electricity (inc mains + static) Flashcards
current (I)
the RATE of flow of charge
measured by ammeter (A)
- series = same throughout
- parallel = splits at a junction
ammeter symbol
A
voltmeter symbol
V
variable resistor
square with arrow theough
thermistor symbol
square with _/line through
ldr symbol
square with circle round and arrows pointing towards
diode symbol
play button with circle round
led
diode symbol with arrows pointing away
resistor symbol
sauare
current equation
Q = It
- charge (C) = current (A) x time (secs)
actual current flow directions
->+
electrons attracted to + terminal
conventional direction of current flow
+>-
voltage (potential difference)
measure of how much energy (E) the charges (Q) are carrying
measured with voltmeter (V)
- series = splits between components
- parallel = each branch receives same voltage
voltmeter
measured voltage
compares energy charges carried into/out of a component and reads the differences
voltage equation
E= VQ
- energy transferred (J)= voltage (V) x charge (C)
charge (Q)
made up trillions of electrons in wires flowing round circuit
gain energy from battery and deliver to components
measured in coulombs (C)
equation linking VIR
V = IR
voltage (V) = current (A) x resistance (ohms)
resistance
limits the flow of current
hugh R = low I
low R = high I
measured using ohmmeter (in ohms)
all components have some resistance
factors that affect resistance
material
lengthe
thickness
temperature
measuring resistance
can measure resistance using a circuit R = V/I
VIR circuit problems solving
- write down all values you know / work out
- see if you can use V = IR
- series - Rt = R1 + R2 total resistance INCREASES
- parallel - Rt = Vt/ If total resistance DECREASES
fixed resistor graph
straight line - through origin
- linear relationship between current and voltage
- current is proportional to voltage
fixed resistor
resistor is Ohmic conductor
- follows Ohms law
OHMS LAW - current is proportional to the voltage providing temp of resistor doesn’t change
filament lamp graph
S - curved graph
for each interval increase in V the I increases by a smaller amount
filament lamp
doenst obey ohms law
- resistance of lamp increases due to it getting hot
- atoms in filament vibrate faster causing more collisions w electrons which slows them down
diode / LED graph
_/ cruved graph going up
diode /LED
only allows current to flow in 1 direction
when connected the wrong way have infinite R
voltage must exceed threshold voltage before conducting
sensitive to large currents so a resistor is used to prevent the LED from blowing if too much current flows
thermistors /LDRs
made up of semi- conducting material that changes resistance depending on the environment
thermistor
resistor changes with temperature
useful for temperature control
eg ovens kettles fridges thermostats
thermistor graph
as temp. increases resistance decreases non- linear inverse relationship (curve) because…
- heat energy releases more free electrons to flow