CIRCUITS

Chapter 13.3

Electric Circuit

• An electrical device connected so that it provides one or more complete paths for the movement of charges.

Schematic Diagram

• A graphic representation of an electric circuit or apparatus, with standard symbols for the electrical devices.

Wire or Conductor

• Wires that connect elements are conductors.

Resistor

• Wires with multiple bends indicating resistance to a straight path.

http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/en.futurama/images/0/0d/200px-Resistor_symbol_America.svg.png

Bulb or Lamp

• The winding of the filament indirectly indicates that the light bulb is a resistor.

http://cnx.org/content/m14370/latest/Schematic.png

Battery or Direct Current Source

• The difference in line height indicates a voltage between positive and negative terminals of the battery. The taller line represents the positive terminal of the battery.

http://cnx.org/content/m14370/latest/Schematic.png

Switch

• The small circles indicate the two places where the switch makes contact with the wires. Most switches work by breaking only one of the contacts.

Open switch

Closed switch

http://www.highschoolresource.energyaustralia.com.au/studentsElectricCircuits.html

Series Circuits

• A circuit that provides a single path for current to flow.

• As you add resistors, the total resistance (RT) of the circuit increases causing the total current to decrease.

• The current through each resistor is the same no matter what the value of the resistor.

• The voltage of the battery is shared between each resistor.

Series Circuit

• If three lamps are connected in series and one lamp burns out, all the lamps are not going to light. The circuit will be broken.

• As identical lamps are added in series, the light will get dimmer because less current is flowing through the lamps

Parallel Circuit

• A circuit that provides two or more paths for current to flow.

• As you add resistors, the total resistance (RT) in the circuit decreases causing the total current to increase.

Parallel Circuit

• The current through each resistor depends on the value of that particular resistor. The higher the resistance, the lesser the current that passes through the resistor.

Parallel Circuit

• The voltage of the battery is the same across each resistor. Each resistor gets the same voltage value of the battery.

Parallel Circuits

• If three lamps are connected in parallel and one lamp burns out, all the other lamps are still going to light. There is still a circuit intact.

Parallel Circuit

• As identical lamps are added in parallel, the brightness of the lamps will not change. More current is added.

Series Circuit Parallel Circuit