Resistors in series
Resistors are in series when they are connected end to end and there are no other wires branching
off from the nodes between components.
In the following image, R1, R2, and R3 are in series:
Resistors in series share the same current. Here is a circuit with resistors in series:
Voltage source V is connected to the series resistor chain. Voltage V is some constant value, but
we don't yet know the current I or how V splits up between the three resistors.
Two things we do know are:
The three resistor voltages have to add up to V.
Current I flows through all three resistors.
With this little bit of knowledge, and Ohm's Law, we can write these expressions:
V = V1+ V2+ V3 and I = I1 = I2 = I3
V1 = I R1 V2=I R2 VR3 = I R3
Combining equations,
V = I R 1 + I R2 + I R3
We can factor out the current and gather the resistors in one place:
V = I (R1+ R2 +R3)
Rearranging, we get
V
=¿R1+R2+R3
I
This looks just like Ohm's Law for a single resistor, except the series resistors appear as a sum.
We conclude:
For resistors in series, the overall resistance is the sum of the individual resistors.
Rseries = R1 + R2 + R3
If we have several resistors in series, the general form of the equivalent series resistance is,
Rseries = R1 + R2 + ……. +RN
Resistors in parallel
Resistors are in parallel when their two terminals connect to the same nodes.
In the following image, R1, R2, and R3 are in parallel. The two distributed nodes are represented
by the two horizontal lines.
Resistors in parallel share the same voltage on their terminals.
Here is a circuit with resistors in series:
Voltage source V is driving current I towards R1, R2, and R3. We know the value of voltage V is
some given constant, but we don't yet know the current I or how V splits up into the three
resistor voltage.
Two things we do know are:
The three resistor currents have to add up to i.
Voltage V appears across all three resistors.
With just this little bit of knowledge, and Ohm's Law, we can write these expressions:
i = iR1 + iR2 + iR3
V = iR1R1 V = iR2R2 V = iR3R3
This is enough to get going. Rearrange the three Ohm's Law expressions to solve for current in
terms of voltage and resistance:
iR1= V\R1 iR2 = V\R2 iR3 = V\R3
Substitute these expressions into the sum of currents:
i= V\R1 + V\R2 + V\R3
Factor out the common term V,
i= V[1\R1 + 1\R2 + 1\R3]
Now remember that we already know i, so we can solve for V
V\R= V[1\R1 + 1\R2 + 1\R3]
This expression looks just like Ohm's Law, I = V\R, but with the parallel resistors appearing in a
double-reciprocal in place of a single resistor.
We conclude:
For resistors in parallel, the overall resistance is the reciprocal of the sum of reciprocals of the
individual resistors.
Equivalent parallel resistor
1\R= 1\R1 + 1\R2 + 1\R3
If you have multiple resistors in parallel, the general form of the equivalent parallel resistance is,
1\R= 1\R1 + 1\R2 + ……..+1\RN
Current distributes between resistors in parallel
Simple problems
1. Two resistances of 15Ω and 10Ω are connected in series, across 50V supply. Find (i)
Effective resistance and (ii) Total current in the circuit
2. Three resistances of 5Ω, 10Ω and 15Ω are connected in parallel between the points between
A and B. Find the effective resistance between A and B. If a voltage of 100V is applied
between these two points find the total current in the circuit
3. Two resistances 20Ω and 40Ω are connected in parallel, across a 20V supply. Find
i. Effective resistance of the circuit
ii. Total current in the circuit
iii. Current through each branch
4. Three resistances 6Ω, 4Ω and 10Ω are connected in series, across a 100V supply. Find
i. Effective resistance of the circuit
ii. Current through each resistance
iii. Voltage drop across each resistance
5. A resistance of 5Ω is connected in series with a parallel combination of 2Ω and 10Ω. The
total combination is connected across 200V supply. Find
i. The effective resistance
ii. Total current in the circuit
Electrical Work done or electrical energy expended: When certain charge is transferred from one
point to another point, in an electrical circuit, against a potential difference, then electrical
energy is said to be expended. Unit of electrical energy is joule or watt second. The unit watt
second (Ws) is very small, therefore a bigger unit kilo watt hour or kWh is used.
1 kWh = 1 kW x 1 hour
=1000W x 3600 seconds
=3.6 x 106 Ws
Electrical Power
The rate at which electrical energy is expended or electrical work is done is called electrical
power. The unit of power is watt (W) or kilo watt (kW).
Work done∈watt second
Electrical power=
time∈seconds
2
V It 2 V
P= =V I =I R=
t R
Meters used for measurement of power and energy
Wattmeter is used to measure electrical power in a circuit. Wattmeter consists of two coils
current coil which is connected in series with the load and potential coil which is connected in
parallel with the load.
Energymeter is used to measure electrical energy supplied to a circuit. Figure shows the method
of connecting energymeter to the load.
Simple Problems
1. An electric stove takes a scurrent of 5A when connected to a 230V supply. Find the power
taken by the stove.
2. A coil of 100Ω resistance takes a current of 5A. Find the power taken by the coil and the
voltage applied to the coil.
3. Two bulbs of 100Ω each are connected in series, across a 230V supply. Find the power taken
and the current in the circuit.
4. A 100W lamp is used for 6 hours a day. Find:
i. Energy consumed per month
ii. Cost of energy, if each unit costs Rs 2.00
5. A house consists of two bulbs of 100W each and two bulbs of 60W each. If they are used for
4 hours a day, find monthly consumption charges @Rs 1.20 per unit
6. A lamp has a resistance of 400Ω. It is connected to a 230V supply. Determine the energy
consumed, when used for 3 hours daily, during a month of February.
