series + parallel circuits

Cards (10)

  • series circuit - a circuit has only one path for current to travel
    • eg. Christmas lights
  • parallel circuit - a circuit that has more than one path for current to travel
    • eg. house lights
  • series circuits
    • electrons must travel through all components of the circuit
    • if one part of a circuit is not connected, all electrons are blocked and the current stops
  • voltage + current in series circuits
    • each load uses a portion of the total voltage supplied by the battery
    • total voltage = sum of voltages used up on loads
    • current in each part of a series is equal
  • resistors in series
    • increase total resistance of circuit
    • increased total resistance = decreased total current
  • in electric circuits, the charge that leaves a battery uses up all its voltage before it returns to the battery
  • parallel circuits
    • closed pathway that has several different paths for electrons to travel in order to return to the battery
  • voltage + current of parallel circuits
    • since all pathways connect at the same location, the voltage used up on each pathway is identical
    • loads in parallel have the same voltage
  • junction point - where a circuit divides into multiple pathways
    • no current is created/destroyed, only split into different pathways
    • current entering must divide among possible paths
    • amount of current through each pathway depends on the resistance of the path
    • total current entering the junction point must equal the sum of current leaving the junction point
  • resistors in parallel
    • when a resistor is placed in parallel with another resistor, you create another pathway so the total resistance must decrease
    • more current will travel through paths with lower resistance