4 Circuits 1

Chapter 4
Circuits 1

Circuit theory is about developing an abstraction model and methodology to describe electrical phenomena.
While the circuit theory we discuss in 6.01 covers only a small portion of the spectrum of electrical situations,
it is a powerful and fundamental portion, and one which we can use to describe much of what we encounter
in every day life.

4.1 Circuit elements

Our electrical abstraction is based on two major types of elements: Nodes and Components.

4.1.1 Nodes
At the center of all electrical phenomena is electrical charge and its movement (or lack thereof).

Generally the components of charge that we deal with in circuits are electrons, although you
can also see holes 1 or cations/anions in liquid solution. In 6.01 we wont worry about the
nature of the charge carriers, so it might be easiest to just imagine all charge is positive since
that is how electrical current is defined.
Charge will tend to move toward its lowest energy region just like a ball will tend to roll to the
lowest point it can in a local region.
In electronics, we normalize the potential energy of a region to the amount of charge. Charge is
measured in Coulombs (C), and energy is measured in Joules (J). A Joule/Coulomb is a Volt 2
Volts are how we describe energy differentials in circuits.
We will often use the terms "voltage" or "electrical potential" interchangably.
Positive electrical charge will tend to go towards lower voltages.
Any region in space which is at a uniform electrical potential is called a node.Within a given
node, units of charge have no reason to on average migrate into any one area or another.
For practical purposes a node is often a continuous piece of electrical conductor like copper
or gold, however any object or region at a uniform electrical potential can comprise a node,
including tiny charged chunks of dead skin floating around in the air, or charged oil droplets,
etc...

1
2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electron_hole
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volt

4 Circuits 1

4.1.2 Components
Units of charge move around, so clearly we cant describe the electrical universe using only nodes.
We must introduce a second concept to our circuit abstraction model to describe relationships
between nodes and how charge moves between those nodes. That concept is a component.
In the most general sense, a component is anything that separates two nodes, such as rubber,plastic,
a motor, a squirrel foolishly bridging two power lines, or air.
An aribtrary component is generally drawn as a box as shown below with a top node and bottom
node:

+
v1

Note that the variable v1 refers to the difference in potential (the voltage) between the two nodes
on either side of the component, and in particular the difference between the top node and the
bottom node (Vtop Vbottom ) It is important to realize that this voltage variable v1 is a frame of
reference and can be either positive or negative in value.

If the top node is 8V higher than the bottom node then v1 = 8V.
If the top node is 8V lower in potential than the bottom node then v1 = 8V.
Just a bit ago we said that (positive) electrical charge will tend to move towards areas of lower
voltage. If a component links two nodes with different voltages, there is a potential for the electrical
charge to move between them. The movement of positive charge is called electrical current 3 and
we describe it using the variable i or I (from the French "intensit") and measure it in Ampres 4
which we usually abbreviate as Amps or simply A.

+
v1

i1

The following pieces are important:

The current flowing from the top node into the component is identical to the current flowing
out of the component into the bottom node. So i1 is on found on both sides of the component
in the same direction
i1 is a frame of reference just like v1 is for voltage. If current is actually moving downwards
at 2 Amps, wed say i1 = 2A. If it current is actually moving upwards at 2 Amps, wed say
i1 = 2A.
It is super, super important to realize that the voltage and current variables (v1 and i1 ) are frames
of reference that we draw and do not imply the actual direction in which charge is flowing or the
sign of voltage difference. A grammar analogy is the verb "to fall". Assuming were on Earth, if
we drop a ball one meter to earth we can say if fell 1 m. If we were instead to toss the ball upward
one meter, while it would sound weird, you could say the ball fell -1m. Saying this doesnt change
what actually happened, just merely how we record it. The verb fall implies a frame of reference to
3
4

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_current
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ampere

4 Circuits 1

which you then apply reality. That is what were doing with our v1 and i1 variables here. We set
a frame of reference and then determine reality in the context of them. So dont flip the i1 arrow if
it ends up being negative. The +/- for v1 and the arrow for i1 stay put when using them to solve
for stuff.

4.1.3 Component Types

In general, every electrical component imposes a relation between the voltage difference of its
two nodes and the current through it. This relation is called a constitutive relation. In our class
there are three major types of components that well deal with, each with a distinctive constitutive
relation.

4.1.3.1 Voltage Source

A voltage source is a component whose voltage is a constant (e.g., v1 = V0 ) independent of the
current through the element. We will denote a voltage source by a circle enclosing plus and minus
symbols to denote voltage. A number beside the source will indicate the constant voltage generated by the source, as illustrated below. Voltages are specified with units called Volts which are
abbreviated as V.

V0

i1
+
+ v
1

4.1.3.2 Current Source

A current source is an element whose current is a constant (e.g., i1 = I0 ) independent of the
voltage across the element. We will denote a current source by a circle enclosing an arrow to
denote current. A number beside the source will indicate the constant current generated by the
source, as illustrated below. Currents are specified with units called Ampres or simply Amps
which are abbreviated as A.

i1
I0

+
v1

4.1.3.3 Resistor
Our third simple element is a resistor 5, in which the voltage is proportional to the current and
the proportionality constant is the resistance R, so that v1 = i1 R. We will denote a resistor as
follows. Resistances have the dimensions of Ohms 6 (abbreviated as ), which are equivalent to
Volts divided by Amps.

i1
R

5
6

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resistor
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georg_Simon_Ohm

+
v1

4 Circuits 1

4.2 Multiple Components

When you have just one component all you need to describe the situation is the constitutive relation (see section above). When you start to merge multiple components together, with nodes
getting shared by multiple components, additional laws must be applied in order to relate how
the arrangement of components influence the various voltages and currents.
Conservation laws describe properties of a circuit that must hold, no matter what the particular components are. There are two fundamental conservation laws, one that relates to currents and one that
relates to voltages.

4.2.1 Kirchhoffs Current Law

Kirchoffs Current Law (which cool kids refer to as "KCL") can be thought of as the electrical form
of conservation of mass. Electrical charge cannot be created nor destroyed in an electrical circuit.
This applies to both components and nodes. We already saw evidence of this when we said that
the current into a component is the same as the current out of that component on the other side in
the previous section. Similarly, if a certain amount of current is flowing into a node, an identical
amount must also be flowing out through some other channel in order to maintain equillibrium
at that node.
In fancy math speak that is:

Pb

n=1 in

= 0

where n are the total paths of current defined as leaving a node. 7

Consider the case where we have three components hooked up like so:

+
v1

+
v2

+
v3

Just three components hooked up with their voltages shown

The first thing we should notice is that the top nodes of all three components are merged together,
forming one large node. Additionally, the bottom node of all three components are merged together forming a second large node.
If we proceed to look at the currents through each component well see:

i1

i2

i3

KCL states that at the top node: i1 +i2 +i3 = 0. For the bottom node it also states: i1 i2 i3 = 0.
The positive/negative difference comes from the fact that in the top node, all currents are defined
as flowing out of that node, while in the bottom case they are all flowing into the node. Note that
mathematically these two statements are equivalent.
7

You could also have n refer to the number of total paths of current flowing into a node... it doesnt matter so long as
you choose one and apply it consistently to currents. If i1 , i2 , i3 , and i4 are all defined as flowing out of a node then
the correct KCL equation is i1 + i2 + i3 + i4 = 0. If i1 and i2 are defined as flowing out of the node and i3 and i4 are
flowing into the node, then the correct KCL equation would be i1 + i2 i3 i4 = 0 or a mathematical equivalent.

4 Circuits 1

Check Yourself 1. Additional: Lets say i1 was flipped in direction so that it is defined as flowing up. What would our KCL equation be then in terms of the currents?
Answer: i1 + i2 + i3 = 0.

Check Yourself 2. Part a. A circuit is divided into the part that is inside the dashed red box
(below) and the part that is outside the box (not shown). Find an equation
that relates the currents i1 and i2 that flow through the dashed red box.

i1

i2

Part b. A more complicated circuit is shown inside the red box below. Find
an equation that relates the currents i1 , i2 , and i3 that flow through the
dashed red box.

i1

i2

i3

4.2.2 Kirchoffs Voltage Law

Kirchoffs Current Law is an electrical form of Conservation of Mass. Kirchoffs Voltage Law is an
electrical form of Conservation of Energy, and states that for any complete loop in a circuit, the
total component voltage encountered in going around must sum to zero. Cool kids call Kirchoffs
Voltage Law KVL.
In math speak that is:

Pb

n=1 vn

= 0

where n is the number of components existing in a circuit loop.

Kirchoffs Voltage Law (KVL) is often times the harder of the two [KxLs for x in [V,C]] for people
to undertsand, but it need not be. As a unit of charge travels around a loop in circuit through
components and into/out of nodes, it will go up and go down in voltage. How much it goes up
and down for each component will be dictated by the constitutive relations for that component.
Regardless, the ups and downs must cancel out once the charge gets back to where it started,
otherwise things wont make sense...in short the universe will unravel.
In physical gravity-land, a violation of Kirchoffs Voltage Law would result in what we call an
impossible object such as a Penrose staircase as shown below.

4 Circuits 1

In the above image, both the left and right image are impossible objects. As engineers both images
should equally blow your mind BECAUSE IT VIOLATES KVL. Just like you cant climb twenty
steps in total only to get back to the same location, an electrical charge cant experience a net nonzero change in voltage only to arrive back at the same node. In real-gravity-life, youd need to
climb up as many stairs as you climb down, and in real-circuit-life youll need to go up in voltage
as much as you go down to complete a loop.
Now how do we generate the KVL equations if given a circuit? A simple way is to pick a starting move around the loop in either a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction and add up the
component voltages consistently until you arrive again at the starting node. What we mean by
"consistently" is that if you encounter the "-" side of a component voltage first you add/subtract
that component voltage into your sum, and if you encounter the "+" side of a component voltage
first, you subtract/add that component voltage in (note the complementary order of operations). It
doesnt matter which approach you prefer as long as you are conistent with your addition and
subtraction. In the circuit in the figure above, starting in the bottom left of the circuit and moving
clockwise, the KVL expression could be either 3V + 6V + 2V or 3V 6V 2V . If you start
in the bottom right and move counter-clockwise, identical expressions will be generated. In the
case of this circuit, any expression you generate will sum to a non-zero value, which says that the
circuit cant exist as drawn.
If the bottom right component voltage was changed from 2V to 3V, would the circuit now obey
Kirchoffs Voltage Law?

4 Circuits 1

Check Yourself 3. How many KVL equations can be written for the following circuit?

+
v1

+
v2

+
v3

How many of the KVL equations are linearly independent?

There are three loops through this circuit:
One through the left two elements yields the KVL equation v1 +v2 = 0
or v1 = v2 .
One through the right two elements yields the KVL equation v2 +v3 =
0 or v2 = v3 .
One through the outer two elements yields the KVL equation v1 +v3 =
0 or v1 = v3 .
Only two of the three KVL equations are linearly independent, since each
equation can be derived from the other two.
The particularly simple solution to this circuit is that v1 = v2 = v3 . This
solution could also have been derived directly from the fact that there are
just two nodes, and therefore only one possible potential difference.

4 Circuits 1

Check Yourself 4. Lets look at the following circuit. How many different KVL equations can
be written for this circuit?

+
v1 +

V0

+
v2

+
v3

+ v6

+
v4

+
v5

Answer: One KVL equation can be written for every possible closed loop
through the circuit. The most obvious loops are A, B, and C shown below.

+
v1 +

V0

+
v2

+
v4

+
v3

B
+ v6
C

+
v5

A: v1 + v2 + v4 = 0
B: v2 + v3 v6 = 0
C: v4 + v6 + v5 = 0

But there are several more, shown below.

+
v1 +

V0
D

+
v3

+
v2

+
v4

+ v6

+
v5

D=A+B: v1 + v3 v6 + v4 = 0

+
v1 +

V0

+
v2

+
v4

+
v3

+ v6
F

+
v5

F=B+C: v4 v2 + v3 + v5 = 0

+
v1 +

V0
E

+
v3

+
v2

+
v4

+ v6

+
v5

E=A+C: v1 + v2 + v6 + v5 = 0

+
v1 +

V0
G

+
v2

+
v4

+
v3

+ v6

+
v5

G=A+B+C: v1 + v3 + v5 = 0

These seven equations are not linearly independent. Equation D is the sum
of Equations A and B (notice that the v2 terms in Equations A and B cancel).
Similarly, equation E is the sum of Equations A and C, equation F is the sum
of Equations B and C, and equation G is the sum of Equations A, B, and C.
Thus this circuit has three independent KVL equations and four additional
dependent KVL equations.

4 Circuits 1

Check Yourself 5. Electrical Penrose Staircase following set of voltages are not consistent
with Kirchhoffs voltage laws but can be made consistent by changing just
one. Which one?

2
4

0
3

Prove that the answer is unique.

4.2.3 Summary of All Laws

We now have a set of laws put together that can describe our electrical model of the world. These
laws give us a system of equations, which well see in the next section can be solved. A summary
cheat sheet is shown below. From now on you are expected to follow the laws.

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4 Circuits 1

4.3 Solving Circuits

Lets solve for v1 , v2 , i1 , and i2 in the following circuit using the laws discussed above.

i1
+
v1

10V

i2
+
v2

KCL tells us: i1 + i2 = 0

KVL tells us: v1 v2 = 0 or v1 = v2 .
The consitutive relation for the left component gives us: v1 = 10V
The constitutive relation for the right component gives us: v2 = 2 i2
All together we have four independent equations and four unknowns, which means we can solve
for answers. Solving, we find that v1 = v2 = 10V , i2 = v2 /2 = 5A, and i1 = i2 = 5A.
Lets try another one: Determine the currents and voltages in the following circuit.

i1
+
v1

14A

i2
+
v2

i3
+
v3

KCL applied at either the top or bottom node gives us: i1 + i2 + i3 = 0

KVL applied in the left loop yields: v1 = v2
KVL applied in the right loop yields: v2 = v3
The constitutive relation for the left component gives us: i1 = 14A
The constitutive relation for the middle component gives us: v2 = 3 i2
The constitutive relation for the left component gives us: v3 = 4 i3
All together this yields six equations with six unknowns.
Solving

v1 = v2 = 3 i2 = v3 = 4 i3 = 4 (i1 i2 ) = 4 (14 i2 )
so that 3 i2 = 4 (14 i2 )
so that i2 = 8A.
Therefore i1 = 14A, i2 = 8A, and i3 = 6A.
Also, v1 = v2 = 3 8A= v3 = 4 6A= 24V.

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4 Circuits 1

Check Yourself 6. Try to Solve the following circuit.

i2

+ v2

i1
+
v1

6
+

36V

i3
+
v3

i4
+
v4

Answer:

i1 = 5A ; i2 = 5A ; i3 = 2A ; i4 = 3A ;
v1 = 36V ; v2 = 30V ; v3 = 6V ; v4 = 6V
While a given circuit may at first appear to be a tough thing to start solving, developing a systematic
approach or algorithm to extract all necessary information from the circuit, can help get rid of the
hesitation about where to begin.
There are many ways and methods through which circuits can be solved. What we did in the
examples above are a common approach: write down all the KVL and KCL equations from the
circuit, add the constituent equations for each element, and then solve for the voltage across and
current through each component. This method does have a problem with redundant KVL equations, however, and as circuits become more and more complex, redundancies can become harder
to spot in laying out our equations. The voltages across circuit elements are constrained by KVL
so that the sum of the voltages around any closed loop is zero. However, there are many possible closed loops through even simple circuits (see section on KVL above with the multiple loops
generating multiple non-independent equations).
So far, the only general way that we have seen to deal with this redundancy is to (1) find all of the
possible KVL equations, and then (2) eliminate the redundant ones. This process seems needlessly
complicated.
One good way to eliminate KVL redundancy is to use node voltages. Node voltages are voltages
associated with circuit nodes rather than with circuit elements. Given a complete set of node
voltages, it is easy to determine the component voltages: each component voltage is the difference
between the voltage of the node at the positive end of the component minus that at its negative
end.

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4 Circuits 1

Check Yourself 7. Determine expressions for each of the element voltages from the node voltages e0 , e1 , e2 , and e3 .

e3

+
v1 +

V0

+
v2

e1

+
v3

e2
+ v6

+
v4

+
v5

e0
Answers:
v1 = e3 e0
v2 = e3 e1
v3 = e3 e2
v4 = e1 e0
v5 = e2 e0
v6 = e1 e2

Check Yourself 8. How would the component voltages (v1 ,v2 , etc..) change in the previous example if 1 V were added to each of the node voltages (e1 ,e2 , etc..)?
Answer: They wouldnt. Since, for example, v1 = e3 e1 , adding 1V to e1
and e3 would cancel out.
Adding a constant voltage to each of the node voltages of a circuit has no effect on any of the
element voltages. Thus, substituting node voltages for element voltages removes redundancies
that are implicit in KCL equations, but also introduces a new redundancy, which we can think of
as a global offset voltage. If we are only interested in element voltages (which is typically the case),
we can exclude effects of a global offset voltage by arbitrarily assigning the potential of one node
to zero. We refer to that special node with zero potential as the reference or sometimes what we
call "ground.". In addition to just assigning a node to be 0V, you can also add a reference node
symbol:

We will explore the Node-Voltage-Component-Current (NVCC) method below which is completely general, and is also well-suited for computers to use in solving circuits.

13

4 Circuits 1

4.3.1 NVCC Method

In the NVCC method, we take the following steps:

Label all of the nodes (places where there is a wire between two or more components) with
names v1 , . . . , nn , and make variables v1 , . . . , vn , one for the voltage at each node.
Declare one of them, ng , to be the reference node (this can be any node; the voltages will be
computed relative to the voltage at that node) and set vg = 0.
Make current variables i1 , . . . , im for each component (resistor or source) in the network. Label
a direction for each current in your network (it doesnt matter what directions you pick as long
as you handle them consistently from here on out).
Write down n 1 KCL equations, one for each node except for ng . These equations assert that
the sum of currents entering each node is 0.
Write down m constitutive equations, one for each component, describing that components
linear relationship between its current ik and the voltage difference across the component,
expressed in terms of node voltages. The voltage across the component is vk+ vk , where
vk+ is the node voltage at the positive terminal of the component and vk is the node voltage
at its negative terminal voltage. SUPER-IMPORTANT: The direction of the current defines
what constitutes the positive and negative terminals of the component: the current runs
from positive to negative. For a resistor with resistance R, the equation is vk+ vk = ik R;
for a voltage source with voltage Vs , the equation is vk+ vk = Vs ; for a current source with
current Cs , the equation is ik = Cs .
Solve these equations to determine the node voltage and component currents.
So, for this circuit,

e1

iA

RA

e2
iC

RB

VC

iB
e2

iD

e3
RD

using the current directions for each component as drawn, we have the following equations:
Reference node:

e3 = 0
KCL:

iA iB iD iC = 0
iB iA = 0
Constitutive equations:

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4 Circuits 1

(e1 e2 ) = iA RA
(e2 e1 ) = iB RB
(e2 e3 ) = iD RD
e2 e3 = Vc
So, now, if we know RA , RB , RD , and VC , which are the specifications of our components, we have
7 linear equations in 7 unknowns (e1 , e2 , e4 , iA , iB , iC , and iD ). Just a small (though possibly
tedious) matter of algebra, and were done. As an example, let RA = 100, RB = 200, RD =
100, and VC = 10V . Then, we get e2 = 10V ; iA = iB = 0A (thats reasonable: why would any
current bother going that way, when it can just run through the diagonal wire?); and iD = 0.1A ,
which is pretty straightforward.

4.3.1.1 Solution strategy

You can see that the KCL equations are all in terms of currents; and the constitutive equations give
us direct expressions for almost all of the currents. So, a good solution strategy is to work primarily
with the KCL equations, trying to eliminate as many current variables as possible, by substituting
in expressions derived from the constitutive equations. In the example above, here are the KCL
equations:

iA iB iD iC = 0
iB iA = 0
Now, substituting in expressions from the constitutive equations, we can rewrite them as:
e1 e2
RA

e2 e1
RB

e2 e1
RB

Vc
RD

e1 e2
RA

iC = 0
= 0

We also know, from the reference node equation e3 = 0, that e2 = VC , so we can rewrite our
equations as:
e1 Vc
RA

Vc e1
RB

Vc e1
RB

Vc
RD

e1 Vc
RA

iC = 0
= 0

In most cases, you can write equations of this form down directly, without bothering to write the
KCL and the constituent equations separately, and then substituting in for the currents.Now we
only have two unknowns: e1 and iC , and two equations. The second equation tells us that Vc = e1 ,
and, substituting that into the first equation, we have

iC =

Vc
RD

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4 Circuits 1

Check Yourself 9. What happens when we take out the diagonal wire? We have to add a new
node, e4 , and then proceed as we did above.

RA

iA

e1

e2
iC

RB

VC

iB
e4

e3

iD

RD

Ultimately, we can find that:

iA = iB = iC = 0.025A

iD = 0.025A
e1 = 7.5V
e2 = 10V
e4 = 2.5V
Verify this solution by writing out the equations and solving them using a
process similar to the one outlined above.

4.3.1.2 An example
Lets try to find the node voltages and component currents for this circuit:

e1
i4

i1

+15 V

e2
i2

3
2

i3

+10 A
e3

Here are the steps of the NVCC method:

We have labeled the nodes e1 , e2 , and e3 . Remember that we dont need a node for every
corner or join in the circuit: a single node can cover a stretch of wire with several connections,
because it will all have the same voltage as long as no components intervene.
Declare one of them to be the reference node. When theres a single voltage source, it is conventional (but not necessary!) to set its negative terminal to be the reference node; so well set
e3 = 0.
Make current variables for each component in the network and label them with arrows. We
did this already in the figure.
Write down n 1 KCL equations, one for each node except for the reference node:

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4 Circuits 1

i4 i1 = 0
i1 i2 + i3 = 0
Write down m constitutive equations, one for each component, describing that components
linear relationship between its current ik and the voltage difference across the component:
e1 = 15
e1 e2 = 3i1
e2 e3 = 2i2
i3 = 10
Solve these equations to determine the node voltage and component currents. There are lots
of ways to work through this algebra. Heres one meandering path to the right answer.We can
do some plugging in of e1 , e3 , and i3 to simplify matters:
15 e2 = 3i1
e2 = 2i2
i4 i1 = 0
i1 i2 + 10 = 0
Plugging expressions for i1 and i2 derived from the first two equations into the last one, we
get:
15e2
3

e2
2

= 10

so:

e2 = 18
And now its easy to see that i1 = 1A, i2 = 9A, and i4 = 1A.
NVCC Shortcut
If we want to shortcut the NVCC method, we can follow the first three steps above, but then try
to go straight to versions of the KCL equations that substitute in expressions for current that are
derived from the constituent constraints. So, we could observe that if e3 = 0 then e1 = 15. And
then we could write the KCL equations as:

i4
15e2
3

15e2
3

+ 10

= 0
e2
2

= 0

Solving the second equation we find that e2 = 18; from this we can easily determine the other
relevant quantities.

4.3.1.3 Common Patterns

There are some common patterns of resistors that are important to understand and that can be used
over and over again as design elements. In this section, we will lead into a systematic approach
to solving circuits. The first step in that approach is to associate voltages with nodes (points at
which components connect) in the circuit rather than with the components themselves. This only
makes sense if we establish a fixed reference voltage. We pick a particular node in the circuit (it
wont matter which one, but it is, for example, conventional to pick the negative terminal of a

17

4 Circuits 1

voltage source) and call it the reference node and assert that it has voltage 0. Now, when we speak
of a node in the circuit having voltage v, what we mean is that the voltage difference between that
node and the reference node is v. The reference node is indicated in a circuit diagram by a special
single-terminal component made of three parallel lines.
Resistors in parallel
Now, in this figure,

VC

RA

RB

We have a simple circuit with two resistors in parallel. Even though there are several wires being
connected together, there are really only two nodes: places where multiple components are connected. Lets redraw the circuit with additional bits and pieces and then write down the equations
governing this system.

iC

e1
iA

VC

RA

iB
RB

e2

First, applying KCL to e1 ,

iA + iB + iC = 0
Now, setting e2 to 0, and describing the individual components, we have:

e2 = 0
e1 e2 = iA RA
e1 e2 = iB RB
e1 e2 = Vc
We can simplify this last set of constraints to

VC = iA RA
VC = iB RB
so

iA =

VC
RA

iB =

VC
RB

Plugging these into the KCL equation, we get:

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4 Circuits 1

iA + iB = iC
VC
RA

VC
RB

= iC

B
VC RRAA+R
RB = iC

RB
VC = iC RRAA+R
B

What we can see from this is that two resistances, RA and RB , wired up in parallel, act like a single
resistor with resistance

Req =

RA RB
RA +RB

This combination

iC
Req

Vs

This is another common pattern for both analysis and design. If you see a circuit with parallel
resistors connected at nodes e1 and e2 , you can simplify it to a circuit that replaces those two
paths between e1 and e2 with a single path with a single resistor.
To get some intuition, think about what happens when RA is much bigger than RB . Because the
voltage across both resistors is the same, it must be that the current through RA is much smaller
than the current through RB . The appropriate intuition here is that current goes through the resistor thats easier to pass through.
Check Yourself 10. If RA = 10000 and RB = 10, what is the effective resistance of RA and
RB in parallel?
Current Divider I
Lets say we have the circuit below, comprised of a current source and two resistors in parallel. It
is similar to what we had above, but the source is different.

Is

R1

R2

Lets redraw it for analysis:

iC

e1
iA

Is

RA
e2

iB
RB

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4 Circuits 1

We already know from the previous example that two parallel resistors yield an equivalent total
resistance of

Req =

RA RB
RA +RB

We can use that equivalent resistance of the parallel combination of resistors to quickly determine
the voltage across the resistors. From the solution (in the previous section) we know:

iA + iB = iC
so therefore in this case

iA + iB = Is
Therefore

e1 = IS Req
RB
e1 = IS RRAA+R
B

Because we know that:

iA =

e1
RA

iB =

e1
RB

We can therefore:
B
iA = IS RAR+R
B
A
iB = IS RAR+R
B

These two equations reveal the "current divider formula" which can be used to determine the
amount of current flowing through a given resistor when it is parallel with another resistor.
Current Divider II

iC
RA

Vs

RB

What about if we have a voltage source present and not a current source? Would the current
divider formula still apply? Yes, but the solution will be slightly different. Above Is was a known
value, but here it isnt. All we know is the supply voltage and the resistors.
Plugging these into the KCL equation, we get:

iA + iB = iC
e1 = iC Req = VC
Therefore:

iC =

Vs
Req

Vs (RA +RB )
RA RB

Because from the previous section we know:

B
iA = iC RAR+R
B

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4 Circuits 1
A
iB = iC RAR+R
B

We can simply substitute in everything to figure out current divider equations for this circuit.
When you do the math out, there are quite a few cancelations and you end up with:

iA =

Vs
RA

iB =

Vs
RB

These answers should make perfect sense, since all we ended up calculating was the current
through a resistor with a known voltage across it. In fact we already had these answers in the
first section on paralell resistors, so all is right with the world.
Resistors in series
The figure below shows two resistors connected together in a circuit with a voltage source, the
negative terminal of which is connected to the reference node.

RA
VC
RB

Lets redraw it for analysis:

e2 i C
iA
RA
VC

e1
iB
RB
e3

It induces a simple set of constraints (remember that we dont need a KVL equation for the reference node):

iA iC = 0
iB iA = 0
e3 = 0
e2 e1 = iA RA

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4 Circuits 1

e1 e3 = iB RB
e2 e3 = Vc
What happens when we solve? First, its easy to see that because theres a single loop, KCL implies
that the current across each of the nodes is the same. Lets call it i . Now, we can add together the
fourth and fifth equations, and then use the last equation to get

e2 e3 = iA RA + iB RB
e2 e3 = i(RA + RB )
Vc = i(RA + RB )
i =

Vc
RA +RB

The interesting thing to see here is that we get exactly the same result as we would have had if
there were a single resistor R, with resistance RA + RB . So, if you ever see two or more resistors in
series in a circuit, with no other connections from the point between them to other components,
you can treat them as if it were one resistor with the sum of the resistance values. This is a nice
small piece of abstraction.
Check Yourself 11. Consider the circuit we just analayzed. You should be able to construct an
equivalent circuit with only one resistor. What is its resistance value?
Voltage dividers
The figure below shows part of a circuit, in a configuration known as a voltage divider.

i
RA
+

Vin
RB

Vout

Using what we know about circuit constraints, we can determine the following relationship between Vout and Vin :

Vout =

RB
RA +RB Vin

Lets go step by step. From the previous example, for two resistors in series we know they will act
like one resistor. Therefore current through the circuit loop will be:

i =

Vin
RA +RB

We also know that for a given resistor:

e R = ir R
In the case of our circuit, were interested in Vout which is the voltage across RB . Therefore:

eR = Vout = i RB

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4 Circuits 1
Weve already determined another expression for i above and so we can substitute that in:
B
Vout = Vin RAR+R
B

This last equation is know as the voltage divider equation. We can deploy it any time we see this
toplogy. So, for example, if RA = RB , then Vout = Vin /2. This is a very handy thing.
Adding onto the Voltage Divider The voltage divider equation is great. If you need a voltage in
your circuit that is between two values that you already have available, you can choose an appropriate RA and RB to create that voltage...
Well, almost. In our derivations above, we assumed that the currents through Resistors RA and
RB were the same (mathematically: iA iB = 0). We were assuming that there was no current
flowing out Vout . But, of course, in general, that wont be true. Consider the following figure:

RA
+

Vin
RB

Vout

RL

Here we have an additional "load" on the circuit at Vout with a resistor RL . The presence of RL
changes matters considerably.
To see what is going to happen, we could solve the whole circuit again. Or, we could observe that,
between the + and - nodes of Vout , we have two resistances, RB and RL in parallel. And weve
already see that resistances in parallel behave as if they are a single resistor with value such that:

Req =

RB RL
RB +RL .

So, (you do the algebra), by combining the paralell resistor treatment with our voltage divider
treatment our result will be that:
R

eq
= Vin
Vout = Vin RA +R
eq

RB
R RB
RA +RB + A
R
L

The lesson here is that the modularity in circuits is not as strong as that in programs or our difference equation models of linear systems. How a circuit will behave can be highly dependent on
how it is connected to other components. Still, the constraints that it exerts on the overall system
remain the same.
Well be investigating how to handle this in the next section.