Ch18 Electrical Quantities Flashcards
Define Current:
The rate at which electric charge passes a point in a circuit
Define cell:
Device that provides an electromotive force (e.m.f) in a circuit by means of a chemical reaction
Define battery:
2/more electrical cells connected together in a series
Define direct current (d.c):
Electric current that flows in the same direction all the time
Define alternating current:
Electric current that (periodically) changes direction
Define conductor:
Material that allows an electric current to flow through it
Define insulator:
A material that makes it very difficult for electrical current to flow through it
Define charge:
Carried around a circuit by the current, negative charge is carried by electrons
Define galvanometer:
A meter for measuring tiny electric current
Define ammeter:
Meter for measuring electric current
Define ampere, amps (A):
The SI unit of electric current
What is the equation for current:
Current = charge/time
I = Q/t
Define voltage:
The energy transferred/work done per unit charge
(Can be imagined as the push of a battery/power supply in a circuit)
Define potential difference (p.d.) :
The work done by (a unit) charge passing through an electrical component
Another name for the voltage between two points
Define volts (V):
The SI unit of voltage (p.d. Or e.m.f.)
1V = 1J/C
Define voltmeter:
A meter for measuring the p.d. (voltage) between two points
Define electromotive force (e.m.f.):
Electrical work done by a source (cell, battery, etc) in moving (a unit) charge around a circuit
The voltage across the terminals of a source
What is the equation for potential difference?
P.d. = work done by the charge/charge
V =W/Q
What is the equation for electromotive force?
E.m.f. = work done on the charge/charge
E = W/Q
Define resistance:
A measure of how difficult it is for an electric current to flow through a device/a component in a circuit
It is the p.d. across a component divided by the current through it
What is the equation for resistance:
Resistance = p.d./current
R = V/I
Define ohm (Ω):
The SI unit of electrical resistance
1Ω = 1V/A
Define current voltage characteristics:
A graph of current on the vertical axis and voltage on the horizontal axis
Define electrical power:
Power = current x p.d.
P = VI
(Watts = amps x volts)