Electricity Flashcards
Current
a flow of electricity which results from the ordered directional movement of electrically charged particles.
Potential difference
Potential difference is the difference in the amount of energy that charge carriers have between two points in a circuit.
V=IR
ohms law
the electric current through a conductor between two points is directly proportional to the voltage across the two points.
resistivity
a property that describes the extent to which a material opposes the flow of electric current through it.
superconductivity
the property of certain materials to conduct direct current (DC) electricity without energy loss when they are cooled below a critical temperature
kirchhoffs 1st law
the current flowing into a node must be equal to the current flowing out of it
kirchhoffs 2nd law
total emf around a series circuit= sum of the pds across each component
series circuit
all the components in one loop connected by wires, so there is only one route for current to flow.
potential divider
circuit that uses resistors to supply a variable ‘potential difference’
parallel circuit
an electrical path that branches so that the current divides and only part of it flows through any branch
electromotive force
equal to the terminal potential difference when no current flows
internal resistance
the resistance within a battery, or other voltage sources, that causes a drop in the source voltage when there is a current
