Download 14.1 Series Circuits

14.1 Series Circuits
Swaney
Objectives
• 1. Describe a series circuit.
• 2. Calculate the resistance and current in a
series circuit.
• 3. Explain how voltage changes across each
resistor in a series circuit.
What is a series circuit?
• Series circuit- contains only one path for
current to flow
• Current is the same at all points in the circuit.
Example:
Inexpensive
strings of
holiday lights.
What would happen if you turn the
switch to the OFF position?
• Would all the lights go out?
How do dimmer switches
(potentiometers) work in series
circuits?
Resistance in series circuits
• Every time you add a light bulb to the circuit,
you add resistance.
• To find the total resistance, you add the
individual resistances together.
Adding resistance is like adding
pinches to a hose.
The water flow represents the current.
Ohm’s Law
•I=V/R
• You can calculate current (I) if you know
voltage and resistance
Remember: Energy can never be
created or destroyed.
• Devices in a circuit convert electrical energy
carried by current into other forms of energy.
• As each device uses power, the power carried
by current is reduced.
• As a result…
• Voltage drop-voltage gets lower after each
device that uses power.
As power gets used, voltage gets
lower.
How to measure voltage drop.
Because energy is never created or
destroyed….
• The total of all voltage drops must add up
to the battery’s voltage.
• This is known as Kirchhoff’s voltage law
(named after German physicist Gustav Robert Kirchhoff
1824-87)
14.1 Section Review
1. What do you know about the current at
different points in a series circuit?
2. Three bulbs are connected in series with a
battery and a switch. Do all of the bulbs go
out when the switch is opened? Explain.
3. What happens to c circuit’s resistance as
more resistors are added in series?
4. A series circuit contains a 9-volt battery and
three identical bulbs. What is the voltage
drop across each bulb?