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Parallel Circuits and Series Circuits
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Eliza George
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Cards (24)
Parallel
Circuit
Power source and all components in
multiple
, separate loops
Two or more paths for
electrons
to follow
Voltage in a parallel circuit
Voltage across each pathway is the
same
as the voltage from the power source
Voltage in a parallel circuit when switch is closed
Voltmeters at each location will read the same voltage (
6V
)
Adding
batteries in parallel
Has no effect on the total voltage because each
electron
in the circuit only passes through
1
battery
Current
in a parallel circuit
Current coming out of the energy source is split/spread out to each
pathway
, then
rejoins before
returning to the energy source
Current in a parallel circuit when switch is closed
Ammeter readings: 0.2A, 0.1A, 4A,
0.2A
, 0.1A
Resistance in a parallel circuit
Total resistance
decreases
when more
loads
are added
We will NOT calculate the
total resistance
in a
parallel
circuit
Electrons
need a
complete circuit
to flow around and transfer energy to components
Series
circuit
Components connected in 1
path
Parallel circuit
Components attached in many
paths
If a series circuit is broken
Current
will stop flowing and all components will
stop working
If a
parallel
circuit is broken
Current
will still flow through the other paths, so not all
components
will stop working
If a switch is wired in series
It can only complete/break the flow of electrons to everything at
once
(all on or all off)
If
a switch is wired in parallel
It can complete/break the flow of
electrons
to components on 1 path
without
affecting the others (each is controlled separately)
Voltage in a series circuit
Total voltage
from the
energy source
is divided between all loads
Voltage
in a parallel circuit
Voltage is the same
everywhere
(same as energy source)
Adding batteries in series
Increases
total voltage
because each
electron
passes through them and gets multiple "pushes"
Adding batteries in parallel
Does not affect total voltage because each electron only passes through
1 battery
(only gets "pushed"
once
)
Current in a series circuit
Current is the
same
everywhere
Current in a parallel circuit
Current
leaves energy
source and splits/rejoins at
junctions
between paths
Series
vs. Parallel Resistance simulation available
Resistance
in a series circuit
Total resistance
increases
as more loads are added, calculated by
adding
the resistances together
Resistance
in a parallel circuit
Total resistance
decreases
as more loads are added, we will not calculate the total resistance