Chapter-4: Potentiometer

A potentiometer is an instrument used to measure the potential in a circuit. A potentiometer is an

instrument designed to measure an unknown voltage by comparing it with a known voltage.

Types of Potentiometers
a) DC potentiometer
b) Inductive / AC potentiometer

a) DC potentiometer:

Figure 1: DC potentiometer

Construction:

The above figure shows a simple DC potentiometer. It consists of a slide wire which is made up of
German silver or manganin wire usually two meter long of uniform cross-sectional area which is
separated between two terminals ‘P’ and ‘Q’ on flat board with a scale graduated in cm fixed alongside.

The positive terminal of battery is connected with rheostat/variable resistance (R) and series connection
terminal ‘Q’ of side wire is connected and negative terminal is connected to end ‘P’.

The variable resistance ‘R’ is connected in the circuit to enable the current flowing through the slide wire
to be adjusted as required.

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Operating Principle:

• The switch and slide wire are set to the standard cell voltage.
• The standard volt is 1.01 volts.
• The switch is in calibrate position & the galvanometer switch ‘K’ is pressed when the rheostat adjusts
to zero.
• A 10 KW resistance is included in a circuit to protect the galvanometer from over loading.
• When the null deflection on the galvanometer is achieved, then the protective resistance is shorted
to increase the sensitivity of the galvanometer.
• Now, the switch is closed to connect the unknown emf with the protective resistance in the circuit.
• The potentiometer is adjusted by means of a dial & a slide wire.
• Balance is obtained & the value of unknown emf is measured

Application of potentiometer:

The uses of DC potentiometer are:

1. measurement of emf of a cell.

2. To compare the emf of two cells.

The circuit diagram for the comparison of emf of two cells is shown in figure above. It consists of
a potentiometer wire AB, from the terminal ‘A’ there are two cells having emf E1 and E2 which
gives null point (null deflection) at distance l1 and l2 respectively when connected to the circuit.
Let x be the voltage gradient. i.e. voltage per unit length.
Then,
𝐸1 = x𝑙1 …….(1)
And 𝐸2 = x𝑙2 ……..(2)
Diving equation 1 by 2, we get
𝐸1 𝑥𝑙1
=
𝐸2 𝑥𝑙2

𝐸1 𝑙1
=
𝐸2 𝑙2

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3. To find the internal resistance of a cell.

It consists of potentiometer having wire AB. A cell of emf E0 is connected from the terminal ‘A’
along with galvanometer and jockey which slides over wire. There is another resistance is
connected with a cell along key K2 as shown in figure.
When key K2 is open then, the whole emf of cell drop across wire and null point was found at l1.

𝐸0 = 𝑥𝑙1 ……………..(1)

When key K2 is closed and null point is noted and found at l2.

𝑉 = 𝑥𝑙2 ……………….(2)

𝐷𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 1 𝑏𝑦 2, 𝑤𝑒 𝑔𝑒𝑡

𝐸0 𝑥𝑙1
Or, =
𝑉 𝑥𝑙2

𝐸0 𝑙
Or, 𝑉
= 𝑙1
2

𝑉+𝐼𝑟 𝑙
Or, 𝑉
= 𝑙1
2

𝐼𝑟 𝑙1
Or, 1 + =
𝑉 𝑙2

𝐼𝑟 𝑙
Or,𝐼𝑅 = 𝑙1 − 1
2

𝑙1
𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒, 𝑟 = ( − 1) 𝑅
𝑙2

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b) Induction potentiometer/ AC potentiometer
The potentiometer which is used for measuring the phase and the magnitude of unknown emf by
comparing it with the known emf, such type of potentiometer is known as AC potentiometer.
The working principle of the AC potentiometer is same as that of the DC potentiometer that is the
unknown value of emf is determined by comparing it with the known voltage.

Types of induction potentiometer

i) Polar type
ii) Co-ordinate type

i) Polar type

As the name indicates, in these potentiometers, the unknown emf is measured in polar form, i.e., in
terms of its magnitude and relative phase. The magnitude is indicated by one scale and the phase
with respect to some reference axis is indicated by another scale. There is provision for reading
phase angles up to 360°

For example: Drysdale polar potentiometer

Construction:

Figure 2: Polar type AC/Induction potentiometer

The different components of a Drysdale polar potentiometer are shown in above figure. The slide
wire S1S2 is supplied from a phase-shifting circuit so arranged that the magnitude of AC voltage
supplied by it remains constant but its phase can be changed from 0° to 360°. The phase-shifting
circuit consists of (i) two-phase stator winding and (ii) a movable single-phase rotor winding. The
stator is supplied from a single-phase supply which is converted into 2-phase supply by using a
phase-splitting device consisting of capacitor C and resistance r as shown. The two-phase winding
produces a rotating magnetic field which induces a secondary emf in the rotor winding. The emf
induced in the rotor winding is of constant magnitude but its phase can be changed by rotating the
rotor to any desired position. The rotor moves over a graduated circular scale marked in degrees to
indicate the phase of the rotor emf relative to the stator.

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Working

The rotor is attached to the primary transmitting shaft on which the primary is wound and stator is
wound with secondary winding. When the ac supply (0-60) V is applied to the rotor, then the rotor
starts to operate. As we know that the rotor is directly connected to the shaft, so the shaft also starts
to operate. As the shaft start to operate then according to the faradays law of electromagnetic
induction the emf is induced.
𝑑∅
𝐸 = −𝑁
𝑑𝑡
Since the emf is induced in the stator winding is obtained as output, the obtained output voltage is
varying with respect to the rotor angular displacement.

𝑉∝𝜃
The windings are designed such that the output voltage is directly proportional to angular position of
the rotor.

ii) Co-ordinate type

Here, the unknown emf is measured in Cartesian form. Two components along and perpendicular to
some standard axes are measured and indicated directly by two different scales known as in phase
(V1) and quadrature (V2) scales (FIG. 10). Provision is made in this instrument to read both positive
and negative values of voltages so that all angles up to 360° are covered. Then, voltage

𝑉 = √𝑉12 + 𝑉22 and its phase angle with respect to current in the ‘in-phase’ portion of the
𝑉
potentiometer is 𝜃 = tan−1 𝑉2 . provision is made in these potentiometers to read both positive and
1
negative values of V1 and V2 so that all angles up to 360° are covered.

Example: Gall-Tinsley and Campbell-Larsen type potentiometer

Applications of AC potentiometer:

A) Voltmeter Calibration
a) It can directly measure the low voltage up to 1.5V.
b) The higher voltage is measured by either using the volt-box (for medium voltages) or two
capacitors in series (for high voltages) in conjunction with potentiometer.
B) Ammeter Calibration
The measurement of the alternating current may be measured by the use of non-inductive
standard resistor with the potentiometer.
C) Wattmeter and Energy meter testing
a) The testing circuit of wattmeter and energy meter is same as that of the DC measurements.
b) The phase shifting transformers is connected to the potentiometer to vary the phase of the
voltage with respect to the current.
c) Thus, the wattmeter and energy meter are tested at various power factor.

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