Topic 2-electricity Flashcards
whats current
a flow of electrical charge
what does a current rely on to flow round a complete closed circuit
potential difference
whats the unit of current
ampere (A)
when does the current have the same value everywhere
in a single closed loop
what does potential difference (voltage) do
pushes the charge around
whats the unit of potential difference
volt(V)
whats resistance
anything that slows the flow down
whats the unit of resistance
ohm
give the link between current and resistance
The greater the resistance across the component the smaller the current that flows
for a given potential difference across the component
how does a large amount of charge flow around a circuit
when a larger CURRENT flows
what can the resistance of the circuit depend on
whether components are series or parallel or the length of wire use in the circuit
give examples of ohmic conductors
wire or resistors
what thing does the resistance NOT change with the current
ohmic conductors
ata a constant temperature the current flowing through ohmic conductor is directly proportional to the potential difference across it
in what components does the resistance change
diodes and filament lamps
what happens when a filament lamp is used in a circuit
we the current increases the filament lamp heats up more and the resistance increases
what happens with diodes in circuits in terms of resistance
they will allow the current to flow in one direction but have a very HIGH resistance if it is reversed
whats LDR short for
light dependent resistor
what’s an ldr
a resistor that is dependent on the intensity of light
what does resistance do with ldr
in bright light the resistance falls
in darkness the resistance is highest
What are LDRs used for
automatic night lights outdoor lighting and burglar detectors
What’s the thermistor
Temperature dependent resistor
describe resistance with a thermistor
hot conditions -low resistance
cool conditions- resistance goes up
example of thermisters
Car engine temperature sensors and electronic thermorstats
What is sensing circuits used for
turn on or increase the power to components depending on the conditions that they are in
The bigger the components resistance….
The more of the PD it takes
describe features of series circuits
- The different components are connected in a line, end to end between the positive and negative of the power supply
- if you remove or disconnect one component a circuit is broken and they all stop
- The total potential difference of the supply is shared between the various components ( V total = V1+ V2 +…..)
*current is the same everywhere
(I1=I2=….)
- resistance adds up (R total=R1+ R2)
- Cell potential differences add up