The shocking truth of electricity and Circuits By: Martin BInhammer

Terms to Know Electrical Charge = either positive or negative. Physical property of matter when a force is felt when place in a electromagnetic field. Coulomb = SI Unit for electric charge (C). Voltage = the a force that pushes current through a circuit (V) Current = the flow of electric charge through a circuit. Resistance = a type of friction force that reduces or impedes the flow of current through a circuit Conductor = an object that easily allows the flow of electricity through it (ex. Copper wire) Insulator = an object that does not easily allow the flow of electricity through it. (ex. plastic tubing)

The Atomic Structure of Atoms Proton = Particle within the nucleus of an atom that has a positive charge Electron = Particle outside the nucleus of an atom that has a negative charge Neutron = Particle inside the nucleus of an atom without a charge.

Movement of electricity (charge) Like charges repel one another Opposite charges are attracted to one another While protons of an atom are relatively fixed within the nucleus of an atom the electrons outside the nucleus can easily move from one atom to another. Conductors and Insulators are important in allowing or restricting the flow of electrons.

Induced, Contact and friction Charge Induced charge can occur in a typically uncharged object comes in close proximity to a charged object Contact charging occurs when an uncharged object touches a charged object and a flow of electrons occurs until equilibrium or a shared charge occurs. Friction charge occurs when two objects come in contact with one another and one object takes electrons while the other loses them.

Potential Difference And Voltage Electrical Potential Energy - Chemical Potential Energy is stored in what we call “cells”. (ex. Batteries or solar panels) Potential Difference is the change in electrical potential energy of a charged particle divided by the actual charge of the particle itself. Measurement for this is called “Volts (V)” V = 1 J/C Volts is also considered a force that pushes electricity in a given direction. Voltage is measured across a positivity and negatively charged terminal. A voltmeter is a great tool for measuring voltage.

Voltmeter

Current Electric current is the rate at which a charge moves. Current (I) = 1 coulomb(C)/1 second (s) The SI unit for Current is Ampere (A). This is also the correct way of saying amp.

Resistance Electrical Resistance is caused by internal friction which slows the movement of charges throughout a conducting material. Resistance can be calculated if the voltage and current are known. R = V/I R-resistance V-voltage I-current This equation is also commonly known as “Ohm’s Law”. SI unit for Ohm (Ω) is 1volt/1ampere. Resistor are special types of conductors that are used to control current.

Which is more Deadly Volts or Amperes? R = V/I Example. Let’s say electricity is like a flowing river. Voltage is the steepness of the river and amperage is the amount of water flowing down that slope. So if voltage is high and amperage is low then a small amount of water is running down a steep slope . (tiny waterfall) If amperage is high and voltage is low a large amount of water is running down an almost flat slope. (wide river. But if both are very high you can have serious danger. *the amperage that most tissues can handle before damage is occurs is on the scale of milliamps whereas the voltage is some where around 30-40 volts before damage is done.

Circuits A circuit is defined as the full path in which electrical current flows. A circuit has a variety of components but the primary ones include. -wire, resistor, power source, switch, and power output (typical example of a power out is a light bulb. Series – The voltage along the path is divided up and current flows in one direction. Parallel- The voltage along the path is equal and there are several paths in which the current can flow

Common Symbols of Circuits Wire/Conductor Resistor Light Bulb Battery/Power source Switch

Series Circuit Example

Parallel Circuit Example

Electrical Power Power used within a circuit is the product of both the voltage and the current. P = V x I SI unit of measurement is Watt Power is the amount of work done while the circuit is closed. In the same respect in that pow/er is also the amount of work done over a given amount of time. Since V = J/C and I = C/s Power is still P=J/s