Series circuits DC Direct current. In this video we learn how DC series circuits work, looking at voltage, current, resistance, power consumption as well as how to use a multimeter. There's also a problem at the end of the video for you to solve.
Parallel Circuits Explained. In this video we take a look at how DC parallel circuits work and consider voltage, current, resistance, power consumption as well as some worked examples and some test questions with solutions.
Learn the basic principles of a DC series circuit from voltage, current, resistance and power consumption to using a multimeter. There’s also a problem for you to solve, with answers, at the end.
What Is a DC Series Circuit?
When we connect components in an electrical circuit, we can connect them either in series or parallel, or we can combine these to make a series parallel circuit. This article details the series type which is the most basic, we’ll cover the other types in other articles which you can read HERE.
If we place two components in a line, end to end, or with some wire in between, then these are connected in series. The electrons only have one path they can take so they will all flow through each of the components.
Just to note, in these animations we use electron flow which is from negative to positive. You might be used to seeing conventional current which is from positive to negative. Electron flow is what’s actually occurring, conventional was the original theory but it’s still taught because it’s easy to understand. Just be aware of the two and which one we’re using.
Resistance In Series Circuits
Each component will have a certain resistance, the resistance opposes the voltage being applied. We measure resistance in the unit of Ohms with the Ohm symbol Ω.
In series circuits; we find the total resistance of the circuit by simply adding all the resistances together. We label each resistor with a capital R and number them R1, R2, R3 etc.
The total resistance is shown with a capital R and a subscript T which represents the resistance total or total resistance.
To calculate the total resistance of a series circuit is super easy, we simply add together the resistance value of each resistor.
Lets say we have a circuit with a single resistor, that’s our R1, and this has a value of 10 Ohm’s. What Is Our Total Resistance? Well that’s easy, the total resistance is 10 ohms.
If we then add a second resistor R2, with 5 Ohm’s of resistance into the circuit, the total resistance is now 15 ohms, 10 Ω + 5 Ω.
If we added another 5 Ω resistor then the total resistance is now 20 ohms.
In reality the wires too will add some resistance but this is very small, you might need to account for this depending on how accurate your design needs to be.
Current In Series
Current is the flow of electrons. It’s like the water that flows through a pipe. The higher the current the more electrons are flowing. We measure current in the unit of Amperes but engineers tend to shorten this to just Amps. This is represented with the capital letter A.
We’ve covered current in detail in our previous article, do check that out HERE.
We measure current by placing an ammeter into the circuit for the electrons to flow through. This is like a water meter in the sense that water must pass through it for us to measure it. We can connect a multimeter into the circuit to also read the current.
The multimeter must be place into the circuit to take a reading, the current will flow through this. The meter will add some resistance to the circuit, but it’s such a small amount we can usually ignore this.
Series circuits DC Direct current. In this video we learn how DC series circuits work, looking at voltage, current, resistance, power consumption as well as how to use a multimeter. There's also a problem at the end of the video for you to solve.
Parallel Circuits Explained. In this video we take a look at how DC parallel circuits work and consider voltage, current, resistance, power consumption as well as some worked examples and some test questions with solutions.
Learn the basic principles of a DC series circuit from voltage, current, resistance and power consumption to using a multimeter. There’s also a problem for you to solve, with answers, at the end.
What Is a DC Series Circuit?
When we connect components in an electrical circuit, we can connect them either in series or parallel, or we can combine these to make a series parallel circuit. This article details the series type which is the most basic, we’ll cover the other types in other articles which you can read HERE.
If we place two components in a line, end to end, or with some wire in between, then these are connected in series. The electrons only have one path they can take so they will all flow through each of the components.
Just to note, in these animations we use electron flow which is from negative to positive. You might be used to seeing conventional current which is from positive to negative. Electron flow is what’s actually occurring, conventional was the original theory but it’s still taught because it’s easy to understand. Just be aware of the two and which one we’re using.
Resistance In Series Circuits
Each component will have a certain resistance, the resistance opposes the voltage being applied. We measure resistance in the unit of Ohms with the Ohm symbol Ω.
In series circuits; we find the total resistance of the circuit by simply adding all the resistances together. We label each resistor with a capital R and number them R1, R2, R3 etc.
The total resistance is shown with a capital R and a subscript T which represents the resistance total or total resistance.
To calculate the total resistance of a series circuit is super easy, we simply add together the resistance value of each resistor.
Lets say we have a circuit with a single resistor, that’s our R1, and this has a value of 10 Ohm’s. What Is Our Total Resistance? Well that’s easy, the total resistance is 10 ohms.
If we then add a second resistor R2, with 5 Ohm’s of resistance into the circuit, the total resistance is now 15 ohms, 10 Ω + 5 Ω.
If we added another 5 Ω resistor then the total resistance is now 20 ohms.
In reality the wires too will add some resistance but this is very small, you might need to account for this depending on how accurate your design needs to be.
Current In Series
Current is the flow of electrons. It’s like the water that flows through a pipe. The higher the current the more electrons are flowing. We measure current in the unit of Amperes but engineers tend to shorten this to just Amps. This is represented with the capital letter A.
We’ve covered current in detail in our previous article, do check that out HERE.
We measure current by placing an ammeter into the circuit for the electrons to flow through. This is like a water meter in the sense that water must pass through it for us to measure it. We can connect a multimeter into the circuit to also read the current.
The multimeter must be place into the circuit to take a reading, the current will flow through this. The meter will add some resistance to the circuit, but it’s such a small amount we can usually ignore this.
No comments:
Post a Comment