KE17303

ELECTRICAL AND
ELECTRONIC SYSTEM

NOTE 1: BASIC CONCEPTS

Khairul Anuar Mohamad, PhD
11th September 2017
Overview
1 • Introduction

2 • Variables

3 • Components

4 • Topology
Learning Outcomes
You are able to:
1. Understand and Define basic quantities in
electrical circuit – charge, current, voltage and
power.
2. Understand the current-voltage (I-V)
characteristics of a variety of circuit elements
What is a Circuit?
• Our book’s definition (page 4):
An electric circuit is an interconnection of
electrical elements.

• Five electrical elements that we’ll focus

on:
– Resistors
– Capacitors
– Inductors
– Voltage Sources
– Current Sources
Example Circuit: A Power Supply
from a Flat-Screen Television
Resistor

Inductor Capacitors
Schematic Diagrams
• To discuss circuits, we draw schematic
diagrams that represent those circuits.
• Schematic diagrams do not show the parts of
the circuit as they actually look. Instead, they
contain standard symbols that represent
electrical elements.
Example Schematic Diagram: A
Radio Transmitter (from book’s page 4)
Resistor Symbol Inductor Symbol

Capacitor Symbol
 A Simpler Example Schematic
Diagram: Flashlight
Switch
Light Bulb

Battery (Voltage Source)

• When the switch is open (as drawn), no current flows, so the

bulb is dark.
• When the switch is closed, current flows, and the bulb lights.
Another Simple Example: A Voltage
Source And Two Resistors
Polarity of a Battery
• Note that the symbol for a battery is asymmetric. The
end with the longer line represents the battery’s positive
terminal, and the other end represents its negative
terminal.

Positive terminal

Negative terminal
Direction of Current Flow
• For historical reasons, we say that in our simple circuit
current flows out of the battery’s positive terminal and
into its negative terminal.

 Modern science tells us that electrons actually move in

the opposite direction, but we’ll follow the standard
convention shown above.
Element Ratings
 The schematic diagrams so far have been
incomplete.
 They show what kind of elements are in the circuit
and how those elements are connected to each
other.
 But they do not show numerical ratings that let us
quantify the circuit’s behavior.
 Every voltage source has a numerical rating in volts (V).
 Every resistor has a numerical rating in ohms ().
Examples of Voltage Sources
• What is the rating of these sources?

• Flashlight battery ____ V

• Socket/Wall outlet ____ V

• But the battery is a DC voltage source, while the

outlet is an AC voltage source.
DC Versus AC
• In a direct-current (DC) circuit, current
flows in one direction only.
– The textbook’s Chapters 1 through 8 cover
DC circuits.
• In an alternating-current (AC) circuit,
current periodically reverses direction.
– The book’s Chapters 9 through 11 cover AC
circuits.
 Schematic Symbols for Independent
Voltage Sources
• Several different symbols are commonly
used for voltage sources:
Type of Voltage Source Symbol Used in Our Symbol Used in Multisim
Textbook Software
Generic voltage source (may
be DC or AC)

DC voltage source

AC voltage source
V or v?
• Some authors use uppercase letters for
constant quantities, such as V for the voltage
of a constant DC voltage source.
• And they use lowercase letters for time-
varying quantities, such as v for the voltage of
an AC voltage source.
• Our textbook mentions this convention on
pages 7 and 10, but usually uses lowercase
letters for both constant and time-varying
quantities.
 DC Voltage Sources on Our Trainer

Fixed +5 V voltage source

No matter which red

socket you use, you
must also use the
GROUND socket.

Fixed -5 V voltage source

Variable positive
voltage source,
controlled by the left-
hand knob. We’ll
usually use this one.

Variable negative voltage source, controlled by the right-hand knob.

Using a Digital Multimeter to Measure
Voltage
• We’ll use a digital multimeter to measure
voltage.

• Note that the meter has a red lead and a

black lead. See next slide ….
Meter’s Red and Black Leads

• When you measure a voltage, the order of

the red and black leads determines
whether the value is displayed as positive
or negative.

Meter will display 5.00 V Meter will display 5.00 V

Resistance
• Resistance is opposition to the flow of
electrons.
• Resistance’s unit of measure is the ohm
().
• A perfect conductor would have zero
resistance and a perfect insulator would
have infinite resistance.
• A resistor is a device manufactured to have
a specific amount of resistance.
Resistor Ratings
• The resistors in our labs range in value from 10
 to 10,000,000 .

• Instead of having the value printed in numbers

on the case, our resistors are marked with a
four-band color code to indicate the value.
Resistor Color Code
• The first three color bands specify the
resistance’s nominal value.
Digit Color
0 Black
1 Brown
2 Red
3 Orange
4 Yellow
5 Green
6 Blue
7 Violet
8 Gray
9 White
Resistor Color Code (2)

• The fourth band (“tolerance band”) gives the

percent variation from the nominal value that
the actual resistance may have.
• Tolerance Color
5% Gold
10% Silver
20% None

• Many websites have color-code charts and

calculators.
Tolerance Calculations
• To find a resistor’s tolerance in ohms,
multiply its nominal value by the percentage
tolerance.
• Example: For a 220  resistor with 5%
tolerance, the tolerance in ohms is
220   0.05 = 11 .

• Then…
Tolerance Calculations (2)
• To find the minimum value that a resistor can have, subtract
its tolerance in ohms from its nominal value.
• In example above, the nominal value was 220  and the
tolerance was 11 . So the minimum value is
220   11  = 209 .
• To find the maximum value that a resistor can have, add its
tolerance in ohms to its nominal value.
• In example above, the maximum value is
220  + 11  = 231 .
Using a Digital Multimeter to Measure
Resistance
• Digital multimeters can measure resistance
as well as voltage.
• When measuring a resistor’s resistance, the
resistor must be out of circuit: definitely no
power applied and disconnected from
other elements.
Same Circuit Layout, but Different
Element Ratings

 These two circuits will perform differently. In

particular, the different element ratings will
result in:
 Different current values
 Different voltage values
Current
• Current is the flow of electric charge through a
circuit.
• We use the symbol I or i to represent current.
• Current’s unit of measure is the ampere, or
amp (A).
• For example,
– To say that a current is 2.5 amperes, we write

I = 2.5 A or i = 2.5 A
Voltage
• Voltage is a measure of how forcefully
charge is being pushed through a circuit.
• We use the symbol V or v to represent
voltage.
• Voltage’s unit of measure is the volt (V).
• For example,
– To say that a voltage is 5 volts, we write
V=5V or v=5V
 Summary of Some Electrical Quantities,
Units, and Symbols

 Quantity Symbol SI Unit Symbol for the

Unit
Current I or i ampere A
Voltage V or v volt V
Resistance R ohm 
Plumbing Analogy
• It may help to think of a circuit as being like
a plumbing system, with water flowing
through pipes.
• On this analogy, voltage is like the water
pressure in a pipe. Its value will be
different at different points in the circuit.
• Current is like the volumetric flow rate
through a pipe.
• See Wikipedia article on Hydraulic analogy.
 Plumbing Analogy in Our Simple
Circuit
A wire is like a water pipe. The amount of
electricity per second flowing through a wire is the
current, which is measured in amperes.
The voltage
(pressure)
at this point
is greater than
the voltage
at this point.
A voltage source is like
a water pump. Its
voltage rating (in volts)
tells you how strong it is.
Resistors are like partial blockages
in the pipe. They restrict the amount
of current that flows through the circuit.
The Goal of Circuit Analysis
 This course’s main goal: to learn how, given the
schematic diagram of a circuit, to compute the
voltages and currents in the circuit.

 For some circuits, such as

this one, the math is simple
(basic algebra).
 More complicated circuits require more powerful
math (trig, complex numbers, calculus, differential
equations…).
Large and Small Numbers

• We must often deal with very large or very

small numbers.
• Example: a resistor might have a resistance of
680,000  and a current of 0.000145 A.
• It’s not convenient to use so many zeroes
when writing or discussing numbers. Instead
we use SI prefixes (or engineering prefixes),
which are abbreviations for certain powers of
10.
Table 1.2


1,000,000,000,000
1,000,000,000
1,000,000
1,000

We rarely
use these.

1 / 1,000
1 / 1,000,000
1 / 1,000,000,000
1 / 1,000,000,000,000

Engineering Prefix Game

• You must memorize these prefixes.

– Do practice.
• You must also be able to convert between
numbers written with engineering prefixes
and numbers written in everyday (floating-
point) notation.
– Do practice.
Using Engineering Prefixes
• Whenever you have a number that’s greater
than 1000 or less than 1, you should use these
prefixes.
• Examples:
– Instead of writing 680,000 ,
write 680 k
(pronounced “680 kilohms”).
– Instead of writing 0.000145 A,
write 145 A
(pronounced “145 microamps”).
Calculator’s Exponent Key
• Scientific calculators have an exponent key
(usually labeled EE, EXP, or E) that lets you
easily enter numbers with engineering
prefixes.
• Examples:
– To enter 680 k, press 680 EE 3.
– To enter 145 , press 145 EE −6.
 Calculator’s Engineering Mode
• Most scientific calculators also have an
engineering mode, which forces the answer
always to be displayed with one of the
engineering powers of 10.
• Learn how to use this feature of your
calculator. It will save you from making
mistakes.
Measuring Voltage

• A voltmeter is an instrument designed to measure

voltage (also called potential difference).
• Voltage measurements
are always made
across elements.
• To measure a
voltage in a circuit,
you don’t need to
disconnect any
elements. Measuring the voltage
across R1.
Positive or Negative Voltage?
• When you measure a voltage, the displayed value may be
positive or negative.
• In the drawing, the meter’s
+ lead is connected
to point a and its a
– lead to point b.
To indicate this, we
would say that we’re b
measuring vab.
• If we swapped the leads, we’d be measuring vba.
• These two voltages, vab and vba, have the same magnitude
but different signs.
– Example: If vab = 1.60 V, then vba must be 1.60 V.
Voltage Drops and Rises
• If vab = 1.60 V, we
say that there’s a
voltage drop of a

1.60 V from
point a to point b.
b
• Equivalently, we say
that there’s a
voltage rise of
1.60 V from point b to point a.
• Though it may seem confusing, we could also say that
there’s a voltage rise of 1.60 V from point a to point
b, or that there’s a voltage drop of 1.60 V from point
b to point a.
Measuring Current
• An ammeter is an instrument designed to measure
current.
• To measure the current
at a point, you must
break the circuit at
that point and
insert the ammeter
in such a way that
the current flows
through the ammeter.
Measuring current.
Positive or Negative Current?
• When you measure a current, the displayed value may
be positive or negative.
• Note that in the
drawing, the meter’s
+ lead is connected to
the battery and its –
lead to R1.

• The displayed
value is the current
flowing into the + lead
and out of the – lead.
Positive or Negative Current? (2)
• As with voltage measurements, swapping the leads
would give the same magnitude but opposite sign.
– Example: If the meter displays 34.0 mA when
connected as shown, then it would
display 34.0 mA if you swapped
the leads.
– We could express this by
saying either that
a current of 34.0 mA flows
from V1 to R1 (clockwise),
or that a current of
34.0 mA flows from
R1 to V1 (counter-clockwise).
Measuring Resistance
• An ohmmeter is an instrument designed to measure
resistance.
• To measure
an element’s
resistance, you
must remove
the element
from the
circuit. Measuring R1’s resistance.

• When measuring resistance, the meter will never display a

negative value.
Multimeter
• A multimeter can measure voltage, current,
or resistance, depending on the setting of a
selector switch.
• A multimeter must not be set to measure
current when it is connected as a voltmeter,
or set to measure voltage when it is
connected as an ammeter.
 Some Quantities and Their Units

 Three that we have discussed:

 Quantity Symbol SI Unit Symbol for the
Unit
Current I or i ampere A
Voltage V or v volt V
Resistance R ohm 

 Four new ones:

Quantity Symbol SI Unit Symbol for the
Unit
Charge Q or q coulomb C
Time t second s
Energy W or w joule J
Power P or p watt W
Charge
• All electrical phenomena are based on the movement or
separation of electric charge.
• We don’t often measure charge directly, but sometimes we
need to calculate it.
• The symbol for charge is Q or q.
• Charge’s unit of measure is the coulomb (C).
• For example,
– To indicate a charge of 450 microcoulombs, we write

Q = 450 µC or q = 450 µC
Basic Facts About Charge
• There are two kinds of charge, which we call
positive and negative.
• Opposite charges attract.
• Like charges repel.
• The smallest known charge is the charge on a
proton or an electron, 1.602 × 10-19 C. Most
practical charges that we deal with are much larger
than this—for example, nanocoulombs (nC) or
microcoulombs (µC).
Formal Definition of Current
• We’ve seen that current can informally be thought
of as being like the flow rate of water through a
plumbing system.
• More formally, current is defined as the rate of
change of charge per time:
dq
i
dt
• One ampere is equal to one coulomb per second (1
A = 1 C/s).
Differentiation and Integration
• Recall that differentiation and integration
are inverse operations.
• Therefore, any relationship between two
quantities that can be expressed in terms
of derivatives can also be expressed in
terms of integrals.
 Charge and Current
• We saw above that current is
the derivative with respect to dq
time of charge: i
dt
• Therefore charge is the
integral with respect to time
of current: q   i dt
• In typical problems, we know
the initial charge at time t0 t
and wish to find the charge
at later time t. In such cases q (t )   i dt  q (t0 )
we use the definite integral:
t0
 Calculus or Algebra?
• As we’ve seen, the equations relating charge and
current contain derivatives and integrals:
dq
i q   i dt
dt
• Some problems involving current and charge
therefore require calculus. (For example,
Problems 1.2 and 1.3 in the textbook.)
• But for many problems—in particular, problems
in which current is constant—these equations
simplify to algebraic equations:
q
i q  it
t
Energy
• Energy is perhaps the most fundamental physical
concept, underlying all areas of physics.
• We don’t often measure energy directly, but
sometimes we need to calculate it.
• The symbol for energy is W or w.
• Energy’s unit of measure is the joule (J).
• For example,
– To indicate an energy of 780 nanojoules, we
write

W = 780 nJ or w = 780 nJ
Formal Definition of Voltage
• We’ve seen that voltage can informally be thought of as
being like water pressure in a plumbing system.
• More formally, the voltage between two points is defined as
the amount of energy needed to move a unit charge from
one point to the other:
dw
v
dq
• One volt is equal to one joule per coulomb (1 V = 1 J/C).
Power Supplies energy

Absorb energy

• At any time, some elements in a circuit supply energy,

and some elements absorb energy.
• An element’s power is the rate at which that element
supplies or absorbs energy.
• The symbol for power is P or p:
dw
p
dt
• Power’s unit of measure is the watt (W). One watt is
equal to one joule per second (1 W = 1 J/s).
 Energy and Power
• We saw above that power is
the derivative with respect to dw
time of energy: p
dt
• Therefore energy is the
integral with respect to time
of power: w   p dt
• In typical problems, we know
the initial energy at time t0 t
and wish to find the energy
at later time t. In such cases w(t )   p dt  w(t0 )
we use the definite integral: t0
 Calculus or Algebra?
• As we’ve seen, the equations relating energy and
power contain derivatives and integrals:
dw
p w   p dt
dt
• Some problems involving power and energy
therefore require calculus.
• But for many problems—in particular, problems
in which power is constant—these equations
simplify to algebraic equations:

w w  pt
p
t
Positive or Negative Power?
• By convention, we assign a positive sign to a power
value if the element is absorbing energy, and we
assign a negative sign if the element is supplying
energy.
• For example,
– To say that an element is absorbing 50 milliwatts,
we could write

P = 50 mW or p = 50 mW

– To say that an element is supplying 250 milliwatts,

we could write

P = 250 mW or p = 250 mW
Kilowatt-hours
• We’ve seen that in the SI system of units,
energy is measured in joules (J) and power
is measured in watts (W), with
1J=1W1s
• But in the electrical power industry, the
unit of power most often used is the
kilowatt (kW), and the unit of energy used
is the kilowatt-hour (kWh).
1 kWh = 1 kW  1 hour
The Power Law
• We now have the following definitions:
dw dw dq
p v i
dt dq dt
• But the chain rule of calculus tells us that :
dw dw dq

dt dq dt
• Therefore we can write:
• In words, an element’s power is equal to its voltage
times its current. p  vi
The Passive Sign Convention
• To get the correct sign (+ or ) on the power value
when we use the power law (p=vi), we must be careful
with the signs of v and i.
• We’ll always follow the
passive sign convention,
which says that we regard
the positive direction for
current as being current
into an element’s positive
terminal.
Conservation
Supplies energy
of Energy
Absorb energy
• Any circuit must obey the law of conservation of
energy.
• Therefore the algebraic sum of the powers in a
circuit must equal 0.
– Recall that an energy supplier’s power is negative, while
an energy absorber’s power is positive.
– Example: In the circuit shown, if we know that the
voltage source’s power is 100 mW, and R1’s power is
75 mW, then what must R2’s power be?
Review: Some Quantities and Their Units

Quantity Symbol SI Unit Symbol for the

Unit
Current I or i ampere A
Voltage V or v volt V
Resistance R ohm 
Charge Q or q coulomb C
Time t second s
Energy W or w joule J
Power P or p watt W
Active Elements

• Circuit elements can be classified as

active or passive, depending on whether
they are capable of generating electric
energy.
• Active elements can generate electric
energy.
– Examples:
• Voltage sources
• Current sources
Passive Elements

• Passive elements cannot generate electric

energy.
– Examples:
• Resistors
• Capacitors
• Inductors
• An important difference among these is that
capacitors and inductors can store energy for
later use.
• Resistors cannot store energy: they always
dissipate energy as heat.
Ideal Sources
• The most important active elements are voltage sources
and current sources.

• In each case the word “ideal” means that these are

simplified models that ignore some of the effects
present in real sources.
Ideal Independent Voltage Source
• An ideal independent voltage source
maintains a specified terminal voltage no
matter what the rest of the circuit looks like.

 We’ve discussed
these previously.
 The book’s Figure
1.11 shows two
symbols for ideal
independent voltage
sources.
Ideal Independent Current Source
• An ideal independent current source supplies
a specified current no matter what the rest of
the circuit looks like.
• The arrow identifies it
as a current source
and shows the
direction of
positive current
flow.
Ideal Dependent Voltage Source
• An ideal dependent voltage source maintains
a terminal voltage whose value depends on a
voltage or current somewhere else in the
circuit.

 The diamond-shaped body

tells us that it’s a dependent
source.
 The +/- inside tells us that it’s
a voltage source, and shows
the voltage polarity.
Ideal Dependent Current Source
• An ideal dependent current source supplies a
current whose value depends on a voltage or
current somewhere else in the circuit.

 The diamond-shaped body tells

us that it’s a dependent source.
 The arrow inside tells us that it’s
a current source and shows the
direction of current flow.
Summary of Symbols for Ideal Sources

Ideal Ideal Ideal Ideal dependent

independent independent dependent current
source
voltage current voltage
source source source
Four Kinds of Dependent Sources
• A dependent source’s value depends on a
voltage or current somewhere else in the
circuit, giving rise to four kinds:
– A voltage-controlled voltage source.
– A current-controlled voltage source.
– A voltage-controlled current source.
– A current-controlled current source.
• Text next to the symbol will let you tell
exactly which kind it is….
Examples of Symbols for Controlled
(Dependent) Sources

5v 5i 5v 5i

Voltage- Current- Voltage- Current-

controlled
controlled controlled controlled
current
voltage voltage current source
source source source
Example of a Controlled Source in a
Schematic Diagram

 If i in this circuit is equal to 2.5 A, then the

dependent voltage source’s value is 25 V.
QUESTIONS?