Basic Laws

Discussion D2.1
Chapter 2
Sections 2-1 2-6, 2-10
1

Basic Laws

Ohm's Law
Kirchhoff's Laws
Series Resistors and Voltage Division
Parallel Resistors and Current Division
Source Exchange

Georg Simon Ohm (1789 1854)

German professor who publishes a book
in 1827 that includes what is now known
as Ohm's law.
Ohm's Law: The voltage across a resistor
is directly proportional to the currect
flowing through it.

http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/history/PictDisplay/Ohm.html
3

Resistance
resistivity in Ohm-meters
Resistance

R l A

l = length
Good conductors (low ): Copper, Gold

Good insulators (high ): Glass, Paper

4

Ohm's Law

v iR

v
R
i

v
i
R
v i1 R

(i i1 )

Units of resistance, R, is Ohms ()

R = 0: short circuit

R : open circuit
5

Conductance, G

1
G
R

i
v
G

Unit of G is siemens (S),

1 S = 1 A/V

i Gv

i
G
v
6

Power
A resistor always dissipates energy; it transforms
electrical energy, and dissipates it in the form of heat.
Rate of energy dissipation is the instantaneous power
2
v
(t )
2
p(t ) v(t )i (t ) Ri (t )
0
R

2
i
(t )
2
p (t ) v(t )i (t ) Gv (t )
0
G

Basic Laws

Ohm's Law
Kirchhoff's Laws
Series Resistors and Voltage Division
Parallel Resistors and Current Division
Source Exchange

Gustav Robert Kirchhoff (1824 1887)

Born in Prussia (now Russia), Kirchhoff
developed his "laws" while a student in
1845. These laws allowed him to
calculate the voltages and currents in
multiple loop circuits.

http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/history/PictDisplay/Kirchhoff.html

CIRCUIT TOPOLOGY
Topology: How a circuit is laid out.
A branch represents a single circuit (network)
element; that is, any two terminal element.
A node is the point of connection between two or
more branches.
A loop is any closed path in a circuit (network).
A loop is said to be independent if it contains a
branch which is not in any other loop.

10

Fundamental Theorem of Network Topology

For a network with b branches, n nodes
and l independent loops:

b l n 1
Example

b 9
n 5
l 5

11

Elements in Series
Two or more elements are connected in series if they
carry the same current and are connected sequentially.

12

Elements in Parallel
Two or more elements are connected in parallel if they
are connected to the same two nodes & consequently
have the same voltage across them.
I
I1

R1

I2

R2

13

Kirchoffs Current Law (KCL)

The algebraic sum of the currents entering a
node (or a closed boundary) is zero.
N

i
n 1

where N = the number of branches connected to

the node and in = the nth current entering
(leaving) the node.
14

Sign convention: Currents entering the node are positive,

currents leaving the node are negative.

i
n 1

i1

i2
i5

i3
i4

i1 i2 i3 i4 i5 0
15

Kirchoffs Current Law (KCL)

The algebraic sum of the currents entering
(or leaving) a node is zero.
Entering:

i1 i2 i3 i4 i5 0

Leaving: i1

i2 i3 i4 i5 0

i1

i2

i5

i3
i4

The sum of the currents entering a node is

equal to the sum of the currents leaving a node.

i1 i2 i4 i3 i5

16

Kirchoffs Voltage Law (KVL)

The algebraic sum of the voltages around
any loop is zero.
M

v
m 1

where M = the number of voltages in the loop

and vm = the mth voltage in the loop.
17

Sign convention: The sign of each voltage is the polarity of the

terminal first encountered in traveling around the loop.
The direction of travel is arbitrary.
Clockwise:

V0 V1 V2 0
Counter-clockwise:

V2 V1 V0 0
V0 V1 V2
18

Basic Laws

Ohm's Law
Kirchhoff's Laws
Series Resistors and Voltage Division
Parallel Resistors and Current Division
Source Exchange

19

Series Resistors
V0 V1 V2 IR1 IR2

I R1 R2

IRs

Rs R1 R2

20

Voltage Divider
V0
V0
I

Rs R1 R2

I
R1

V1

R2

V2

A
V0

R1
Also V1
V0
R1 R2

V0
V2 IR2
R2
R1 R2

R2
V2
V0
R1 R2

21

Basic Laws

Ohm's Law
Kirchhoff's Laws
Series Resistors and Voltage Division
Parallel Resistors and Current Division
Source Exchange

22

Parallel Resistors
I
I1

R1

I2

V V
I I1 I 2
R1 R2
R2

1
1
1

R p R1 R2

R1 R2
Rp
R1 R2

1
1
V

R1 R2

Rp

23

Current Division
R2
v(t )
i1 (t )

i (t )
R1
R1 R2
R1
v(t )
i2 (t )

i (t )
R2
R1 R2
R1 R2
v(t ) R p i (t )
i (t )
R1 R2
Current divides in inverse proportion to the resistances

24

Current Division
N resistors in parallel

1
1
1
1


R p R1 R2
Rn
Current in j branch is
th

v(t ) R p i (t )
v(t ) R p
i j (t )

i (t )
Rj
Rj

25

Basic Laws

Ohm's Law
Kirchhoff's Laws
Series Resistors and Voltage Division
Parallel Resistors and Current Division
Source Exchange

26

Source Exchange

We can always replace a voltage source in series with a

resistor by a current source in parallel with the same resistor
and vice-versa.
Doing this, however, makes it impossible to directly find the
original source current.
27

Source Exchange Proof

RL
vL
vs
Rs RL
vs
ia
Rs RL

Rs
vs
ia '
ia
Rs RL Rs
RL
vL ia ' RL
vs
Rs RL

Voltage across and current through any load are the same
28