here.
 How many closed RF
iB
loops are there
in this circuit? 14
 HOW MANY CLOSED LOOPS –
AN ANSWER
RC
 There are several closed
loops that are possible
here. We will show a few of
them, and allow you to find + RD
vA
the others.
+
-
 The total number of simple
vX
closed loops in this circuit
RE
is 13. -
 Finding the number will not
turn out to be important.
What is important is to RF
iB
recognize closed loops
when you see them. 15
 CLOSED LOOPS – LOOP #1
RC
 Here is a loop we will
call Loop #1. The
path is shown in red. + RD
vA

+
-
vX

RE
-

RF
iB

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 CLOSED LOOPS – LOOP #2
RC
 Here is Loop #2.
The path is shown in
red. + RD
vA

+
-
vX

RE
-

RF
iB

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 CLOSED LOOPS – LOOP #3
RC
 Here is Loop #3.
The path is shown in
red. + RD
vA
 Note that this path is +
-
a closed loop that vX
jumps across the RE
-
voltage labeled v X.
This is still a
closed RF
iB
loop.
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 CLOSED LOOPS – LOOP #4
RC
 Here is Loop #4.
path is shown in red.
The
 Note that this path is a + RD
vA
closed loop that jumps
+
-
across the voltage vX
labeled vX . This is still a RE
closed loop. The -

loop
also crossed the current RF
source. Remember that iB

a current source can 19

have a voltage across
it.
 A NOT-CLOSED
LOOP
 The path is shown in
RC

red here is not

closed. + RD
vA
 Note that this path
+
-
does not end where it vX
started. RE
-

RF
iB

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CURRENT POLARITIES

Here, the issue of the

sign, or polarity, or direction, of
the current arises. When
we write a Kirchhoff Current
Law equation, we attach a
sign to each reference
current polarity, depending on
whether the reference current
is entering or leaving the
closed surface. This can be
done in different ways.
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 KIRCHHOFF’S CURRENT LAW (KCL)
– AN EXAMPLE
 For this set of material, we will RC
iC
always assign a positive sign
to a term that refers to a
current that leaves a closed iA
surface, and a negative sign RD
iD
to a term that refers to a +
vA
current that enters a closed
surface. -
 In this example, we have
already assigned reference RE
iE

polarities for all of the currents

for the nodes indicated in
darker blue. iB

 For this circuit, and using RF

my rule, we have the iB
following equation:
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iA  iC  iD  iE  iB  0
 KIRCHHOFF’S CURRENT LAW (KCL) –
EXAMPLE DONE ANOTHER WAY
iC
RC
 Some prefer to write this same
equation in a different way;
they say that the current iA

entering the closed surface + RD

iD

must equal the current leaving vA

the closed surface. Thus, -
they write :
iE
RE
i A  i D  i B  iC  i E
•Compare this to the iB

equation that we wrote in the RF

last slide: iB

i A  iC  iD  iE  iB  0 23
• These are the same
equation. Use either
Example
Find the current I x.

4A
2A

-1 A 6A

IX
9A

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Ans: IX = 22
22
A
TRY BY YOURSELF
Example
Find the currents IW, I X, IY, IZ.

2A
IW = -2
 9A
 A
IX IX -5
12 A  IY
6A = A
IZ -3
IY = A
IW IZ = -8
A
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Example
Find the currents IA, IB, and IC in the circuit below.

IB IC
surface
1
4A 2A IA

-2A 9A
surface
2

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Solution for the above Example

node 1 node 2
IB IC
 
surface
1
2A IA
4A
-2A 9A
surface
2

At surface 1: IB = 2A
At node 1: Ic = 0A 27

At node 2: IA = 9A