1.

INTRODUCTION
Electricity is a general term that encompasses a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence
and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena such as lightning
and static electricity, but in addition, less familiar concepts such as the electromagnetic field and
electromagnetic induction.

Electricity is an important source of energy. It is used in our homes, in industry and in transport.
Electric current is expressed by the amount of charge flowing through a particular area in unit time.
In other words, it is the rate of flow of electric charges. In circuits using metallic wires, electrons
constitute the flow of charges. However, electrons were not known at the time when the
phenomenon of electricity was first observed. So, electric current was considered to be the flow of
positive charges and the direction of flow of positive charges was taken to be the direction of
electric current. Conventionally, in an electric circuit the direction of electric current is taken as
opposite to the direction of the flow of electrons, which are negative charges.

10TH, PHYSICS : ELECTRICITY

Electric charges are of 2 types: +ve charge & -ve charge. CHP NO. 12

Definition of electric circuit: A continuous & closed path of a current is called electric circuit.

Electric current is expressed by amount of charge flowing through a particular area in unit time. If a
net charge Q flows across any cross section of a conductor in time t, then the current I, through the
cross section is,
Q
I= ,
t
Where q = + ne,
n = No. of free electrons and e is charge of electron
e = - 1.6 × 10-19 C

The SI unit of electric charge is Coulomb (C) which is equivalent to the charge contained in nearly
6x1018 electrons.
 Definition for electric current: The electric current is a flow of electric charges in a conductor such
as metal wire. The SI unit of current is Ampere (A)
Definition of 1 Ampere: One Ampere is constituted by the flow of one coulomb of charge in per
second. [NCERT]
1Ampere = 1 Coulomb / 1 second
1A = 1C / 1sec

2. ELECTRIC POTENTIAL AND POTENTIAL DIFFERENCE

The electric potential at a point in an electric field is defined as the work done in moving a unit
positive charge from infinity to that point.
The potential is defined by the symbol V & its SI unit is Volt

Definition of 1 Volt: The potential of 1 volt at a point means that 1 Joule of work is done moving 1
unit positive charge from infinity to that point. [NCERT]

10TH, PHYSICS : ELECTRICITY

Definition of Potential Difference: The potential difference between 2 points in an electricCHP
circuitNO.
is 12
defined as the amount of work done in a moving a unit charge from one point to the other point.
PD = WD/ Quantity of charged moved.
V=W/Q
1V = 1JC-1

NOTE

 lmA= 1milliamperer = 10-3 A

 lµA=1microampere = 10-6 A
 The instrument used to measure electric current is Ammeter. It is always connected in series
 Mass of an electron is 9.1 × 10-31 kg
 Electrons always flow from lower potential to higher potential
 A source of electricity such as cell, battery, power supply, etc. helps to maintain a potential
difference across a conductor. [NCERT]
 The instrument used to measure potential difference is Voltmeter. It is always connected in parallel.
3. OHM’S LAW
Statement: - The current flowing through a conductor is directly proportional to potential difference
applied across its ends, provided the temperature and the other physical condition remain unchanged
PD α I
VαI
V = IR
Where R is proportionality constant called resistance

4. RESISTANCE
It is the property of a substance due to which it opposes the flow of current through it.
R = V/I
It is a scalar quantity
Its SI unit is Ohm
Its symbol is Ω
Definition of 1 Ohm - Resistance of a conductor is said to be 1ohm if a current of 1 ampere flows

10TH, PHYSICS : ELECTRICITY

through it on applying a potential difference of 1 volt across its ends
-1
CHP NO. 12
1Ω = 1VA
Factors affecting the resistance
 Length: - The resistance R of a conductor is directly proportional to its length.ie (R α l)
 Area of Cross-section:- The resistance R of a uniform conductor is inversely proportional to its

1
area of cross-section A. (R α )
A
 Nature of material:- The resistance is less for conductors and more for semiconductor and
insulator
 Temperature:- The temp dependence of resistance is given by R = R0[1 + α∆ θ]
l
Rα
A
ρl
R= , where ρ is called resistivity or specific resistance
A
The resistivity is independent of shape and size of the conductor and depends only on nature
Its SI unit is Ωm
NOTE

 Metal and alloy have very low resistivity.

 The resistance varies inversely with the area of cross section.
 Current will flow more easily in a thick wire compared to thin wire because the diameter of a
thicker wire is greater than wire and resistance is inversely proportional to diameter (area of cross
section). So lesser the resistance greater the current.
[NCERT]
 Electric toaster and electric ions made of an alloy rather than pure metal because
- The resistivity of the alloy is much higher than that of a pure metal.
- An alloy does not undergo oxidation easily even at high temperature. [NCERT]
 Symbols for electric components (or circuit symbols)

10TH, PHYSICS : ELECTRICITY CHP NO. 12

5. RESISTANCE IN SERIES
 Consider 3 resistors R1, R2 and R3 in series connection, let the current flowing through them is ‘I’,
then the potential difference across R1, R2 and R3 is V1, V2 and V3, respectively.
WKT, by Ohm’s law,
V = IR, therefore
V = V1 + V2 + V3
IReq = IR1+IR2+IR3
Req = R1+ R2 + R3
Thus the equivalent resistance in series is the sum of the individual resistances.

6. RESISTANCE IN PARALLEL
10TH, PHYSICS : ELECTRICITY CHP NO. 12
Consider 3 resistors R1, R2 and R3 as shown in the figure above .Let V be the voltage applied. It is
observed that total current ‘I’ is equal to the sum of the separate current through each branch of the
combination.

I = I1 + I2+ I3
Let Rp be the equivalent resistance of parallel combination of resistors
By applying Ohms law to each resistor we have,
V/Rp = V/R1 + V/R2 + V/R3
1/Rp = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3
7. HEATING EFFECT OF ELECTRIC CURRENT
Consider a current I flowing through a resistor of resistance R. Let the potential difference across it
be V. Let ‘t’ be the time during which a charge Q flows across. The work done in moving the charge
Q through a potential difference V is VQ. Therefore, the source must supply energy equal to VQ in
time t. Hence the power input to the circuit by the source is
P=V×Q/t = VI = V2/R = I2R
The energy supplied to the circuit by the source in time t is P x t, that is, VIt. What happens to this
energy expended by the source? This energy gets dissipated in the resistor as heat. Thus for a steady
current I, the amount of heat H produced in time t is
H= VIt = V2/Rt = I2Rt

8. ELECTRIC POWER
Rate at which electric energy is dissipated or consumed in an electric circuit is called electric power.
The S.I unit of electric power is Watt (W).

10TH, PHYSICS : ELECTRICITY

1W = 1J/sec CHP NO. 12
Definition of 1W: It is power consumed by a device that carries 1A of current when operated at a
potential difference of 1V

One watt hour is the energy consumed when 1 watt of power is used for 1 hour. The commercial
unit of electric is kilowatt hour (kWh), commonly known as 1 unit.
1kWh = 100 watt x 3600 second
= 3.6 x 106 watt second (Wsec = J)
= 3.6 x 106 Joule (J)

9. PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF HEATING EFFECT OF ELECTRIC CURRENT

The generation of heat in a conductor is an inevitable consequence of electric current. In many cases,
it is undesirable as it converts useful electrical energy into heat. However, heating effect of electric
current has many useful applications; the electric laundry, electric toaster, electric oven, electric
kettle electric heater and fuse are some of the application based on Joule’s heating.
 Definition for heating effect of electric current: When an electric current is passed through a high
resistance wire like nichrome, the resistance wire become very hot and produces heat. This is called
heating effect of electric current.

Fuse: It is a safety device.

Working: It breaks the circuit if a fault in an appliance causes too much current to flow. This protects
the wiring and the appliances. If the current going through the fuse is greater than its rating then the
wire heats up until it melts and breaks the circuit.

Joules law: When current of I ampere flows in a wire of resistance R Ω, for‘t’ seconds, the heat
energy dissipated by it is given by, H = I2Rt

Another common application is a fuse used in electric circuit. It protects circuits and electric
appliances by stopping the flow of any unduly high electric current. The fuse is placed in series
with the device. It is a piece of wire made up of an alloy of appropriate melting point.

NOTE 10TH, PHYSICS : ELECTRICITY CHP NO. 12

 Why is the series arrangement not used for domestic circuits? [NCERT]
- There is no division of voltage among the appliances when connected in parallel. The potential
difference across each appliance is equal to the supplied voltage. The total effective resistance of
the circuit can be reduced by connecting electrical appliances in parallel and in series
connection
- Parallel connection is useful when each device has different resistances and requires different
current by the battery for its operation as in this case the current divides itself through different
devices.
- When one component fails, the circuit is broken and none of the components work
 Why does the cord of an electric heater not glow while the heating element does?
[NCERT]
The heating element of an electric heater is a resistor. The amount of heat produced by it is
proportional to its resistance. The resistance of the element of an electric heater is very high. As
 current flows through the heating element, it becomes too hot and glows red. On the other hand, the
resistance of the cord is low. It does not become red when current flows through it.
 A power rating of 100W on a bulb mean that it will consume electrical energy at the rate of 100
Joules per second. [NCERT]
 The bulbs are usually filled with chemically inactive nitrogen and argon gas so that the filament
does not burn out and life of filament is prolonged.
 Rating of fuse refers to maximum current that should flow in the circuit.
 Nichrome is used in heating element of electric geysers
 Tungsten is used for making the filament of electric lamp because it has a very high melting point. It
does not burn readily at a high temperature and moreover has a low rate of evaporation. [NCERT]
 Copper and aluminum wires are usually employed for transmission for electricity because copper
and aluminum have low electrical resistivity and are good conductors of electricity [NCERT]

10TH, PHYSICS : ELECTRICITY CHP NO. 12