CIRCUITS 1: LAB EXPERIMENT #8 Page 1 of 4

LABORATORY EXPERIMENT #8:

KIRCHHOFF’S LAW
OBJECTIVES:
At the end of the exercise, the students should be able to:
 explain Kirchhoff’s laws (KVL and KCL)
 verify Kirchhoff’s laws (KVL and KCL) experimentally

MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT:

1 Multimeter
1 Power Supply
1 Breadboard
6pcs 1-kΩ resistors, ¼ W
1pc 470-Ω resistor, ¼ W
1pc 680-Ω resistor, ¼ W
Alligator clips
Connecting wires

PROCEDURES:
NOTE: Please observe safety precautions and proper handling while conducting the laboratory
experiment. This experiment is to be performed under an instructor‘s supervision.

I. KIRCHHOFF’S VOLTAGE LAW

1. Connect the circuit illustrated on Figure 1 on the breadboard.

2. Turn on the power supply. Using the multimeter, measure the values specified in Table 1 for
each given value of supply voltage. Verify KVL and record all the results in Table 1. What
did you observe with the obtained values?

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TABLE 1
VS V1 V2 ∑V = VS – V1 – V2 = 0
3V

4.5V

6V

3. Connect the circuit illustrated on Figure 2 on the breadboard.

4. Turn on the power supply. Using the multimeter, measure the values specified in Table 2 for
each given value of supply voltage. Verify KVL and record all the results in Table 2. What
did you observe with the obtained values?
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TABLE 2
VS V1 V2 V3 ∑V = VS – V1 – V2 – V3 = 0
3V

4.5V

6V

II. KIRCHHOFF’S CURRENT LAW

1. Connect the circuit illustrated on Figure 3 on the
breadboard.
CIRCUITS 1: LAB EXPERIMENT #8 Page 3 of 4

2. Turn on the power supply. Using the multimeter, measure the values specified in Table 3 for
each given value of supply voltage. Verify KCL and record all the results in Table 3. What
did you observe with the obtained values?

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TABLE 3
VS I1 I2 I3
3V

4.5V

6V

3. Using the circuit of Figure 3, replace R1 by 470 Ω and R2 by 680 Ω. Set VS to 6 V.

4. Measure the voltage drop across R2 and record the result in Table 4.

5. Measure I1 and I2. Apply KCL to determine the current flowing through R1. Verify by
measuring the actual current. Record all the results in Table 4. What did you observe with
the obtained values?
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CONCLUSION:

QUESTIONS:
CIRCUITS 1: LAB EXPERIMENT #8 Page 4 of 4

(use separate sheet of paper for the answers)

1. What are Kirchhoff’s Laws? How are they used to analyze an electric circuit?
2. State Kirchhoff’s current law. Explain.
3. State Kirchhoff's voltage law. Explain.