Monday, 14 September 2020 1:27 PM
Charge:
• In an atom, we have neutrons, protons and electrons.
- Neutrons; do not carry any charge
- Protons; positive charge
- Electrons; negative charge
• Charge is denoted by `q' and is measured in Coulombs (abbreviated as C)
• 1 electron carries
• 1 C = sum of charges in
• Charge is quantized, that is, minimum possible value
• Conductors are materials with an abundance of free electrons
• Insulators have no free electrons
• Semi-conductors have moderate number of free electrons
• Like charges repel each other and opposite charges attract each other (Electrostatics)
Current:
• Measures the rate of change in charge
• Denoted by I
• Unit: Ampere (Coulombs per second), abbreviated as A
• Mathematically;
• Formally, current results from charges in motion and 1A current corresponds to 1 Coulomb of charge moving across a fixed surface in
1 sec
Current Direction:
• The moving charges may be positive or negative.
• +ve charges (ions) movement produced +ve current. (Positive Charge Convention)
More formally;
• The direction of an electric current is by convention the direction in which a positive charge would move.
• Electrons would actually move through the wires in the opposite direction.
• Thus, the current in the external circuit is directed away from the positive terminal and toward the negative terminal of the battery
(depicted below)
Voltage (Electric Potential or Electromotive Force):
Work on Charges:
• Use positive charge for easier explanation, always remember it has a negative charge somewhere
• An electric charge experiences a force in an electric field, which if unopposed, will accelerate the particle containing the charge
• Of interest here is the work done to move the charge against the field
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• Electric potential or voltage is the difference in Electric Potential Energy per unit of charge between two points
• We define voltage as the amount of potential energy between two points.
• Another view point is that the voltage refers to the potential energy difference between two points that will impart one joule of
energy per coulomb of charge that passes through it.
• Measured in Volts (abbreviated as V). Also called the potential difference or electromotive force
• Relationship to charge; Mathematically;
• If 1 Joule of work is required to move 1 coulomb of charge from position 1 to position 2, then position 2 is at the potential of 1 Volt
with respect to position 1
Power (Rate of change of work):
• (expanding of energy in time)
Energy:
Summary so far;
• Charge, Current, Voltage, Power, Energy
Sources of Electrical Energy - Voltage and Current Sources:
Voltage Source
Current Source
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Current Source
Before we proceed further; let's try to understand basic concepts using water flow analogy and considering electric current a s water
Water Flow Analogy
• VOLTAGE - the pressure that pushes water through the hose.
• CURRENT - the flow of the water
• CHARGE - water
• RESISTANCE - hose-width
The pressure at the end of the hose can represent voltage
The water in the tank represents charge
The more water in the tank, the higher the charge, the more pressure is measured at the end of the hose
The higher the tank, the more pressure is measured
Width of the horse is inversely proportional to the resistance and directly proportional to the flow of the water
In other words, flow is directly proportional to pressure and inversely proportional to the width of the hose.
Circuit
• Closed loop that carries electric current. To be very precise, circuit is a
path through which the current flows.
• Open circuit; If flow is disrupted
• Closed circuit; current is flowing in a path
• It is the interconnection of sources of electrical energy and other electrical
components like Resistor, Capacitor and Inductor (at least for this course).
Passive and Active Elements
We use Passive Sign Convention to categorize basic electrical elements or
components.
Passive Element (Component):
Element that dissipates energy.
Positive current enters positive terminal.
By passive sign convention, power dissipated by passive element is taken as
positive.
Active Element (Component):
Elements that supplies energy.
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positive.
Active Element (Component):
Elements that supplies energy.
Positive current enters negative terminal.
By passive sign convention, power dissipated by an active element is taken as
negative.
OR
By passive sign convention, power supplied by an active element is taken as
positive.
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