Course and Section Names
Date_
THE MULTIMETER AND POWER SUPPLY
Short description
The goal of this lab is for you to gain familiarity with the equipment which are used in most of the electrical
experiments: the multimeter and the power supply. You are not expected to know the meaning of physical
quantities such as voltage, current and resistance. You we learn these during the semester.
Equipment
- Fluke 27 Multimeter
- Pasco Power Supply
- A resistor, a battery and a capacitor
- Two cables with probes
- Two banana cables
Theory
The Fluke27 is an device that can measure continuity, resistance,
voltage and current for both direct current (DC) and alternating
current (AC).
The functions of the multimeter are selected using a 12- position
rotary switch. The symbols are designed to illustrate the
functionality with a curved sine wave indicating AC and a straight and
dotted line indicating a DC measurement function. The table below
indicates the function selected with the position number defined as the
numbers on the face of a clock.
Position Function Position Function
1 AC volt 7 Continuity
2 AC millivolt 8 DC microamp
3 AC amp 9 DC amp
4 AC microamp 10 DC millivolt
5 Ohms 11 DC volt
6 OFF 12 OFF
For continuity, volts and ohms, the test leads are connected to the
terminals to the right of the meter, while the terminals on the left are
used for measurements of current. The convention is that red is for
positive (+) and black is for negative (-) polarity. For this experiment,
we will use only the terminals on the right (as shown in the picture). Typically a black meter probe is used
for the common (COM) connection and a red meter probe wire is used for the voltage connection (V ).
The connections 1-5 do not have a polarity (positive or negative) associated with them and the connections
7-11 will read either positive or negative.
Procedure
1. With the meter in the Ohms position (measuring electrical resistance), take a reading with the probes
connected to each other (touching). Also note the reading when the probes are not connected. Measure the
resistance of your body by touching the probes with your fingers. Try the same measurements with the
meter in AC volt or millivolt. Also try DC volt and millivolt.
Probe Ohms Volt AC millivolt AC volt DC millivolt DC
Connected
(Shorted)
Not Connected
(Open)
Touching
Fingers
2. Measure the resistances of a resistor, a capacitor and the 1.5V battery. What happens when you reverse
the leads? Does the resistance reading depend on the polarity of the meter?
3. Now select the continuity function and repeat part 2.
Component Ohms (one direction) Ohms (reverse) Continuity (Beep or Not)
Resistor
Capacitor
1.5V Battery
4. We’ll measure some DC voltages. Set the multimeter to DC, connect the probes to the ends of the 1.5V
battery and measure the DC voltage across it. Switch the two probes and measure the DC voltage again.
Repeat the measurements with the meter set to AC.
Component DC Voltage AC Voltage
1.5V battery
1.5V battery (polarity reverse)
5. Connect the meter to the AC voltage output terminals
(NOTE: AC does not have a polarity +/-). Measure the
output voltage versus the AC voltage setting on the power
supply. Does the voltage setting number match the
measured voltage?
Use six different values for the AC Voltage output and
collect your result in the table below.
If you read small values of voltage (<1 V for all settings)
then the circuit breaker is blown on the power supply.
Push the black button below the power switch on the
power supply and check with the Teaching Assistant.. The power supply has both AC and DC
outputs with the AC part on the right.
Power Supply Setting AC Voltage Power Supply Setting AC Voltage
1 4
2 5
3 6
6. Connect a resistor with the AC power supply as shown below (set AC = 10V). Measure the AC and DC
voltages across it and fill in the table of measurements (use the same AC = 10V output). Repeat using the
capacitor instead of the resistor. Take care to make precise measurements (it may be necessary to measure
on the millivolt scale for some cases).
AC output on the power supply set at = 10V
Component AC Volts DC Volts
Resistor
Capacitor
Turn off the Multimeter and the Power Supply