Chapter 21

Electric Current and Direct-Current Circuits

Current and Resistance
Whenever there is a net movement of charge, there exists an
electrical current. If a charge Q moves perpendicularly through
a surface of area A in a time t, then there is a current I:
Q
t = 1 C/s.
The unit of current is the Ampere (A): 1A
I

By convention, the direction of the current is the direction of the

flow of positive charges. The actual charge carriers are
electrons; hence they move in the opposite direction to I.

Batteries and Electromotive Force (emf)

Any device which increases the potential energy
of charges which flow through it is called a
source of emf,
SI unit for emf : Volt (V)
The emf may originate from a chemical reaction
as in a battery or from mechanical motion such
as in a generator.
A battery is a device that uses chemical reactions
to produce a potential difference between its two
terminals.

Water flow as analogy

for electric current

Resistance and Ohms Law

In order for a current I to flow there must be a potential
difference, or voltage V, across the conducting material.
We define the resistance, R, of a material to be:

V
R
I 1 V/A
The unit of resistance is Ohms :
For many materials, R is constant (independent of V).
Such a material is said to be ohmic, and we write Ohms
Law:

V IR

Resistivity
An object which provides resistance to current flow is called
a resistor. The actual resistance depends on:
properties of the material
the geometry (size and shape)
The symbol for a resistor is

For a conductor of length L and area A, the resistance is

L
R
A of the material.
where is called the resistivity

Temperature Dependence and Superconductivity

In general, the resistivity of most materials will depend on the

temperature. For most metals, resistivity increases linearly with
temperature:

0 [1 (T T0 )]
Some materials, when very cold, have a resistivity which abruptly
drops to zero. Such materials are called superconductors.

A bird lands on a bare copper wire carrying a current of 32 A.

The wire is 8 gauge, which means that its cross-sectional area is
0.13 cm2. (a) Find the difference in potential between the birds
feet, assuming they are separated by a distance of 6.0 cm. (b)
Will your answer to part (a) increase or decrease if the separation
between the birds feet increases?

Direct Current (DC) Circuits

A circuit is a loop comprised of
elements like resistors and
capacitors around which current
flows.
For current to continue to flow
in a circuit, there must be an
energy source such as a battery.
The light bulb in this circuit is
the resistor. Connecting wires
are assumed to have zero
resistance.

battery

battery

Battery as emf in DC Circuits

+ terminal at higher potential than terminal
I
-

Electric potential increases by

Electric potential decreases by IR

Imagine positive charges

moving clockwise around the
circuit. The electric potential
increases by 12 V across the
battery and decreases by 12 V
across the resistor.

Energy and Power in Electric Circuits

Resistance is like an internal friction; energy is dissipated. The
energy dissipated per unit time is the power P:

P =U/ t =(Q/t)V = IV
SI unit: watt, W
Using Ohms Law, V=IR, power can be rewritten as:

P = I2R = V2/R
Energy Usage:
1 kilowatt-hour = (1000 W)(3600 s) = (1000 J/s)(3600 s) = 3.6106 J

It costs 2.6 cents to charge a car battery at a voltage of 12 V and a

current of 15 A for 120 minutes. What is the cost of electrical
energy per kilowatt-hour at this location?

A 75-W light bulb operates on a potential difference of 95 V. Find

the current in the bulb and its resistance.

Resistors in Series and Parallel

Any two circuit elements can be combined in
two different ways:
in series - with one right after the other; the
same current must flow through both
elements.

R1

R2

Series Combination

R1
in parallel connected across the same
potential difference; the current is divided
into two paths.

R2
Parallel Combination

Equivalent Resistance
a

R1

R2

Series
Combination

R1
b

R2
Parallel
Combination

The current I is the same in both The current may be different in

the voltage Vba must
each resistor, but the voltage satisfy:
Vba is the same across each
resistor and the total current
Vba= IR1 + IR2 = I(R1 +
R2)
is conserved:
I = I 1 + I2

Req = R1+ R2

resistors, so

1
1
1

Req R1 R2

Resistors in series
(a) Three resistors, R1, R2, and
R3, connected in series. Note
that the same current I flows
through each resistor.

(b) The equivalent resistance,

Req = R1 + R2 + R3
has the same current flowing
through it as the current I in
the original circuit.

Resistors in parallel
(a) Three resistors, R1, R2, and R3,
connected in parallel. Note that
each resistor is connected
across the same potential
difference, .
(b) The equivalent resistance,
1
1
1
1

Req R1 R2 R3

has the same current flowing

through it as the total current I
in the original circuit.

Conceptual Question
Consider the circuit shown in the figure, in which three lights, each
with a resistance R, are connected in parallel. What happens to the
intensity of light 3 when the switch is closed? What happens to the
intensities of lights 1 and 2?

Analyzing a complex circuit of resistors

All resistors are the same in Figure (a).
(a) The two vertical resistors are in
parallel with one another, hence
they can be replaced with their
equivalent resistance, R/2.
(b) Now, the circuit consists of three
resistors in series. The equivalent
resistance of these three resistors
is 2.5 R.
(c) The original circuit reduced to a
single equivalent resistance.

Walker Problem 26, pg. 710

What is the equivalent resistance?

Walker Problem 44, pg. 711

The current in the 13.8 resistor is 0.750 A.
Find the current in the other resistors in the circuit.

Kirchhoffs Rules
Often what seems to be a complicated circuit can be reduced to a
simple one, but not always. For more complicated circuits we must
apply Kirchhoffs Rules:
Junction Rule:

The sum of currents entering a junction

equals the sum of currents leaving a
junction.

follows from
conservation of charge

I 0

Loop Rule: The sum of the potential difference

across all the elements around any
follows
from loop must be zero.
closed
circuit
conservation of energy

V 0

Kirchhoffs junction rule

Kirchhoffs junction rule states that the sum of the currents

entering a junction must equal the sum of the currents leaving the
junction. In this case, for the junction labeled A:
I1 = I 2 + I 3

or

I 1 I2 I3 = 0

A specific application of Kirchhoffs junction rule

Applying Kirchhoffs junction rule to the junction A:

I1 I 2 I3 = 0
I3 = (2.0 5.5) A = 3.5 A
The minus sign indicates that I3 flows opposite to the direction
shown; that is, I3 is upward.

Kirchhoffs loop rule

Kirchhoffs loop rule states that as one moves around a closed loop
in a circuit the algebraic sum of all potential differences must be
zero. The electric potential:
increases as one moves from the minus to the plus plate of a battery
decreases as one moves through a resistor in the direction of the
current

Analyzing a simple circuit

Junction Rule: I1 = I2 + I3

Loop Rule: Use any two of these three loops

I3R I1R=0

I 3 R I2 R = 0

What is the equation?

Walker Problem 52, pg. 711

How much current flows through each battery when the
switch is (a) closed and (b) open? (c) With the switch
open, suppose that point A is grounded. What is the
potential at point B?
B

Circuits containing Capacitors

Capacitors are used in electronic circuits. The symbol for a
capacitor is
+

We can also combine separate capacitors into one effective

or equivalent capacitor. For example, two capacitors can be
combined either in parallel or in series.
Series
Parallel
Combination
C1

C2

Combination
C1

C2

Capacitors in parallel
(a) Three capacitors, C1, C2, and
C3, connected in parallel.
Note that each capacitor is
connected across the same
potential difference, .
(b) The equivalent capacitance,
Ceq = C1 + C2 + C3
has the same charge on its
plates as the total charge on
the three original capacitors.

Capacitors in series

(a) Three capacitors, C1, C2, and C3,

connected in series. Note that
each capacitor has the same
magnitude of charge on its
plates.
(b) The equivalent capacitance,
1
1
1
1

Ceq C1 C2 C3

has the same charge as the

original capacitors.

Parallel vs. Series Combination

Parallel

Series

charge Q1 , Q2

charge on each is Q

total Q = Q1 + Q2

total charge is Q

voltage on each is V

voltage V1 , V2

Q1= C1V

Q = C1V1

Q2= C2V

Q = C2V2

Q = CeffV

Q = Ceff(V1+V2)

Ceff = C1+C2

1/Ceff = 1/C1+1/C2

Walker Problem 54, pg. 711

A 15 V battery is connected to three capacitors in series.
The capacitors have the following capacitance: 4.5 F,
12 F, and 32 F. Find the voltage across the 32 F
capacitor.

RC Circuits
We can construct circuits with more than just a resistor. For
example, we can have a resistor, a capacitor, and a switch:
R
C

When the switch is closed the current will change.

The capacitor acts like an open circuit: no charge flows across
the gap. However, when the switch is closed, current can flow
from the negative plate of the capacitor to the positive plate.

A typical RC circuit

(a) Before the switch is closed

(t < 0) there is no current in the
circuit and no charge on the
capacitor.
(b) After the switch is closed
(t
> 0) current flows and the
charge on the capacitor builds
up over a finite time. As t
increases without limit, the
charge on the capacitor
approaches Q = C.

Capacitor Charging
Assume that at time t = 0, the
capacitor is uncharged, and we
close the switch. It can be shown
that the charge on the capacitor at
some later time t is:

Charge versus time

for an RC circuit

q = qmax(1 e-t/)
The time constant , and qmax
is the maximum amount of charge
that the capacitor will acquire:
qmax=C
The current is given by

I = (/R)e-t/

Current versus
time for an RC
circuit

What happens after the switch is closed?

The capacitor is initially uncharged.

Walker Problem 62, pg. 712

The capacitor in an RC circuit (R = 120 , C = 45 F) is
initially uncharged. Find (a) the charge on the capacitor and (b)
the current in the circuit one time constant ( = RC) after the
circuit is connected to a 9.0 V battery.

Walker Problem 78, pg. 713

Consider the circuit shown below. (a) Is the current flowing through
the battery immediately after the switch is closed greater than, less
than, or the same as the current flowing through the battery long after
the switch is closed? (b) Find the current flowing through the battery
immediately after the switch is closed. (c) Find the current in the
battery long after the switch is closed.

Discharging a capacitor

(a) A charged capacitor is

connected to a resistor. Initially
the circuit is open, and no
current can flow.

(b) When the switch is closed

current flows from the + plate of
the capacitor to the - plate. The
charge remaining on the
capacitor approaches zero after
several time units, RC.

Capacitor Discharging
Consider this circuit with a charged
capacitor at time t = 0:
R
C

+Q
-Q

S
It can be shown that the charge on
the capacitor is given by:
q(t) = Qe-t/
The time constant = RC.

Current versus time in an RC circuit

Measuring the current in a circuit

An ammeter is device for measuring currents in electrical circuits.

To measure the current

flowing between points A
and B in (a) an ammeter is
inserted into the circuit, as
shown in (b).
An ideal ammeter would
have zero resistance.

Measuring the voltage in a circuit

A voltmeter measures voltage differences in electrical circuits.
The voltage difference between points C
and D can be measured by connecting a
voltmeter in parallel to the original circuit.
An ideal voltmeter would have infinite
resistance.