45 lines
1.6 KiB
Markdown
45 lines
1.6 KiB
Markdown
---
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tags:
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- electricity
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- electronics
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---
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# Circuits
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An electrical circuit is a set of electrical components connected in such a way
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that current flows in a loop from a voltage source, through the circuit elements
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and back to the voltage source.
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Below is a basic circuit representing a 9-volt
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[battery](Cells_and_batteries.md#cells-and-batteries)
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with a 10,000$\Omega$
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[resistor](Resistance.md) attached
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accross its terminals. Through the application of
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[Ohm's Law](Ohms_Law.md) we can
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determine that the maximum current will be 0.9 miliamps.
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## Open and short circuits
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A circuit with a break in its loop is called an **open circuit**. When a circuit
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is open, no current flows. We can induce an open circuit through the use of a
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switch component that closes and breaks the circuit when invoked.
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A **short circuit** is a path in a circuit that allows current to flow with
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little or no resistance. This is usually unintentional and results in excessive
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current flowing through the circuit. A short circuit is the opposite to an open
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circuit. With an open circuit there is an infinite resistance between the two
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terminals.
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## Vertical circuit diagrams
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Sometimes circuits can be represented in a vertical manner rather than in an
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actual circuit. This is done to simplify the representation. In this approach
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current is represented as flowing in a straight line from the voltage source
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(represented with a circle) to ground.
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The circuit below is functionally identical to the previous circuit but
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represented vertically:
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