Warmup
What is the current i3 and voltage V3?
1V
-100mA 5V 20mA i3 V3
Go to menti.com and use code 90 84 11
ENGR 40M, Lecture 3:
Ohm's law, power, and multimeters
Steven Bell
30 June 2017
Logistics
Lab sections will be posted this weekend
Homework 1 is out (pick up a copy)
Lab 1 is posted (we'll bring copies Monday)
Sign up on Piazza!
Objectives
By the end of class, you should be able to:
Use Ohm's law with KVL/KCL to find unknown voltages and
currents.
Calculate the power supplied or dissipated by a device.
How much power does the source absorb?
-0.5A 120V
Let's make a deal
When calculating power,
current references should match voltage references:
✔ ✗ ✗ ✔
Then positive power is always power absorbed, and
negative power is always power supplied.
This is called the "passive sign convention".
Which of these are absorbing electrical power?
Watch the signs!
1A 2V -1A 2V -1A 2V
A B C
1A -2V 1A 2V -1A -2V
D E F
A strange circuit
500mA 4V
Which device is providing elctrical power?
(i.e., which has negative power absorbed?)
A) The current source
B) The battery
C) Both
D) Neither, this circuit is broken.
Marble-track resistor
woodgears.ca
Ohm's Law
For a resistor (and only a resistor):
I= V
R
R is the resistance, measured in Ohms
Represented with the schematic symbol:
What is the current i?
5V 1kΩ
Challenge: what would happen to the current
if we added a second 1kΩ resistor in parallel?
Breaking break:
My wife's hair dryer
Happy Friday!
Do this now:
Take all three AA batteries out
of your kit, and put (only!) two
of them in the holder.
(Keep the third one handy.)
Take your digital multimeter
out of its packaging, as well
as the probes in the box
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 1
Open circuit and short circuit
Open circuit Short circuit
open short
circuit circuit
• No connection • Direct connection
• Infinite resistance • Zero resistance
• Current can’t flow • No potential difference
(𝑖 = 0) (𝑣 = 0)
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 4
Modes of your digital multimeter (DMM)
Voltage meter
Voltmeter (V)
Current meter
Ammeter (A)
Resistance meter Other modes are
beyond the scope
Ohmmeter (Ω) of ENGR 40M—
please ask if
you’re interested
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 5
Connecting your multimeter’s probes
• Red probe → VΩmA,
normally
• “Volts, ohms and
milliamps”
• Black probe → COM
• “Common”
• 10A(DC) is used for
higher current
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 6
Using your voltmeter (1)
Do now:
• Use the 2000mV scale
• Grab an AA battery
• Put one probe on each
end of the battery
• Make firm contact!
• What happens if you
get the probes the
“wrong way round”?
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 7
Using your voltmeter (2)
Do now:
• Change to the 200mV
scale. Measure the
same battery. What
does it say?
• How about on the 20V
scale?
• How should you
choose the scale?
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 9
Using your multimeter: scales
• Your multimeter has 3½ digits: The 4th digit can
only show a “1”.
• Numbers indicate the maximum that a scale can
measure.
• If you measure something exceeding the scale,
the meter shows this:
• To maximize precision, choose the smallest scale
greater than what you’re measuring.
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 10
Using your voltmeter (3)
Do now:
• Place all three AA
batteries in the holder
• Don’t let the holder
wires touch each other
• Measure the voltage
across the holder
• You’ll need to choose
the appropriate scale.
• Are the batteries in
series or in parallel?
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 11
A voltmeter goes in parallel
4.5V 1kΩ
But this changes the circuit!
How should a voltmeter behave to avoid
changing the circuit?
Voltmeters connect in parallel
• To measure a voltage across a device, you must
probe on either side of it.
• Therefore, voltmeters connect in parallel.
• In order to avoid affecting the circuit, the
voltmeter takes close to zero current.
• We say that the ideal voltmeter looks like an
open circuit.
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 13
Using your ohmmeter
Do now:
• Measure the
resistance of the
resistor you just read
• Note: No battery!
• Does it match?
• Resistance is measured
without any power
• For resistors, polarity
doesn’t matter
Resistance modes
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 21
An ammeter goes in series
4.5V 1kΩ
This also changes the circuit!
How should an ammeter behave to avoid
changing the circuit?
If you connect your meter like this, while in
current-measuring mode, what will you measure?
4.5V 1kΩ
Don't try it yet - analyze this with what you know.
A) 4.5mA
B) 0mA
C) "1 ." (out of range)
D) Nothing, your meter will burn up.
Ammeters connect in series
• To measure current through a device, you must
place the ammeter to have the same current as it.
• Therefore, ammeters connect in series.
• In order to avoid affecting the circuit, the ammeter
takes close to zero voltage.
• We say that the ideal ammeter looks like a short
circuit.
Apr 14, 2017 ENGR 40M Spring 2017 — C.Z. Lee, J. Plummer, R. Howe 16
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