Name: Azariah Barrett Date: October 23, 2023

Experiment #2
Title: Combination of Voltages and Current in a Circuit

Aim: To investigate the law of combination of voltage and currents in a circuit

Apparatus: two 2.4 kilo-ohms (kΩ) resistors, three 1 kilo-ohm (kΩ) resistors, an
ACT 1 breadboard, digital multimeter, positive and negative crocodile clips,
positive and negative simple solid core wire, 12V power supply

Variables:
- Manipulated: potential difference, resistance
- Responding: current
- Controlled: electromotive force (e.m.f.)

Diagram:

Procedure:
1. Firstly, the breadboard was connected to its power source without plugging
it in. The black knob was unscrewed and a piece of solid core negative wire
was cut, and secured around the knob.
2. This process was repeated for the red knob, but instead a positive wire was
used here.
3. After this, both ends of the positive and negative wires were inserted in the
horizontal row of the breadboard.
4. Each end of the first resistor was placed into holes on the breadboard (with
each end in a different horizontal row). Then one end of a negative wire
was placed where the second resistor leg was situated, and the other end in
a hole where the breadboard is oriented vertically (this was done to ensure
that the circuit at this point was now connected in parallel).
5. Then the resistors and wires were linked together according to the circuit
diagram, with one end of a positive wire inserted where the end of a
resistor was, and the other where the start of another resistor was.
6. After ensuring that the resistors were correctly connected, the banana jack
was connected to the multimeter and plugged into the power source by
inserting the probe tips into the positive and negative knob. The
multimeter was used to measure the e.m.f. of the power source. Since the
reading was less than 12V (which is what was needed for the experiment),
the negative and positive knobs on the power source were turned
accordingly in order to supply 12V of voltage to the circuit.
7. The probe tips were then disconnected and inserted into the crocodile
clips. Then the negative wire that was inserted into the breadboard from
the beginning was removed from the board, and the bottom end of the first
resistor was attached to a crocodile clip.
8. Then the current and potential difference flowing through the first resistor
were measured and recorded.
9. This step was repeated for the rest of the resistors, ensuring to return the
circuit to its complete form before moving on to another resistor.
10. Lastly, using the measured potential difference across each resistor, as
well as the known resistances for each, the theoretical (calculated) current
𝑉
was then found using the formula for Ohm’s law (I = 𝑅
).
Results/Observations:

TABLE SHOWING RESISTANCE, MEASURED VOLTAGE, CALCULATED

CURRENT, AND MEASURED CURRENT

Resistance, R (Ω) Calculated Current, IC (A) Measured Current, IM (A)

R1 = 2400 0.0029 2.89

R2 = 1000 0.0060 1.76

R3 = 2400 0.0063 0.65

R4 = 1000 0.0022 2.74

R5 = 1000 0.0028 2.78

Calculations:

1. Effective resistance for the circuit:

RT = R1 + ( 1
𝑅2
+
1
𝑅3
+
1
𝑅4)+R 5

RT = 2.7kΩ + ( 1
1𝑘Ω
+
1
2.7𝑘Ω
+
1
1𝑘Ω ) + 1kΩ
RT = 2.7kΩ + 2.37kΩ + 1kΩ
RT = 6.07kΩ or 6,070Ω

2. Total Current in the circuit:

𝐸
E (emf) = ITRT → IT = 𝑅𝑇
12𝑉
IT = 6070Ω
IT = 0.002A

3. Current through and voltage across R5:

12𝑉
1000Ω
=0.012A
V = (0.012A)(1000Ω) = 12V
4. Current through and voltage across resistors in parallel:
By Kirchhoff’s first law:
IT = I1 + I2 … [1]
**IT = 0.002A
**I1 flows through R2 and R3; I2 flows through R4

By Kirchhoff’s second law:

I1(R2+R3) = I2(R4)
I1(1000Ω+2400Ω) = I2(1000Ω)
3400I1 = 1000I2
I2 = 3.4I1 or 0 = 3.4I1 - I2 … [2]

[1] + [2]:
IT = 4.4I1 + 0I2
0.002A = 4.4I1
0.002𝐴
I1 = 4.4
I1 = 0.00045A
**Current flowing through R2 and R3 is 0.00045A.

0.002A = 0.00045A + I2
I2 = 0.002A - 0.00045A
I2 = 0.00155A
**Current flowing through R4 is 0.00155A.

Voltage across R2:

VR2 = (0.00045A)(1000Ω)
VR2 = 0.45V

Voltage across R3:

VR3 = (0.00045A)(2400Ω)
VR3 = 1.08V

Voltage across R4:

VR4 = (0.00155A)(1000Ω)
VR4 = 1.55V
5. Current through and voltage across R1:
- The sum of the voltage drops through the circuit so far is [0V + 0.45V +
1.08V + 1.55V = 3.08V]
- Therefore the voltage being supplied to R1 is [12V - 3.08V = 8.92V]
8.92𝑉
- IR1 = 2400Ω
= 0.0037A
- Now, since Kirchhoff’s second law states ∑E = ∑V, we can deduce that the
voltage drop across this resistor would be 8.92V, to bring the sum of the
voltage drops across the entire circuit to 12V.

Data Analysis / Discussion:

Kirchhoff’s second (voltage) law states that the sum of the electromotive
force in a loop of a circuit is equal to the sum of potential differences (voltage
drops) across the components in the circuit (∑E = ∑V).
In this experiment, the power source (which provides the e.m.f. to the
circuit) produced 12V, but after measuring the voltage drops across each
component, the sum was found to be 14V. Similarly, the measured current
through each resistor was found to be of a vastly different magnitude than the
calculated current.
Because of this, we can infer that the discrepancy between these values
could be due to some error (or multiple errors) that occurred while the
experiment was being carried out.
Despite these errors, we know that the sum of the voltage drops across the
components must equal the emf, which in this case it roughly did.

Precautions:
1. Ensure that all the connecting wires are properly secured in their terminals
for current to flow.
2. While connecting the resistors in the breadboard, do not connect the board
to its power source.
3. Ensure that there is no food or drink anywhere near the electrical
components in the workspace.

Sources of Error:
1. The uncertainty of the digital multimeter (as opposed to an analog one,
that does not have a limited number of decimal places) could have affected
the accuracy of the results.
 2. High nearby frequencies (such as cellphones and televisions) could have
affected the accuracy of the multimeter.
3. The multimeter’s sensitivity could have been the cause for the disparity
between the sum of the e.m.f. and the sum of the voltage drops across the
circuit.

Conclusion:
The law of combination of voltage and currents in a circuit was able to be
investigated by using a breadboard to connect a circuit containing resistors in
both series and parallel. The voltages and currents of the resistors in this circuit
were measured and used to attempt to prove Kirchhoff’s second law. However,
the experiment proved to be faulty (likely due to human and instrumental error),
as Kirchhoff’s law was not proven here.