Electricity and Magnetism

Weeks 10 to 12
Coursework/Class test 50/50 split
Contributes 25% to module
Class test 40 minutes (First week of examinations)

Electricity and Magn

Electricity
History

Greeks rubbed amber feathers stuck static electricity

1752 Benjamin Franklin - kite
1799 Volta battery
1820 Oersted magnetic field
Faraday experiments led to development of transformer
1829 Henry electromagnet
1879 Eddison electric light bulb
1880 electric motor
1895 X-ray machine
1895 Westinghouse electric power plant

Electricity and Magn

Electric charge
Body charged when it attracts lightweight objects
Charge can be transferred by wire connection
Materials that allow a charge to travel through it are called
conductors
Materials that resist the travel of electric charge are
insulators
Resinous charge plastic rod (negative)
Vitreous charge glass rod (positive)
Like repels like, opposites attract
Electricity and Magn

Electric charge

Conductor allows a charge to flow

Amount of charge Q per unit time is a current
Battery provides pressure source for current flow
Effect of current flowing in a wire
Wire heats up
Magnetic field around wire

Electricity and Magn

Conductors
Metals are good conductors
Electrons relatively free to move
Allow charge to flow through metal

Non-conductors
Electrons more rigidly held

Elements contain different configurations of electrons

Some metals better conductors than others

Tend to consider resistance rather conduction

Resistance measured in ohms ()
Electricity and Magn

Ohms Law
Simple relationship between voltage, current and
resistance

V IR

V voltage

I current

R resistance

Electricity and Magn

Power
Power the rate at which energy is expended or work is
done
Measured in Watts (W)
Electric fire intensity quote in kilowatts (kW)
Relationship between power, voltage, current and
resistance
P VI
P V
R

PI R

Electricity and Magn

Light Bulb Circuit

12 volt 60 watt bulb

Current through bulb?
Resistance of bulb?
Electricity and Magn

Losses in a circuit

12 volt supply, 6 volt bulb

R1 acts to drop supply voltage
Resistance of bulb?
Current through bulb?
Resistance of R1?
Power loss through R1?

Series circuit

Electricity and Magn

Parallel circuit
LP1 and LP2 in parallel
Circuit resistance?

R parallel

R
R

LP1
LP1

R
R

LP 2

LP 2

Electricity and Magn

10

Multiple Parallel Components

LP1 and LP2 12V 60 Watt
LP3 and LP4 12V 22 Watt
Resistance of LP3/4?

R parallel

1
1

R R
1

R parallel

......

1
1
1
1
1

LP1 LP 2 LP3 LP 4

Electricity and Magn

11

Circuit Considerations
If bulbs were 6V, battery 12V which circuit is better?
Circuit 1

Circuit 2
Electricity and Magn

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