1

CURRENT ELECTRICITY
Electric Current (I)
Electric Current I is the rate of flow of electric charge passing a point in a conductor.
(unit: A or Cs-1), where Q is the amount of charge flowing for time t.
Q=It (unit: C or As): The amount of electric charge passing a point in a circuit is the product
of current flowing past the point and the time for which it flows.
1A = 1 Cs-1 and 1C = 1 As
The coulomb is defined as a current of 1A flowing past a point in 1 s.
Charge on charge carriers is quantized, that is in multiples of e, the charge on an electron or
proton.
, where N is whole number and the electron charge e = 1.60 10-19 C.
Deriving

for a current-carrying conductor

Free electrons in metal move randomly at a very high

E - field
speed (due to thermal motion, ~105 m s1) and bounce
off the vibrating positive ions. The total displacement
per unit time is almost zero. So there is no net flow of
electron
electrons, hence no electric current. When the metal is
connected to a power supply, an electric field is set up,
path with E field----electrons experience electric force and accelerate
drift
path without E field_____
opposite to field direction. The motion of the electrons
is not linear as they are scattered constantly by collisions with the positive ions. Under the
applied p.d, the free electons have now a net displacement and move slower (~10- 4 m s1)
along the conductor with a velocity known as the drift velocity.
L

negative
charge carrier

Current I

Consider a section of a conductor:

number of free electrons/negative charge carriers per unit volume
charge on each negative charge carrier
length of section of conductor,
cross-sectional area of conductor
current flowing in conductor
average drift velocity of negative charge carriers under an applied p.d/electric field
Volume of section of conductor =
Number of free electrons in the section =
Total amount of charge free to move in the section =
Time taken for all the negative charge carriers in the section of conductor to leave the section
through the left cross section =
.

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,

current density =

Note: (i) The same equation is obtained for positive charge carriers.
(ii)
.
(iii) For a thinner wire, there are fewer electrons, so an individual electron must travel faster
for a given current:
. In a material with a lower density of electrons (smaller ), the
mean drift velocity must be greater for a given current.
(iv) Metals have a high electron number density (~ 1028 to 1029 m-3). Semiconductors such as
silicon and germanium have a much lower values of (~ 1023 m-3). In a semiconductor,
electron mean drift velocities are typically 106 times greater than those in metals for the same
current.
Potential Difference (p.d) V
The p.d between two points is defined as the work done (electrical energy transferred to
some other forms) per unit charge in moving between the two points.
1V=1JC-1 or One volt is one joule per coulomb
Resistance & Resistivity
Ohms law: current I flowing in a conductor is directly proportional to the p.d V across it,
provided the physical conditions such as temperature and dimensions of the conductor are
constant.
By Ohms law,

The resistance R of a conductor is defined as the ratio of p.d V to the current I.

(unit: ohm

or VA-1)

1 = 1 VA-1: One ohm is the resistance of a conductor in which the current is one ampere
when a p.d of 1 volt is applied across it.
Note: resistance is equal to the gradient of a V-I graph only if the graph is a staright line
passing through the origin (i.e only for ohmic conductors). For non-ohmic conductors,
resistance is the ratio at a point on the curve.
l
Resistance of a conductor depends on both its material and dimensions

I
A
where

(in m)is the resistivity of the material of the conductor,

l (in m) is the length of conductor,
A (in m2) is the cross-sectional area of conductor.

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The resistivity (unit: m) depends on the temperature and other physical conditions such
as impurities in the material;
The resistivity of a material is defined as the resistance of a specimen with unit length and
cross-sectional area, at constant temperature.
Resistivity
varies with temperature:
1. For metallic conductors, increases with temperature flow of electrons is reduced
as more electrons are scattered by more vigorous atomic vibrations. This is why
resistance of tungsten wire in a filament lamp increases as temperature (current)
increases.
2. for a semiconductor, heat in a thermistor (n.t.c) and light falling on an LDR are used
to free electrons from the lattice structure which in turn reduces their resistance.
Note: (1) Resistance of an open circuit =
(2) Resistance of short circuit = 0
(3) Conductance,
( -1)
(4) Conductivity,

((

-1

m-1)

(5) In metals, as temperature rises, number if free charge carriers (electrons) per unit volume
does not change and amplitude of lattice vibration increases, increasing rate of collision
between drifting electrons and vibrating lattice ions, hence decreasing the drift velocities. The
net effect is decrease in conductivity or increase in resistance.
(6) In semiconductors, as temperature rises, both number of free charge carriers per unit
volume and amplitude of vibration of lattice ions increase. The increase in conductivity due
to increase in number of charge carriers density is greater than the decrease in conductivity
due to greater scattering of drifting electrons by vibrating positive ions. The net effect is
increase in conductivity or decrease in resistance.
I-V graphs
I
I

0.7 V forward bias voltage

0

V
metal at
constant temperature

filament lamp

reverse bias
0

ntc thermistor

breakdown voltage
200 V

semiconductor diode

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Electrical Power
Power is defined as rate of energy conversion. From definition of p.d,

giving

-1

(unit: W or Js ). Power of a device = p.d across it V current through it I

One watt is conversion of one joule per second.
Electrical energy E converted by a device in time t is given by
If a device converts all electrical energy into heat only, it is called a pasive resistor.
or , where R is the devices resistance.
Energy is often expressed in kilowatt-hour (KWh) because it is a large unit of energy:
1 KWh = 3.6 MJ
SENSING DEVICES
A sensing device or sensor (e.g thermistor, LDR, strain gauge, Piezoelectric transducer) is an
electrical component with a property (e.g resistance) that changes when the physical quantity
(e.g temperature, light intensity, strain) it is monitoring alters. It is also called a transducer as
it changes energy from one form into another.
Examples of sensing devices:
1. Light-dependent resistor (LDR)

RLDR
1M

Symbol: LDR
100
moonlight
sunlight
Light intensity
Resistance of LDR RLDR decreases with increasing light intensity (non-linearly)
2. Negative temperature coefficient (n.t.c) thermistor

4k
symbol: thermistor

10
0

temperature/ C

100

Resistance of n.t.c thermistor RTh decreases with increasing temperature (non-linearly)

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3. Strain Gauge
A strain gauge is made by sealing a length of very fine
wire
wire in a small rectangle of thin plastic sheet in such a
connecting
way that if the plastic is stretched (i.e put under strain),
leads
plastic
then the wire will also be stretched.
Under strain, the length of wire increases and its crosssectional area decreases. Both of these effects cause the resistance of the wire to increase.
The strain gauge is usually glued very securely to the material which is to be put under stress
in order to monitor the strain in the material.
For small changes of l and A,
For A is unchanged,
In both cases,
length.

. The change in resistance of the gauge is a measure of change in

4. Piezoelectric Transducer
Certain crystals (e.g quartz), when they are under either compressive or tensile stress
generates an e.m.f across their faces. This effect is known as piezoelectric effect. Each of the
two types of stress generates opposite polarity voltages in the crystal. Piezoelectric crystals
can be used as transducers. Two useful applications of piezoelectric trasnducers are in
microphone and ultrasound scanning.
Microphone: When a sound wave hits one side of the piezoelectric crystal, compressions and
rarefactions cause the crystal to compress and stretch respectively. A small varying emf is
induced across the crystal which can be amplified. If a varying p.d is applied across the
crystal, the crystal is made to compress and expand alternately, generating sound waves in its
surroundings.
D. C CIRCUITS
Electromotive Force (E.M.F)
E.m.f of a source (e.g electric cells/batteries) is known as the p.d between the terminals of the
source on an open circuit (when no current is flowing) and is defined as the work done by the
source in driving unit charge round a complete circuit
e.m.f has to do with charge carriers gaining energy from a source of emf such as cell or
battery whereas p.d has to do with charge carriers losing energy in an external circuit
component such as a lamp or resistor. In a battery, chemical energy is transformed into
electrical energy. In an external component, electrical energy is transformed into other forms
So in terms of energy considerations, e.m.f is defined as non-electrical energy transferred to
electrical energy per unit charge whereas p.d is defined as electrical energy transferred other
forms per unit charge

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INTERNAL RESISTANCE
All sources of e.m.f such as batteries have some internal resistance (r) (due to the chemicals
within it) which the current has to pass through in addition to passing through the external
resistance.

V< E
e.m.f E

V E

E = e.mf of cell (p.d across cell when no current flows)

V = terminal p.d = p.d across cell when a current flows
E.m.f of cell E terminal p.d V, provided the voltmeter has a very large resistance (

R
)

Effects of the internal resistance of a source of e.m.f. on the terminal p.d

A fraction of the cell or batterys e.m.f is used to drive current through its own internal
resistance. This does not form part of the voltmeter reading.
So V < E as some voltage is lost in driving current through the
E
internal resistance in the cell.
is the lost volts.
r
A practical electric cell can be modeled as a perfect cell (100 %
efficient) connected in series with a resistor of same resistance r
as the internal resistance. .

E.m.f = p.d across R (terminal p.d) + p.d across r (lost volts)

R
, where I is current from the
cell. As current delivered to the external circuit by the battery increases, terminal p.d
decreases.
From
, I is a maximum when R = 0 (the source is short-circuited)
From
,
if R is very high such that
. A voltmeter of very high resistance
(106 ) gives a reading close to the e.m.f. On an open circuit,
, and
The internal resistance r can be estimated by taking several p.ds (V) and current (I)
measurements and plotting a graph of V against I. The slope of the graph gives an average
value of r. In practice the graph is curved because r changes as current increases.

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V

m = -r

I
Output Power and efficiency
Power supplied by the source,
Power dissipated in the load,

, where
E
I

Power lost as heat in the source =

Efficiency of the whole circuit,

A
V

When R
,
1 i.e 100 %.
So for high efficiency, R >> r
When R = r, PR is a maximum (maximum power theorem)
and = 50%. So, maximum power transfer does not result
in maximum efficiency.

Load R

PR

1
0.5

KIRCHHOFFS LAWS
Kirchhoffs first law (current law):
At a junction in a circuit, the current arriving equals the current leaving.
sum of currents in = sum of currents out
I1 + I2 = I3 + I4 + I5
If current arriving at a junction is +, then current leaving is so that the total
current into the junction is zero ( I = 0). Ks first law is a consequence of the
conservation of charge, meaning current is neither accumulated nor destroyed
at any point.

I4

I1

I5
I3

I2

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Kirchhoffs second law (voltage law):
Round any closed circuit or loop, the sum of e.m.fs = sum of the p.ds ( E =

IR)

Ks second law follows from the conservation of energy in that energy gained passing
through e.m.fs = energy lost passing through p.ds.
Example one:
For Ks 1st law:

E1

Assign a direction for the current flow in the loop.

If E1>E2, take current from E1 round the loop.
If the current enters the positive (+) terminal, then p.d is taken
as negative (-) in the sum E.m.fs and currents in the opposite
direction to the direction round the loop are given (-) negative
values
For Ks 2nd law:

R1
I
R2

I
E2

e.mfs = p.ds
E1 + -E2 = IR1 +IR2
E1

Note: If the current I calculated is negative (-), it means that the

current is actually flowing against the direction taken around the
loop.
Example two:
Ks 1st law:
Ks 2nd law:

I1
I3

I1+I2=I3
Round loop one: E1 =I3R1 = (I1+I2)R1
Round loop two: E2 = I3R1+I2R2
Round loop three: E1-E2 = -I2R2

Loop 1
1
R1

I1
I3

Loop 2

I2

I2
R2

E2
Resistor in Series
Ks 1st law:
Ks 2nd law:

same current I through the 2 resistors in series

V= V1 +V2
IR = IR1 + IR2, where R combined resistance of
the 2 resistors in series
R = R1 + R2 (>R1 or R2)

I1

R1

Ks 2 law: e.m.f =
0 = I1R1 - I2R2
V =I1R1 = I2R2

p.ds

I
I2

R2
V

I2

R2
V2

I1

I
nd

V1

Resistors in parallel
Ks 1st law:

R1

, where R is the combined resistance of the 2 resistors in parallel.

,

POTENTIAL DIVIDER

In the simple potential divider circuit, the

supplied voltage Vin is divided between
the two resistors in the ratio R1: R2

Vin

R2
Vin
The potential at Q can be varied if R1 or
R2 is replaced by a rheostat or an LDR or
a thermistor.

Vin

R2 > R1

V2

V1

V1

R1

0V
P

0V

Wheatstone Bridge Circuit

At balance point (null deflection), VAB = VAD and VBC = VDC:

I1

A
I2

R1

R2
C

G
R3

R4

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POTENTIOMETER
The circuit shows a simple potentiometer with a driver cell (accumulator) of emf E which
keeps a steady current I in the wire AB. Any voltage VAC (< E) can be tapped off by moving
the Jockey (sliding contact) along the potentiometer wire.
Driver Cell e.m.f E
V

VAB

A
l

gradient =

Jockey J

VAC
potentiometer wire
L
0 A

VAC

If the cross-section of wire is uniform,

RAB
L and RAC l.
Since I is constant in the wire, VAB L and
VAC l.
, where k is a constant called the
potential gradient or voltage drop per unit
length of wire AB.

Driver Cell e.m.f E

L
A
ll1

C
Jockey J

The unknown e.m.f E1 of a cell can be found

accurately by using the null deflection
method in a potentiometer.

G
E1

At balance point C (no deflection on

galvanometer G), no current flows from E1, VAC = E1. Since VAC

l1 and VAB

L,

and
The null method measures e.m.f of a cell, not its terminal p.d as it is the case with a
voltmeter, which must draw a small current from the cell in order to work. This is a greater
advantage over the voltmeter.
Note: VAB < E as the driver cell is supplying current to the potentiometer there are some volts
lost across its internal resistance. To avoid using VAB, the unknown e.m.f E1 can be found by
comparing it with a known e.m.f E2, using the same potentiometer.

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comparing two e.m.fs using the potentiometer

comparing two p.ds using a potentiometer

Driver Cell e.m.f E

l2
l1

l2
C1

C2

Jockey

l1
E1

R1

R2

E2

At balance point, E2 l2,

and

The ratio of the two e.m.fs is the same as the

ratio of their balance length. If E2 is a standard
cell of known e.m.f, E1 can be calculated
accurately.

The potentiometer can be used to compare

p.ds or resistors in a circuit. Since the same
current I flows through both resistors,

where l1and l2 are the two balance lengths.

Determing internal resistance
Driver Cell D

using a potentiometer
Driver Cell D

S closed

With S closed,
With S open,

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ELECTRONIC SENSORS
An electronic sensor consists of a sensing device, a processor and an output device.
sensing
device

processing
unit

output
device

The change in the property of the sensing device is processed

by a processor so that an output device (e.g indicating lamp,
bell, digital meter) can indicate this change. The processor is a
potential divider circuit which converts a change in resistance
of the sensor into a voltage change. This change in the output
sensor
S

voltage controls the output device.

output V

Most often the change in the output voltage is too small to

trigger the output device that it should be amplified by an operational amplifier (op-amp).

From

, if resistance

decreases, the output

also decreases. Connecting the output

across the fixed resistor would cause V to increase when R decreases.

Examples:

sensor

output
device Bell

relay
switch

processor
(a) bell rings when it becomes hot (e.g fire alarm)

(b) Lamp switches on when it becomes

dark (automatic light switch)