2140202 Electrical and Circuits Laboratory

Faculty of Engineering
Chulalongkorn University
Digital Multimeter or DMM
Dr. Ekachai Leelarasmee
Instructor:

Date:

Name: 1)

ID

2)

ID

3)

ID

A DMM is a digital meter for

measuring Volt, Ohm and Milliampere; a function that used to be
called VOM. The meter has a
type/range rotating switch for selecting
type and range of measurement. Types
of measurement are indicated with
symbols. They are V= (DC Volt),
V~(AC Volt), (Ohm) and A= (DC
ampere). Each type has range setting,
e.g. a 20V= selection will set the
VmA
DMM for measuring DC Volt that is
within the 20V range. If the input
voltage exceeds 20V, the meter will
display an overflow indicator of 1 with
no trailing digit. It is very important to
set the type switch correctly before
measuring to prevent damaging the DMM.. There are two plugs on the meter for inserting
test cable, one is VmA input and the other is COM input. It is recommended that the
red cable be inserted in the VmA input while the black cable in the COM input. Also
make sure that the cable jacks are firmly plugged. After the lab is over, switch to OFF to
save battery power in the meter.
There is one separate button called HOLD near the display. If pushed, the DMM will be
put on hold and cannot be used to make any more measurement. When it happens, push
the hold button one more time to release the holding function.

Update: 15/09/09

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Battery

A battery is a device or cell that can generate

electrical voltage through its electro-chemical
reaction. It has two terminals designated by + and -.
Higher voltage can be achieved by stacking up many
cells. Notice that the battery in the lab already has
two cables attached to its plus (+) and minus (-)
terminals. Please do not pull them out.

Experiment
1) Touch the VmA input lead of the DMM to plus (+) terminal of the battery and COM
lead to minus (-) terminal of the battery. Measure the battery voltage according to the
type/range setting in the table and record the reading.
Type/Range

2V=

20V=

200V=

200V~

Reading value
2) Touch the VmA input lead of the DMM to minus (-) terminal of the battery and
COM lead to plus (+) terminal of the battery. Measure the battery voltage according to
the type/range setting in the table and record the reading.
Type/Range

2V=

20V=

200V=

200V~

Reading value
Question:
a) Fill in the table below indicating the type/range that best suit to measure a battery
voltage
Battery
1.5V
4.5V
40V
Range setting
b) Guess why the battery reading with 200V~ is different from other settings.

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Proto-board or Bread-board.

Front view of a protoboard

Back view of a protoboard

A protoboard consists of plastic strips with metallic holes that are pre-connected internally.
Two kinds of strips are available; namely terminal strip and bus strip. The holes in the
terminal strip are pre-connected vertically and are divided in the middle by a notch providing
5 holes internally connected. Components such as resistor, capacitor, diode, transistor and chip
are usually inserted into the terminal strips. The circuit is then formed by connecting wire
point to point. The bus strip is usually connected to outside DC power supply source, e.g. 6V
and Ground as shown in the figure below. Their holes are pre-connected horizontally so that
the power supply can be easily connected to several components on the terminal strip. The
proto-board in this laboratory comes with a supply interface board inserted at the left end. This
is to prevent error in connecting with the battery. Do not remove them from the proto-board
when not in used. Do not insert more than one component or wire into the same hole.

Experiment 3: Familiar yourself with a proto-board. You may turn it over to see how the
holes are connected. Once you are familiar with it, you can move to the next experiment.

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Resistor

v
Resistor symbol

#1 #2 #3 #4

Color Coded Resistor

Actual resistors
A resistor is a two-terminal component that opposes an electric current (I) by producing a
voltage drop (V) between its terminals in accordance with Ohm's law, i.e.
V = IR

or

I=V/R

where R is its resistance in Ohm ( ). The flow of current generates power (P) in Watt (W) on
V2
. This power heats up the resistance. Thus
R
a resistor of the same resistance comes in different sizes for different power rating, e.g. 5W,
1W and 1/2W, as shown in the above figure. If the actual power exceeds its rating, the resistor
will get overheated or even burned.

the resistor according to the formula P = I 2 R =

The most common resistors are made by packed carbon powder. Its resistance is coded on its
body by 4 color bands as shown in the figure. Each color codes a number according to the
following table.
Color black brown red orange yellow green blue purple gray white
Value
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
The first two colors encode the first two significant digits of the resistance value, the third is a
power-of-ten multiplier. The fourth is the tolerance or error of the value which is either gold
(5%) or silver (10%). For example, if the four color bands are red(2), green(5), orange(3) and
gold respectively, the resistance is 25,000 5% ohms.

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Experiment 4: Insert 2 different resistors on the proto-board as shown below.

With a DMM, measure the resistance of each resistor without removing from the board and fill
in the table below.
Resistor
R1
R2

Color #1

Color#2

Color#3

Color#4

Resistance (Code)

Resistance (Measured)

Experiment 5: R1 and R2 are already connected in series. Measure the resistance between
points A and D on the board
R AD =_________________.

Calculate R1+R2 =___________________

Experiment 6: Remove R2 and connect it in parallel with R1. Measure

R AB =_________________.

Calculate

R1 R2
=______________________
R1 + R2

Questions:
a) Name one commercial resistor that needs to be heated when using.

b) Determine the resistance of a resistor with the following codes: red green yellow and silver

c) Discuss why there is some discrepancy between the measured and theoretical data.

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Capacitor

nonpolar

Nonpolar Capacitor Symbol

C

polar

+
v
Polar Capacitor Symbol

A capacitor is a device that stores energy in terms of opposite charges Q (Coulomb) between
its two plates separated by dielectric materials and develops a voltage different V between the
plates according to the formula
Q = CV
where C is the capacitance in Farad. The electrical energy (E in joule) stored is given by
1
E = CV 2
2

Two kinds of capacitors can be classified based on polarity usage. They are non-polar and
polar capacitors. The non-polar capacitor is available from 1pF to 1F and has no leakage.
The polar (or electrolytic) capacitor is available from 1F but has some small leakage
current. A typical and low cost DMM cannot measure C directly. However, we can tell its
property roughly by measuring its resistance. Assuming there is no charge on the capacitor
plate, its measured resistance appears initially low and gradually increases until an overflow
reading occurs. This is because the DMM has to charge the capacitor which will build up its
voltage to counter react the DMM to decrease its charging current. When zero or very small
current is reached, the DMM reading is overflow. Such a build-up of reading value is unique
for a capacitor. The time until the reading reach overflow also depends on the capacitor value.

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Experiment: Insert a capacitor on the proto-board. Use a wire to connect its two leads
together for a short duration to discharge its stored charge. Then set a DMM at 2Mohm range
and measure the capacitor. You will see that the reading starts building up from zero. Record
the time until the reading becomes overflow. Do it 3 times for each capacitor in the table.
Test #

Capacitor

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

10F
10F
10F
47F
47F
47F
100F
100F
100F

Time to overflow

Average time

Questions

1) What would be the time when a 1000uF is measured?

2) What would happened if a faulty, or one with large leakage current between its two
plates, capacitor is measured.

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Diode

Normal diode symbol

Cathode

Anode

Anode

Cathode
LED or Photodiode symbol

A diode shown in the figure above is a semiconductor device that allows current flow only in
one direction, i.e. from A to K. This is called a forward condition (ON) as oppose to reverse
condition (OFF) from K to A in which there is no current. While current flows, there is a small
constant forward voltage (VF) whose value depends on the material according to the table.

Normal Diode
Light Emitting Diode (LED)

Semiconductor material
silicon
Gallium Arsenide

Forward Voltage (VF)

0.7V
2V

Most DMM has a selector for testing a diode based on a resistance measurement. To forward
bias a diode, touch its VmA lead to the Anode and its COM lead to the Cathode. The meter
should display a low value. Reverse the connection to reverse bias the diode and a high
reading or overflow should appear.
Experiment 8: Set the type/range selector to 2Kohm. There you will also find a diode symbol.
Insert a testing diode on the proto-board and measure them according to the table.
Diode
1N4148
1N4001
LED

Forward Resistance

Reverse Resistance

Question:
1) Guess why the LED reading is quite different from 1N4001.

2) Write down what you can see when an LED is forward bias.

3) What would the resistance reading be if a diode is bad ?

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4) In the circuit below, which diodes are ON and which are OFF ?

Experiment 9: Construct a circuit on the proto-board as shown below

To connect the battery, insert the jack from the battery into a plug in the supply interface board
on the top left of the proto-board. This will provide a 6V between the red/blue rail on the bus
strip. Other component should be inserted on the terminal strip. Set the type/range of a DMM
at 20V= and measure VAN = ______________________ ; VBN = ______________________

6V
R2

R1
A

4.7K

10K

Question: Compare the measured VBN = with its theoretical value

Experiment 10: Replace the 10K resistor with an LED as shown below and measure
VAN = ______________________ ; VBN = ______________________

6V
R1
A

4.7K

Question: From experiment 10, guess what would happen if R1 is decreased from 4.7K to 1K

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