Electric Circuit

What is an Ohm’s Law?

𝑃𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑙 𝑑𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒
𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 =
𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒
𝐸
𝐼= Ampere Current equation
𝑅

This equation is known as Ohm’s Law in honor of Georg Simon Ohm. The
law says that for a fixed resistance, the greater the voltage across a resistor, the
more the current, and the more the resistance for the same voltage, the less current.
In other words, the current is proportional to the applied voltage and inversely
proportional to the resistance.
By simple mathematical manipulations, the voltage and resistance can be
found in terms of the other two quantities:
𝐸 = 𝐼𝑅 Volts Voltage equation
and
𝐸
𝑅= Ohms Resistance equation
𝐼

The three quantities are defined by the simple circuit, shown below. The current, I
results from applying a dc supply of E volts across a network have a resistance, R.
The voltage equation determines the voltage E required to establish a current I
through a network with a total resistance R. And the resistance equation provides
the resistance of a network that results in a current I due to an impressed voltage E.

Basic Circuit

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Example 1: Determine the current resulting from the application of a 9-V battery
across a network with a resistance of 2.2 Ω.
Solution:
𝐸 9𝑉
𝐼= 𝐼= = 4.09 A
𝑅 2.2 Ω

Example 2: Calculate the resistance of a 60-W bulb if a current of 500 mA results

from an applied voltage of 120 V.
Solution:
𝐸 120 𝑉
𝑅= = = 240 Ω
𝐼 500 𝑥 10−3 𝐴

Example 3: Calculate the current through the 2-k Ω resistor, if the voltage drop
across it is 16 V.
𝐸 16 𝑉
𝐼= = = 8 mA
𝑅 2𝑥103 Ω

Example 4: Calculate the voltage that must be applied across the soldering iron to
establish a current of 1.5 A through the iron if its internal resistance is 80 Ω.
Solution:
𝐸 = 𝐼𝑅 𝐸 = (1.5𝐴)(80 Ω) = 120 V
Power
Power is an indication of how much work can be done in a specified
amount of time. Since converted energy is measured in joules (J) and time in
seconds (s), power is measured in joules/second (J/s). The electrical unit of
measurement for power is the watt (W), defined by
1 watt (W) = 1 joule/second (J/s)
In equation form, power is determined by
𝑊
𝑃= (watts, W. or Joules/second, J/s)
𝑡

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With the energy W measured in joules and the time t in seconds. The unit of
measurement the watt. is derive derived from the surname of James Watt. The
power delivered to an electrical device can be found in terms of the current and
voltage by substituting:
𝑾 𝑸𝑽 𝑸
𝑷= = =𝑽 where : Q is charge, coulumb
𝒕 𝒕 𝒕

But
𝑸
𝑰=
𝒕

So that P = VI watts

By direct substitution of Ohm’s law, the equation for power can be obtained in two
other forms:
𝐕
P = VI = V( )
𝐑

and
𝑽𝟐
𝑷= watts
𝑹

or
P = VI = (IR) I
and
P = 𝑰𝟐 R
Example 5: What is the power dissipated by a 5-Ω resistor if the current is 4 A?
Solution:
P = 𝑰𝟐 R = (4 A)𝟐 (5Ω) = 80 W
Example 6: Determine the current through a 5-kΩ resistor when the power
dissipated by the element is 20 mW.
Solution:

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 𝑷 𝟐𝟎𝒙𝟏𝟎−𝟑 𝑾
𝑰=√ =√ = √𝟒𝒙𝟏𝟎−𝟔 = 2x𝟏𝟎−𝟑 = 2
𝑹 𝟓𝒙𝟏𝟎𝟑 𝛀
mA
Assignments:
Ohm’s Law:
1. What is the potential drop across a 6- Ω resistor if the current through it is
2.5 A?
2. How much resistance is required to limit the current to 1.5 mA if the
potential drop across the resistor is 6 V?
3. If the current through a 0.02-M Ω resistor is 3.6 mA, what is the voltage
drop across the resistor?
4. If a refrigerator draws 2.2 A at 120 V, what is its resistance?
5. A washing machine is rated at 4.2 A at 120 V. What is its internal
resistance?

Power:
1. If 420 J of energy are absorbed by a resistor in 7 min, what is the power to
the resistor?
2. How long must a steady current of 2 A exist in a resistor that has 3 V across
it to dissipate 12 J of energy?
3. The current through a 4- Ω resistor is 7 mA. What is the power delivered to
the resistor?
4. If the power input to a 4- Ω resistor is 64 W, what is the current through the
resistor?
5. A 2.2-k Ω resistor in a stereo system dissipates 42 mW of power. What is
the voltage across the resistor?

Series Circuit
A series circuit consists of any number of elements joined at terminal points,
providing at least one closed path through which charge can flow. The circuit
below shows a series circuit which has three elements joined at three terminal
points (a, b, and c) to provide a closed path for the current I.

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 Series Circuit
Two elements are in series if:
1. They have only one terminal in common, say the resistors R1 and R2 are in
series because they have only point b in common.
2. The common point between the two elements is not connected to another
current-carrying element, say for the same reason, the battery E and resistor
R1 are in series (terminal c in common).

Since all elements are in series, the network is called series circuit.

A branch of a circuit is any portion of the circuit that has one or more
elements in series, the resistor R1 forms one branch of the circuit, the resistor
R2 another and the battery E, a third.

The total resistance of a series circuit is the sum of the resistance

RT= R1 + R2 + R3 + R4+…+ RN (ohms, Ω)

Once the total resistance is known, the circuit can redrawn revealing only a
single total resistance. Once RT is known, the current drawn from the source
can be determined using Ohm’s law

𝑬
𝑰𝒔 =
𝑹𝑻
Since E is fixed, the magnitude of the source current will be totally
dependent on the magnitude of RT. A larger RT will result in a small value of
IS , while lesser values of RT will result in increased current levels.

The fact that the current is the same through each element, a direct
calculation of the voltage across each resistor using Ohm’s law: that is,

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 V1 = IR1, V2 = IR2, V3 = IR3 ….VN = IRN

The power delivered to each resistor can then be determined using power
equations

𝑽𝟐 𝟏
P1 = V1I1 = I21R1 =
𝑹𝟏

The total power delivered to a resistive circuit is equal to the total power
dissipated by the resistive element.

Pdel = P1 + P2 + P3 + …+ PN

Example 7:
a. Find the total resistance for the series circuit of the above figure.
b. Calculate the source current, Is.
c. Determine the voltages V1, V2 and V3.
d. Calculate the power dissipated by R1, R2 and R3.
e. Determine the power delivered by the source, and compare it to the
sum of the power levels of part (d).
Solutions:
a. RT = R1 + R2 +R3 = 2 Ω + 1 Ω + 5 Ω = 8 Ω

𝐸 20 𝑉
b. IS = = = 2.5 A
𝑅𝑇 8Ω

c. V1 = IR1 = (2.5A)(2 Ω) = 5 V
V2 = IR2 = (2.5A)(1 Ω) = 2.5 V
V3 = IR3 = (2.5A)(5 Ω) = 12.5 V

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 d. P1 = V1I1 = (5 V)(2.5 A) = 12.5 W
P2 = 𝐼 2 2 R2 = (2.5 A)2 (1 Ω) = 6.25 W
P3 = 𝑉 2 3 R3 = (12.5 V)2/ 5 Ω = 31.25 W

e. Pdel = EI = (20 V)(2.5 A) = 50 W

Pdel = P1 + P2 + P3
50W = 12.5 W + 6.25 W + 31.25 W
50 W = 50 W (check)

Example 8: Given RT and I, calculate R1 and E for the given circuit below

Solution:
a. RT = R1 + R2 + R3
12 kΩ = R1 + 4 kΩ + 6 kΩ
R1 = 12 kΩ – 10 kΩ
R1 = 2 k Ω
b. E = IRT = (6x10-3)(12 x 103 Ω)
E = 72 V

Assignment:
1. Find the total resistance and current I for each circuit of the figure below

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Parallel Circuits:

In a parallel circuit, the voltage across each of the components is the same,
and the total current is the sum of the currents flowing through each
component.

The total resistance for the network can be determined by direct substitution.

Parallel Circuit Formula:

1 1 1 1 1
=𝑅 +𝑅 + +. . +
𝑅𝑇 1 2 𝑅3 𝑅𝑁

Once the sum of the terms to the right of the quals sign has been determined,
it will then be necessary to divide the result into 1 to determine the total
resistance.

Example 9: Determine the total resistance for the network of the circuit
below.

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Solution:

1 1 1 1
=𝑅 +𝑅 +
𝑅𝑇 1 2 𝑅3

1 1 1
= + +
2Ω 4Ω 5Ω

1
RT =
0.95

RT = 1.053 Ω

In the vast majority of situations, only two or three parallel resistive

elements need to be combined. With this in mind, the following equations
were developed to reduce the effects of the inverse relationship when
determining RT.

For two parallel resistors, we write

1 1 1
=𝑅 +𝑅
𝑅𝑇 1 2

Multiplying the top and bottom of each term of the right side of the equation
by the other resistor will result in

1 𝑅 1 𝑅 1
= (𝑅2 ) + (𝑅1 ) 𝑅
𝑅𝑇 2 𝑅1 1 2

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 1 𝑅2 𝑅1
=𝑅 +
𝑅𝑇 1 𝑅2 𝑅1 𝑅2

1 𝑅1 + 𝑅2
=
𝑅𝑇 𝑅1 𝑅2

𝑹𝟏 𝑹𝟐
RT = the total resistance of two parallel resistor is
𝑹𝟏 + 𝑹𝟐
the product of the two divided by their sum.

For three parallel resistors, the equation for RT becomes

1
RT = 1 1 1
𝑅1
+𝑅 +𝑅
2 3

This equation can be expanded into the form, resulting in this equation:

𝑹𝟏 𝑹𝟐 𝑹𝟑
RT =
𝑹𝟏 𝑹𝟐 + 𝑹𝟏 𝑹𝟑 + 𝑹𝟐 𝑹𝟑

with the denominator showing all the possible product combinations of the
resistors taken two at a time.

Example 10: Repeat example 9:

Solution:

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 1
RT = 1 1 1
+ +
𝑅1 𝑅2 𝑅3

1
= 1 1 1
+ +
2Ω 4Ω 5Ω

1
=
0.5 + 0.25 + 0.2

1
=
0.95

RT = 1.053 Ω

Applying 3-resistors equation twice yields

R’T = 2 Ω II 4 Ω II sign for a parallel

connection

(2Ω)(4Ω)
=
2Ω + 4Ω

R’T = 1.333 Ω

RT = R’T II 5 Ω

(1.333 Ω ) ( 5 Ω )
=
1.333 Ω + 5 Ω

RT = 1.053 Ω

Example 11: Determine the value of R2 in the figure below to establish a

total resistance of 9 kΩ.

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 Solution: Rearrange the equation

𝑅1 𝑅2
RT =
𝑅1 + 𝑅2

RT (R1 + R2) = R1R2

RT R1 + RT R2 = R1 R2

RTR1 = R1R2 – RT T2

RTR1 = ( R1 – RT ) R2

𝑅𝑇 𝑅1
R2 =
𝑅1 − 𝑅𝑇

(9 𝑘Ω) (12 kΩ)

R2 =
12 𝑘Ω − 9 kΩ

108 𝑘Ω
=
3

R2 = 36 kΩ

Voltage Supply in Parallel Circuit

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The voltage across parallel elements is the same in the circuit:

Using this fact will result in

V1 = V2 = E
𝑉1 𝐸
and I1 = =
𝑅1 𝑅1
𝑉2 𝐸
with I2 = =
𝑅2 𝑅2

If we take the equation for the total resistance and multiply both sides by the
applied voltage, we obtain

1 1 1
E( ) = 𝐸 ( + )
𝑅𝑇 𝑅1 𝑅2

and
𝑬 𝑬 𝑬
= +
𝑹𝑻 𝑹𝟏 𝑹𝟐

Substituting the Ohm’s law relationship appearing above, we find that the source
current
I S = I 1 + I2
Therefore, for a single-source parallel networks, the source current (I), is equal to
the sum of the individual branch current

Example 12: For the parallel network shown below

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 a. Calculate RT.
b. Determine IS.
c. Calculate I1 and I2, and demonstrate that IS = I1 + I2
d. Determine the power to each resistive load.
e. Determine the power delivered by the source, and compare it to the total
power dissipated by the resistive element.
Solution:
𝑅1 𝑅2 (9Ω) (18Ω) 162
a. RT = = = =6Ω
𝑅1 + 𝑅2 9Ω + 18 Ω 27

𝐸 27 𝑉
b. IS = = = 4.5 A
𝑅𝑇 6Ω

𝑉1 𝐸 27 𝑉
c. I1 = = = =3A
𝑅1 𝑅1 9Ω

𝑉2 𝐸 27 𝑉
I2 = = = = 1.5 A
𝑅2 𝑅2 18 Ω

IS = I1 + I2

4.5 A = 3 A + 1.5 A

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 4.5 A = 4.5 A (checks)

d. P1 = V1I1 = E I1 = (27V)(3A) =81 W

P2 = V2I2 = E I2 = (27V)(1.5A) =40.5 W

e. PS = EIS = (27 V)(4.5 A) = 121.5 W

PS = P1 + P2 = 81 W + 40.1 W = 121.5 W

Assignment:
1. Determine the values of R1, R2 and R3 in the figure below if R2 = 2R1 and R3
= 2R2 and the total resistance is 16 k Ω. ANS R1 = 28 k Ω

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