EE 336 Lab Report # 1

DC Circuit Fundamentals

Magdalena Simic Ravi B Gondaliya

Performed on January 19, 2012 Submitted on January 26, 2012

Iman A. Hashemi Section 02

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Daytona Beach, FL 32114

I. Abstract One objective of this experiment is to become familiar with various components that are necessary in creating circuits. Among these components are bread boards, resistors, voltage sources, a digital multi-meter, and resistors. Another objective is to compare experimentally derived data for voltages and currents through the circuit, with theoretical values that are calculated using Kirchhoffs Current and Voltage Laws. A circuit was created using a variable voltage source, three resistors, a breadboard then values where obtained by way of a digital multi-meter, for the current, voltage and resistance of the various components. The objectives of this experiment were met by a low percent error between theoretical and measured values for the components. II. Introduction Direct current (DC) circuits can be used to demonstrate various mathematical relationships in power systems between a variety of components. Electrical engineering refers to DC as power systems that have one direction, constant polarity. The quantities of current and voltage are two of the most important within any electrical systems. Current is the movement of electric charge through a medium measured in Amperes (A) and voltage, or potential difference, is the difference in electric potential energy between two points measured in volts (V). The components used in the circuits are resistors, voltage sources, breadboards, and digital multimeter (DMM). Resistors are electronic devices that are used to limit or reduce the amount of charge flowing through the circuit. Resistors are designed with varying levels of resistance or charge restriction. It is important to note that, like many electronic components, the resistor precision can vary from almost completely precise to a tolerance of plus or minus ten percent. A resistors resistance can be calculated using the resistor color code charts. Another component used for circuits are voltage sources. Most commonly some form of battery is used for the voltage source. One such battery device is a variable DC power supply. DC power supplies are manufactured with different numbers of outputs and power capabilities. A third component for circuits is a breadboard. A breadboard allows for the modeling of various circuit designs without making permanent fixtures through soldering. Once resistors and power supplies are connected through a bread board, a DMM can be used to obtain various measurements through the circuit. A DMM is a device that can measure voltage and currents through the circuit and the individual components. Through these various components, different electrical engineering components can be examined and tested. Depending on what conditions must be met for a circuit and component can be connected in either series or parallel to other components. If a component is connected in series, it means that the components positive terminal is connected to the previous components negative terminal and so on. Essentially if you consider the positive terminal to be the head of the component and the negative terminal to be the tail, then components in series are connected head to tail in relation to other components (Figure 1). For parallel connected components, like ends are connects, in other words head to head and tail to tail connections are made (Figure 2). Whether a component is connected in series or parallel, effects the measurements as well as which equations are used to mathematically solve for the values.

Figure 1: Resistors connected in Series

Figure 2: Resistors connected in Parallel

Ohms Law is used to mathematically describe the relationship between resistors, current, and voltage. Ohms Law states that the voltage (potential difference) across a component is equal to the product of the resistance of said component and the current passing through the component. V=IR Where, V= voltage I= current R = resistance This relationship holds for components that are considered ohmic devices. Ohmic devices are components whose voltage and current change proportionally to each other. Equivalent voltage can be calculated for voltage sources that are connected in series with each other (Figure 3). The equivalent voltage for the sources is equal to the sum of the all the voltage sources. VEq=Vs1+Vs2++Vsn

Figure 3: Circuit Containing Series Connected Voltage Sources and Resistors and Parallel Connected Resistors

Equivalent resistance can also be calculated for a circuit. The equations used for equivalent resistance depends on how the resistors are connected in the circuit. If resistors are connected in series, the equivalent resistance is simply the summation of all the resistors (R). REq = R1+R2++Rn For resistors connected in parallel the following equation can be used to calculate the equivalent resistance. REq = (R1-1 + R2-1 + + R3-1)-1 The current remains constant for resistors that are connected in series and the voltage remains constant for resistors connected in parallel. By combining these principles with Ohms Law and equivalence equations, we are able to obtain the Voltage Divider Rule (VDR) and the Current Divider Rule (CDR). These equations can simplify voltage and current calculations. The VDR states that for resistors in series, the voltage in the resistor equals:

Where, Vn = voltage of resistor Vs = voltage of the source The CDR states that for resistors in parallel, the current in the resistor equals:

Where, In = current through the resistor Is = current from the source The last laws to consider when analyzing simple circuits are Kirchhoffs Current and Voltage Laws. Kirchhoffs Current Law (KCL) states the current entering a node, where two of more branches of a circuit meet, must be equal to the current exiting the node (Figure 4).

Figure 4: KCL showing currents entering and exiting the node

III. Procedure

Figure 5: Circuit Configuration for Experiment 1. The circuit pictured in Figure 5 was assembled. 2. The DMM was used to measure the actual resistance of the 3 (820 ) resistors used in the circuit and their values were recorded. 3. Using the DMM connected in parallel to the circuit, the voltage was measured and recorded for VAB, VBA, VAC, VCA, VAD, VDA, VBC, VCB, VBD, VDB, VCD, and VDC 4. Using the DMM connected in series to the circuit, the current was measured and recorded for I1, I2, I3, and I4 5. R3 was removed from the circuit and voltage was measured and recorded for VCD and VAD. The current was also recorded for node A of the circuit. 6. Using KCL the current at node D was verified with the measured and recorded current values. 7. Using KVL around the large loop, voltage was verified for the circuit using the measured and recorded voltage values. 8. The current for I1, I2, I3, and I4 where mathematically calculated using the measured resistance values. 9. Measured and recorded current and resistance values were compared with mathematically calculated values. IV. Result Analysis Table 1: Voltage Sources VS Theoretical (V) Actual (V) % Error (%) VS1 3.00 2.91 3.00 VS2 7.00 6.89 1.57

Rn R1 R2 R3

Table 2: Resistors Theoretical () Actual () % Error (%) 820 835 1.80 820 864 5.09 820 887 7.55

Table 3: Voltage Values Recorded for Various Points in the Circuit Voltage Path V Actual Voltage (V) VAB 2.91 VBA -2.91 VAC 9.79 VCA -9.79 VAD -3.37 VDA 3.37 VBC 0.46 VCB -0.46 VBD 6.89 VDB -6.89 VCD 6.43 VDC -6.43 Table 4: Measured and Calculated Current Values Current Path I Theoretical (mA) Actual (mA) % Error (%) I1 7.86 7.70 2.08 I2 7.86 7.70 2.08 I3 3.98 3.90 2.05 I4 3.88 3.88 0.00 As noted in Table 3, when voltage is measured from node A to node B, there is a potential gain of 2.91 volts, which is the measured voltage of battery #1. In Table 4, the current was recorded and as expected the current values for I1 and I2 are the same. This similarity was expected because the current through a resistor connected in series remains constant. The current through I3 and I4 was expected to be half of the current of I2 since R2 and R3 are connected in parallel. From Table 4, we can see that the current is slightly over half of the current found for I2. The data in Table 3 also illustrated that the current from node A to node B equals the negative of the current from node B to node A. As expected, the values are the same for nodes, however the direction of the current is either positive or negative depending on the start and end point of the DMM. Table 5: Voltage Comparison with R3 In and Out of the Circuit Voltage Path V With R3 (V) R3 Removed (V) VCD 6.43 4.81 VDA 3.37 5.00

Table 6: Current Comparison with R3 In and Out of the Circuit Current I With R3 (mA) R3 Removed (mA) I2 7.67 7.67 I3 3.90 7.67 (Explain why the increase for D-A and decrease for C-D). If R3 is removed, R1 and R2 are now in series, so the current through the circuit will remain constant. The values in Table 6 verified this reasoning since the current is a constant value for I2 and I3 once R3 is removed. Using the values in Table 4 for the currents, we were attempted to verify the circuit using KCL at node D.

I1 - I3 - I4 = 0 I1 - I3 - I4 = 7.67 mA 3.90 mA 3.88 mA = -0.11 mA According to Kirchhoffs Current Law the current in and out of a single node should be equal. We expected out data for the measured currents to prove this law, however we obtained a value of -0.11 mA when we executed KCL instead of zero. Using the values in Table 3 for voltages, we were able to verify KVL around the larger loop of the circuit. -VAB - VBC + VCD + VDA = 0 -2.91 V 6.89 V + 6.43 V + 3.37 V = 0 As expected, Kirchhoffs Voltage Law verified the accuracy of our voltage measurements. In Table 4, the theoretical and measured values for the current are presented. Aside from I4, we found a percent error of slightly over 2% between the values. The following methods were used to mathematically calculate the current. I1 = I2 = Where, VEq = Vs1 + Vs2 VEq = 2.91 V + 6.89 V VEq = 9.80 V And, REq(circuit) = R1 + ( )

REq(circuit) = 835 + ( REq(circuit) = 1,272.67 Subsituting these values, I1 = I2 = I1 = I2 = I1 = I2 = 7.70 mA To solve for I4,

Where, (R2-1 + R3-1)-1 (864 -1 + 887 -1)-1 Substituting,

The current through I3 was calculated using the same equations for I4 with the substitution of the value for R2 instead of R3. V. Conclusions Generally, we have learned the concepts of Ohms, Kirchhoffs Voltage and Kirchhoffs Currents Laws through this experiment. The theoretical calculations of these laws and rules governing the equivalent voltage and resistance calculations for series and parallel components taught in the Electrical Engineering course have also been proved in this experiment. However, throughout this experiment, there were some minor inaccuracies between theoretical and measured values. We concluded that these inaccuracies can be contributed to either component affects, such as the resistance present in the breadboard and wires, the efficiency of the devices itself, or to improper equipment handling on our part. A correct handling technique and using more efficient components might reduce inaccuracies in the experiment in the future.

VI. Statement This experiment was efficient in demonstrating the various basic elements of circuit design. The teaching assistant provided all the necessary assistance when asked.