Q1.

Determine (a) the equivalent resistance of the circuit shown in the Figure , and (b) the
voltage across each resistor.

(a) The equivalent resistance is found by combining the 820  and 680  resistors in parallel,
and
then adding the 960  resistor in series with that parallel combination.

(b) The current delivered by the battery is . This is the

current in the 960  resistor. The voltage across that resistor can be found by Ohm’s law.

Thus the voltage across the parallel combination must be . This is

the voltage across both the 820  and 680  resistors, since parallel resistors have the same
voltage across them. Note that this voltage value could also be found as follows.

Q2. (a) Determine the equivalent resistance of the “ladder” of equal 125  resistors shown
in the Figure . In other words, what resistance would an ohmmeter read if connected
between points A and B? (b) What is the current through each of the three resistors on the
left if a 50.0-V battery is connected between points A and B?

(a) The three resistors on the far right are in series, so their equivalent
resistance is 3R. That combination is in parallel with the next resistor to the left, as shown
in the dashed box in the second figure. The equivalent resistance of the dashed box is found
as follows.

This equivalent resistance of is in series with the next two resistors, as shown in the
dashed box in the third figure (on the next page). The equivalent resistance of that dashed
 box is This is in parallel with the next
resistor to the left, as shown in the fourth figure. The equivalent
resistance of that dashed box is found as follows.

This is in series with the last two resistors, the ones connected
directly to A and B. The final equivalent resistance is given below.

(b) The current flowing from the battery is found from Ohm’s law.

This is the current in the top and bottom resistors. There will be less current in the next
resistor because the current splits, with some current passing through the resistor in
question, and the rest of the current passing through the equivalent resistance of , as
shown in the last figure. The voltage across R and across must be the same, since they
are in parallel. Use this to find the desired current.

Q3. Three equal resistors (R) are connected to a battery as shown in the Figure. Qualitatively,
what happens to (a) the voltage drop across each of these resistors, (b) the current flow
through each, and (c) the terminal voltage of the battery, when the switch S is opened,
after having been closed for a long time? (d) If the emf of the battery is 9.0 V, what is its
terminal voltage when the switch is closed if the internal resistance r is o.5  and R=5.5
 ? (e) What is the terminal voltage when the switch is open?

We label identical resistors from left to right as , , and . When the switch is opened,
the equivalent resistance of the circuit increases from to . Thus the current

delivered by the battery decreases, from to . Note that this is LESS than a 50%
decrease.
(a) Because the current from the battery has decreased, the voltage drop across will decrease,
 since it will have less current than before. The voltage drop across decreases to 0,
since no current is flowing in it. The voltage drop across will increase, because even
though the total current has decreased, the current flowing through has increased
since before the switch was opened, only half the total current was flowing through .

.
(b) By Ohm’s law, the current is proportional to the voltage for a fixed resistance.

(c) Since the current from the battery has decreased, the voltage drop across r will
decrease, and
thus the terminal voltage increases.
(d) With the switch closed, the equivalent resistance is . Thus the current in the
circuit is

, and the terminal voltage is given by Eq. 26-1.

(e) With the switch open, the equivalent resistance is . Thus the current in the
circuit is

, and again the terminal voltage is given by Eq. 26-1.

Q4. Determine the terminal voltage of each battery.

Apply Kirchhoff’s loop rule to the circuit starting at the upper left corner of the circuit diagram, in
order to calculate the current. Assume that the current is flowing clockwise.

The terminal voltage for each battery is found by summing the potential differences across the
internal resistance and EMF from left to right. Note that for the 12 V battery, there is a voltage
gain going across the internal resistance from left to right.
Q5. (a) A network of five equal resistors R is connected to a battery as shown in the Figure.
Determine the current I that flows out of the battery. (b) Use the value determined for I to

find the single resistor that is equivalent to the five-resistor network.

(a) We label each of the currents as shown in the accompanying

figure. Using Kirchhoff’s junction rule and the first three junctions (a-c) we write equations
relating the entering and exiting currents.

We use Kirchhoff’s loop rule to write equations for loops abca,

abcda, and bdcb.

We have six unknown currents and six equations. We solve these equations by substitution.
First, insert Eq. [3] into [6] to eliminate current I5. Next insert Eq. [2] into Eqs. [1], [4], and
[5] to eliminate I2.

Next we solve Eq. [4*] for I4 and insert the result into Eqs. [1*], [5*], and [6*].
 Finally we substitute Eq. [6**] into Eq [5**] and solve for I1. We insert this result into Eq.
[1**] to write an equation for the current through the battery in terms of the battery emf and
resistance.

(b) We divide the battery emf by the current to determine the effective resistance.

Q6. (a) What is the potential difference between points a and d, (b) what is the terminal
voltage of each battery?

Eq. (a): ; Eq. (b):

Eq. (c): Eq. (d):

Eq. (e):

(a) To find the potential difference between points a and d, start at point a and add each
individual
potential difference until reaching point d. The simplest way to do this is along the top
branch.

Slight differences will be obtained in the final answer depending on the branch used, due to
rounding. For example, using the bottom branch, we get the following.

(b) For the 75-V battery, the terminal voltage is the potential difference from point g to point e.
For
the 45-V battery, the terminal voltage is the potential difference from point d to point b.

Q7. Calculate the currents in each resistor.

There are three currents involved, and so there must be three independent equations to determine
those three currents. One comes from Kirchhoff’s junction rule
I1 25 I3
applied to the junction of the three branches at the top center of the
circuit.
58V 3.0 V
I2
Another equation comes from Kirchhoff’s loop rule applied to the 120
64  110
left loop, starting at the negative terminal of the battery and
82 
progressing counterclockwise.

The final equation comes from Kirchhoff’s loop rule applied to the right loop, starting at the
negative terminal of the battery and progressing counterclockwise.

Substitute into the left loop equation, so that there are two equations with two
unknowns.

Solve the right loop equation for and substitute into the left loop equation, resulting in an
equation with only one unknown, which can be solved.

The current in each resistor is as follows:

Q8. In the Figure below, the total resistance is and the battery’s emf is 24.0 V. If

the time constant is measured to be calculate (a) the total capacitance of the
circuit and (b) the time it takes for the voltage across the resistor to reach 16.0 V after the
switch is closed.

(a) the product RC is equal to the time constant.

 (b) Since the battery has an EMF of 24.0 V, if the voltage across the resistor is 16.0 V, the
voltage across the capacitor will be 8.0 V as it charges. Use the expression for the voltage
across a charging capacitor.

Q9. Consider the circuit shown, where all resistors have the same resistance R. At with

the capacitor C uncharged, the switch is closed. (a) At the three currents can be
determined by analyzing a simpler, but equivalent, circuit. Identify this simpler circuit and

use it to find the values of and at (b) At the currents can be

determined by analyzing a simpler, equivalent circuit. Identify this simpler circuit and

implement it in finding the values of and at (c) At what is the

potential difference across the capacitor?

(a) At t = 0, the capacitor is uncharged and so there is no voltage difference across it. The capacitor
is a “short,” and so a simpler circuit can be drawn just by eliminating the capacitor. In this
simpler circuit, the two resistors on the right are in parallel with each other, and then in
series with the resistor by the switch. The current through the resistor by the switch splits
equally when it reaches the junction of the parallel resistors.

(b) At the capacitor will be fully charged and there will be no current in the
branch
containing the capacitor, and so a simpler circuit can be drawn by eliminating that branch.
In this simpler circuit, the two resistors are in series, and they both have the same current.

(c) At since there is no current through the branch containing the capacitor, there
is no
potential drop across that resistor. Therefore the voltage difference across the capacitor
equals the voltage difference across the resistor through which flows.
Q10. Two resistors and two uncharged capacitors are arranged as shown. Then a potential
difference of 24 V is applied across the combination as shown. (a) What is the potential at
point a with switch S open? (Let at the negative terminal of the source.) (b) What is
the potential at point b with the switch open? (c) When the switch is closed, what is the
final potential of point b? (d) How much charge flows through the switch S after it is
closed?

(a) With the switch open, the resistors are in series with each other, and so have the same current.
Apply the loop rule clockwise around the left loop, starting at the negative terminal of the
source, to find the current.

The voltage at point a is the voltage across the -resistor.

(b) With the switch open, the capacitors are in series with each other. Find the equivalent
capacitance. The charge stored on the equivalent capacitance is the same value as the
charge stored on each capacitor in series.

The voltage at point b is the voltage across the -capacitor.

(c) The switch is now closed. After equilibrium has been reached a long time, there is no current
flowing in the capacitors, and so the resistors are again in series, and the voltage of point a
must be 8.0 V. Point b is connected by a conductor to point a, and so point b must be at the
 same potential as point a, . This also means that the voltage across is 8.0 V, and
the voltage across is 16 V.
(d) Find the charge on each of the capacitors, which are no longer in series.

When the switch was open, point b had a net charge of 0, because the charge on the negative
plate of had the same magnitude as the charge on the positive plate of . With the
switch closed, these charges are not equal. The net charge at point b is the sum of the
charge on the negative plate of and the charge on the positive plate of .

Thus of charge has passed through the switch, from right to left.

Q11. A power supply has a fixed output voltage of 12.0 V, but you need output

for an experiment. (a) Using the voltage divider shown in the Figure, what should be

if is 14.5 ? (b) What will the terminal voltage be if you connect a load to the 3.0-
V output, assuming the load has a resistance of 7 ?

(a) If the terminal voltage is to be 3.0 V, then the voltage across will be 9.0 V. This can be used
to find the current, which then can be used to find the value of .

(b) If the load has a resistance of , then the parallel combination of and the load must be
used to analyze the circuit. The equivalent resistance of the circuit can be found and used to
calculate the current in the circuit. Then the terminal voltage can be found from Ohm’s law,
using the parallel combination resistance.
 The presence of the load has affected the terminal voltage significantly.

Q12. In the circuit shown , the 33  resistor dissipates 0.80 W. What is the battery voltage?

The current in the circuit can be found from the resistance and the power dissipated. Then the product
of that current and the equivalent resistance is equal to the battery voltage.