Electrical Current and Circuits How Electricity Gets To Where It Is Going

What Is A Current?  Current: the rate at which charge passes a given point Made by electrons moving in a wire

AC/DC...what does that mean?  AC/DC: explains how current gets moved DC: Direct Current (one-direction) AC: Alternating Current (bi-directional)

Voltage  Voltage: difference in energy per unit charge as the charge moves between two points in the path of a circuit Voltage can vary

Resistance  Resistance: opposition to the flow of charge Expressed in ohms Ώ As resistance increases…current decreases!!!!

Ohm’s Law  Amperes (A) = volts (V) ohms (Ώ) I = Current V = Voltage R = Resistance I = V R

Electric Power TThe rate at which electrical energy is used to do work Expressed in Watts (W) Power = voltage x current P = V x I

Circuits  Complete, closed path through which electric charges flow Closed Open

Two Types of Circuits  1. Series: all parts are connected in one loop

Types Of Circuits  2. Parallel: different loads are located on separate branches