2c P1 circuits Flashcards
what is the current in series like?
the current is the same value at any point
what does the amount of current around a series depend on?
the voltage of the power source
the number and type of components in the circuit
what is the current in parallel like?
at a junction the current in conserved
what does conserved mean?
the amount of the current flowing into the junction is equal to the amount of current flowing out of it, it doesn’t split equally though
why is the current like that in parallel circuits?
because of the flow of electrons
- when the electrons reach a junction some will go one way and the rest will go the other
which way is the current flow?
flows from the positive to the negative
what is current?
rate of flow charge
so the size of an electric current is amount of charge passing through a component per second
what is resistance?
opposition to current
what does it mean in a circuit when there is a low current?
there is a high resistance
what do good conductors have?
low resistance
what is potential difference?
a measure of how much energy is transferred between two points in a circuit
what can be used to indicate the presence of current in a circuit?
lamps or led lights
what is the electric current in solid metal conductors?
a flow of negatively charged electrons
what is the voltage like in a parallel circuit?
its the same
what is voltage?
energy transferred per unit charge passed
what is a volt?
a joule per coulomb
advantages of a series circuit?
All of the components can be controlled by a single switch
uses less power
Fewer wires are required
advantages of a parallel circuit?
The components can be individually controlled, using their own switches
If one component breaks, then the others will continue to function
bulbs maintain a similar brightness
disadvantages of a series circuit?
The components cannot be controlled separately
If one component breaks, they will all stop working as well
disadvantages of a parallel circuit?
Many more wires involved so much more complicated to set up
All components have the same voltage as the supply, so harder to control if components need to have different voltages
what is the effect of changing resistance in a circuit on the current?
since V = IR as you increase the resistance the current will decrease
what do LDRs do?
they are light dependent resistors, so they change. resistance depending on the light
what is the effect on resistance as illumination increases? (LDR)
as illumination increases, resistance decreases
what is the effect on resistance as temperature increases? (thermistor)
as temperate increases, resistance decreases
what is a thermistor?
changes the resistance depending on the temp
