Thvenin's theorem

Any black box containing resistances only and voltage and current sources can be replaced to a Thvenin equivalent circuit consisting of an equivalent voltage
source in series connection with an equivalent resistance.
As originally stated in terms of DC resistive circuits only, the Thvenin's theorem holds that:
Any linear electrical network with voltage and current sources and only resistances can
be replaced at terminals A-B by an equivalent voltage source V
th
in series connection
with an equivalent resistance R
th
.
This equivalent voltage V
th
is the voltage obtained at terminals A-B of the network with
terminals A-B open circuited.
This equivalent resistance R
th
is the resistance obtained at terminals A-B of the network
with all its independent current sources open circuited and all its independent voltage
sources short circuited.
In circuit theory terms, the theorem allows any one-port network to be reduced to a
single voltage source and a single impedance.
The theorem also applies to frequency domain AC circuits consisting
of reactive and resistive impedances.
The theorem was independently derived in 1853 by the German scientist Hermann von
Helmholtz and in 1883 by Lon Charles Thvenin (18571926), an electrical engineer with
France's national Postes et Tlgraphes telecommunications organization.
Thvenin's theorem and its dual, Norton's theorem, are widely used for circuit analysis
simplification and to study circuit's initial-condition and steady-state response.Thvenin's
theorem can be used to convert any circuit's sources and impedances to a Thvenin
equivalent; use of the theorem may in some cases be more convenient than use of Kirchhoff's
circuit laws.
Calculating the Thvenin equivalent
To calculate the equivalent circuit, the resistance and voltage are needed, so two equations are required. These two equations are usually
obtained by using the following steps, but any conditions placed on the terminals of the circuit should also work:
1. Calculate the output voltage, VAB, when in open circuit condition (no load resistormeaning infinite resistance). This is VTh.
2. Calculate the output current, IAB, when the output terminals are short circuited (load resistance is 0). RTh equals VTh divided by
this IAB.
The equivalent circuit is a voltage source with voltage VTh in series with a resistance RTh.
Step 2 could also be thought of as:
2a. Replace the independent voltage sources with short circuits, and independent current sources with open circuits.
2b. Calculate the resistance between terminals A and B. This is RTh.
The Thvenin-equivalent voltage is the voltage at the output terminals of the original circuit. When calculating a Thvenin-
equivalent voltage, the voltage divider principle is often useful, by declaring one terminal to be Vout and the other terminal to be at
the ground point.
The Thvenin-equivalent resistance is the resistance measured across points A and B "looking back" into the circuit. It is
important to first replace all voltage- and current-sources with their internal resistances. For an ideal voltage source, this means
replace the voltage source with a short circuit. For an ideal current source, this means replace the current source with an open
circuit. Resistance can then be calculated across the terminals using the formulae for series and parallel circuits. This method is
valid only for circuits with independent sources. If there are dependent sources in the circuit, another method must be used such
as connecting a test source across A and B and calculating the voltage across or current through the test source.
Example
In the example, calculating the equivalent voltage:



(notice that R1 is not taken into consideration, as above calculations are done in an open circuit condition between A and B,
therefore no current flows through this part, which means there is no current through R1 and therefore no voltage drop
along this part)
Calculating equivalent resistance:



Conversion to a Norton equivalent

A Norton equivalent circuit is related to the Thvenin equivalent by the following:





















Norton's theorem
Known in Europe as the MayerNorton theorem, Norton's theorem holds, to illustrate in DC circuit
theory terms, that (see image):
Any linear electrical network with voltage and current sources and only resistances can
be replaced at terminals A-B by an equivalent current source I
NO
in parallelconnection
with an equivalent resistance R
NO
.
This equivalent current I
NO
is the current obtained at terminals A-B of the network with
terminals A-B short circuited.
This equivalent resistance R
NO
is the resistance obtained at terminals A-B of the network
with all its voltage sources short circuited and all its current sources open circuited.
For AC systems the theorem can be applied to reactive impedances as well as resistances.
The Norton equivalent circuit is used to represent any network of linear sources and
impedances at a given frequency.

Any black box containing resistances only and voltage and current sources can be replaced by anequivalent circuit consisting of an equivalent current
source in parallel connection with an equivalent resistance.
Norton's theorem and its dual, Thvenin's theorem, are widely used for circuit analysis
simplification and to study circuit's initial-condition and steady-state response.
Norton's theorem was independently derived in 1926 by Siemens & Halske researcher Hans
Ferdinand Mayer (18951980) and Bell Labsengineer Edward Lawry Norton (18981983).
To find the equivalent,
1. Find the Norton current I
No
. Calculate the output current, I
AB
, with a short circuit as
the load (meaning 0 resistance between A and B). This is I
No
.
2. Find the Norton resistance R
No
. When there are no dependent sources (all current and
voltage sources are independent), there are two methods of determining the Norton
impedance R
No
.
Calculate the output voltage, V
AB
, when in open circuit condition (i.e., no load resistor
meaning infinite load resistance). R
No
equals this V
AB
divided by I
No
.
or
Replace independent voltage sources with short circuits and independent current
sources with open circuits. The total resistance across the output port is the Norton
impedance R
No
.
This is equivalent to calculating the Thevenin resistance.
However, when there are dependent sources, the more general method must be used. This
method is not shown below in the diagrams.
Connect a constant current source at the output terminals of the circuit with a value of 1
Ampere and calculate the voltage at its terminals. This voltage divided by the 1 A current
is the Norton impedance R
No
. This method must be used if the circuit contains
dependent sources, but it can be used in all cases even when there are no dependent
sources.
Example of a Norton equivalent circuit

In the example, the total current Itotal is given by:

The current through the load is then, using the current divider rule:


And the equivalent resistance looking back into the circuit is:

So the equivalent circuit is a 3.75 mA current source in parallel with a 2 k resistor.
Conversion to a Thvenin equivalent

A Norton equivalent circuit is related to the Thvenin equivalent by the following equations: