Pîrî Reis University

Spring 2019

Physics 121Y

Lecture 5
 Programme
Week Chapters Subjects

1-2 Ch.21 Electric Charge & Field E-charge, insulators, conductors, Coulomb’s law, E-field

3 Ch.23 Electric Potential E-potential energy, potential difference, charge distribution

4 C.24 Capacitance, Dielectrics Capacitors, capacitance, E-energy storage, dielectrics

5 C.25 Electric Currents & Res. Batteries, E-current, Ohm’s law, power, current density
EMF, resistors in series/parallel, Kirchhoff’s rules, RC
6 Ch.26 DC Circuits
circ’s
7 Review of Chs. 21-26 .

8 Midterm .

9 Ch.27 Magnetism Magnets, magnetic fields

10 Force on an E-current in a M-field, M-field due to a wire

Ch.28 Sources of
Magnetic Field
11 Ampère’s law, Biot-Savart law

12 C.29 EM Ind. & Faraday’s law Induced EMF, Faraday’s law, moving conductors

C.30 Inductance & AC

13 Inductance, magnetic energy, EM oscillations, AC circuits
Circuits
14 Review of Chs. 27-30 .
 Chapter 25
Electric Currents and Resistance
I. The Electric Battery
II. Electric Current
III. Ohm’s Law: Resistance and Resistors
IV. Resistivity
V. Electric Power
VI. Power in Household Circuits
VII. Alternating Current
VIII. * Microscopic View of Electric Current
IX. * Superconductivity
X. * Electrical Conduction in the Nervous System

In the previous four Chapters we have been studying electrostatics: electric

charges at rest. In this Chapter we begin our study of charges in motion,
and we call a flow of charge an electric current.
I. The Electric Battery
In 1800, Alessandro Volta discovered that electric
potential could be produced if dissimilar metals (one
can be carbon), called electrodes, are immersed in a
conductive solution (can be a dilute acidic solution),
called electrolyte. Parts of electrodes outside the
solution, called terminals, are connected to a circuit
to produce potential difference.
Shown in the figure is a simple electric cell. An
electric cell transforms chemical potential energy into
electrical energy. Chemical reactions within the cell
create a potential difference between the terminals
by slowly dissolving them.

In a zinc-carbon cell, each zinc atom leaves two electrons on the electrode and
positively charged zinc atoms dissolve into the acidic electrolyte. Hence the zinc
electrode becomes negatively charged. The positively charged electrolyte draws
electrons from the carbon electrode, which becomes positively charged. Because
there is an opposite charge on the two electrodes, there is a potential difference
between the two terminals. This potential difference can be maintained even if a
current is kept flowing, until one of the terminals is completely dissolved.
I. The Electric Battery
Several cells connected together make a battery, although now we refer to a single
cell as a battery as well. The left figure shows a conventional single-cell dry battery.

If cells (or batteries) are connected in series, as shown in the right figure, the
potential differences add up. In example, two 1.5 V flashlight batteries connected in
series, produce a 3.0 V potential difference.
II. Electric Current
If there is a potential difference between two points of a conductor (for example a
wire) then there must be an electric field inside the conductor. This electric field can
move free electrons of the conductor. Any flow of charge such as this is called an
electric current.
More precisely, electric current is the rate of flow of charge through a conductor: if a
net amount of charge ΔQ flows through a conductor during a time period Δt, the
average current is I = ΔQ/Δt, while the instantaneous current is defined by the
derivative limit:
d
d
Electric current is measured in coulombs per second (C/s). SI unit of electric current
has a special name: the ampere (A). So, 1 A = 1 C/s.

Ex. (current is flow of charge): A steady current of 2.5 A exists in a wire for 4.0 min.
(a) How much net charge passed by a given point in the circuit during that 4.0 min?
(b) How many electrons would this be?
(a) ΔQ = I Δt = (2.5 C/s) (4.0 min) (60 s/min) = 600 C
(b) This charge consists of ΔQ/e = (600 C) / (1.6 × 10–19 C) = 3.8 × 1021 electrons.
II. Electric Current

A complete circuit is one where current can flow all the way around. Note that the
schematic drawing (figure b) doesn’t look much like the physical circuit (figure a)! If
there is a break in the circuit (for example a cut wire), then it is an open circuit.
No current flows through an open circuit. For current to flow, there must be a path
from one battery terminal, through the circuit, and back to the other battery terminal
(that said a complete circuit).

Exercise: Only one of circuits shown in

the figure will work. Which one?
II. Electric Current
Conventional current is defined as flowing from + to – . Electrons inside a wire (a
solid conductor) actually flow in the opposite direction.

But remember that in general, not all currents are due to electrons. Positively
charged ions can flow in a liquid or gaseous conductor.
III. Ohm’s Law: Resistance and Resistors
Georg Simon Ohm found experimentally that the current in a wire is proportional to
the potential difference between its ends (I ~ V ). The constant of proportionality,
ratio of voltage to current, is called the resistance of the conductor (R):

This is known as Ohm’s law, and is often written as:

V=IR

SI unit of resistance is the ohm (Ω): 1 Ω = 1 V/A.

In many conductors, the resistance is independent of the voltage as in Ohm’s law

(left figure). Materials that do not follow Ohm’s law are called nonohmic (right figure).
III. Ohm’s Law: Resistance and Resistors
In many circuits, resistors are used to control the amount of current. Resistors have
resistances ranging from less than an ohm to millions of ohms. In a circuit diagram,
resistances are indicated by the symbol. Wires have negligible resistance and
are shown as straight lines in a circuit diagram.
Standard resistors are manufactured for use in electric circuits; they are color-coded
to indicate their value and precision.
III. Ohm’s Law: Resistance and Resistors
Some helpful clarifications:
• Batteries maintain a (nearly) constant potential difference; the current varies.
• Resistance is a property of a material or device.
• Current is not a vector but it does have a direction.
• Current and charge do not get used up. Whatever charge goes in one end of a
circuit comes out the other end.

Ex. (current and potential): Current I enters a resistor

R as shown in fig. (a) Is the potential higher at point A
or B? (b) Is the current greater at point A or B?
(a) Conventionally, current is the flow of positive charge, which flows from higher to
lower potential (just like the flow of water in gravitational potential difference). So
potential at point A is higher than that at point B.
(b) Due to the conservation of charge, during a time interval Δt, the same amount of
charge ΔQ enters and leaves the resistor. Current is the same at points A and B.
Ex. (flashlight): A small flashlight bulb draws 300 mA current from its 1.5 V battery.
(a) What is the resistance of the bulb? (b) What happens when the battery weakens?
(a) Ohm’s law: R = V/I = (1.5 V) / (0.300 A) = 5.0 Ω (b) Both V and I
IV. Resistivity
It is found experimentally that the resistance of a wire is directly proportional to its
length L and inversely proportional to its cross-sectional area A. That is

where the constant of proportionality, ρ, is called the resistivity. It is a characteristic

of the material used and has units ofΩ·m . The reciprocal of resistivity is called
conductivity: σ = 1/ρ. It has units of (Ω·m)–1.
For almost all metals, the resistivity increases
with temperature as
.
Here, ρ0 and ρT are resistivities at temperatures
T0 and T, and α is the temperature coefficient of
the material measured in units of (C°)
–1
.
Semiconductors are more complex materials
than metals, and they may have negative
temperature coefficients: their resistivities may
decrease with temperature.
IV. Resistivity
Ex. (speaker wires): Suppose you want to connect your stereo to remote speakers.
(a) If each wire must be 20 m long, what minimum diameter copper wire should you
use to keep the resistance less than 0.10 Ω per wire ( ρcopper = 1.68 × 10–8 Ω·m)? (b)
If the current to each speaker is 4.0 A, what is the voltage across each wire?
(a) From R = ρL/A = ρL/[πd 2/4] we find the diameter as d = [4ρL/(πR)]1/2.

d = {4 (1.68 × 10–8 Ω·m) (20 m) / [π (0.10 Ω)]}1/2 = 0.0021 m = 2.1 mm

(b) From Ohm’s law, we have V = IR = (4.0 A) (0.10 Ω) = 0.40 V
Note for hi-fi enthusiasts: As the resistance of wire increases, voltage drop across
the wire increases, less voltage reaches to the speaker, and sound level drops.
Ex. (stretching changes resistance): Suppose a wire of original resistance R is
stretched uniformly until it has twice its original length. What would happen to its
resistance?

If the length L is doubled, then the cross-sectional area A is halved, because the
volume of the wire (V = AL) remains the same. So, new resistance is
R′ = ρL′/A′ = ρ (2L) / (A/2) = 4 (ρL/A) = 4R.
So, resistance of the wire increases by a factor of four.
V. Electric Power
Power is the energy transformed by a device per unit time.
To find the power transformed by an electric device, suppose an infinitesimal charge
dq moves through a potential difference V during a time interval dt. Recall from
Lecture 3 that the energy transformed in such a process is dU = V dq. Power is the
rate of energy transformation: P = dU/dt = V dq/dt. Here, dq/dt = I is the current
through the device. Therefore, power transformed by an electric device is
P=IV
Recall from Physics I that power has SI units of watt (W): 1 W = 1 J/s.
What you pay for on your electric bill is not power, but energy – the power
consumption multiplied by the time. We have been measuring energy in joules, but
the electric companies measure it in kilowatt-hours (kWh):
1
The equation P = I V is valid for any electric device. For ohmic devices, we can use
Ohm’s law to write power as:
V. Electric Power
Ex. (headlights): Calculate the resistance of a 40 W car headlight designed for 12 V.
We use P = V 2/R for an ohmic device to calculate R = V 2/P = (12 V)2/(40 W) = 3.6 Ω.

Example (electric heater): An electric heater draws a steady 15.0 A on a 120 V line.
How much power does it require and how much does it cost per month (30 days) if it
operates 3.0 h per day and the electric company charges 9.2 cents per kWh?
Power is P = I V = (15.0 A) (120 V) = 1800 W = 1.80 kW.
Electric energy consumed per month is (1.80 kW) (30 days) (3.0 h/day) = 162 kWh.
Cost per month is (162 kWh) (0.092 $/kWh) = 15 $.
Note: Household current is actually AC (not DC). But our solution is still valid
assuming the given values are proper rms averages (see Section VII).

Example (lightning bolt): A typical lightning event can transfer 109 J of energy across
a potential difference of about 108 V during a time interval of about 0.1 s. Estimate
(a) the total amount of charge transferred between cloud and ground, (b) the current
in the lightning bolt, and (c) the average power delivered over the 0.1 s.
(a) ΔQ = ΔU/ΔV = (109 J)/(108 V) = 10 C
(b) I = ΔQ/Δt = (10 C)/(0.1 s) = 100 A
(c) P = ΔU/Δt = (109 J)/(0.1 s) = 1010 W = 10 GW
VI. Power in Household Circuits
The wires used in homes to carry electricity have very low
resistance. However, if the current is high enough, the
power will increase and the wires can become hot enough
to start a fire.
To avoid this, we use fuses or circuit breakers, which
disconnect the household circuit when the current goes
above a predetermined value.
Fuses are single-use items – if they blow, the fuse is
destroyed and must be replaced (see figure a).
Circuit breakers, which are now much more common in homes, are switches that will
open if the current is too high; they can then be reset (see figures b and c).
VII. Alternating Current
Current from a battery flows steadily in one direction
(called direct current, DC) as shown in figure a.
Current from a power plant varies sinusoidally in time
(alternating current, AC) as shown in figure b.

Voltage produced by an AC electric generator varies

sinusoidally with time:

It oscillates between +V0 and –V0, and V0 is referred as

the peak voltage. Household peak voltage is 170 V in
USA and 310 V in Turkey.
The frequency, f = ω/(2π), is the number of complete oscillations per second
(measured in Hz = s–1). Household current is 60 Hz in USA and 50 Hz in Turkey.
If an alternating voltage V exists across a resistance R, then the AC current through
the resistance can be obtained from Ohm’s law:

see figure b. Here I0 = V0/R is the peak current.

VII. Alternating Current
Multiplying the current and the voltage gives the power:

Although voltage and current across the resistance alternate between positive and
negative peak values, power transformed in a resistance is always positive (see fig.).

The quantity sin2ωt varies between 0 and 1; and its average value is ½ (prove this as
an exercise). Thus the average power transformed is

or

as shown with the dashed line in the figure.

VII. Alternating Current
Both I and V have average values of zero. To find proper averages, we square them,
take the average, then take the square root. The resulting averages are often called
the root-mean-square (rms) values (or effective values). Since sin2ωt = ½ , we obtain

They are useful because they can be substituted into power formulas, to get P :

It is usually the rms value of current and voltage that is measured or specified. For
example, Vrms = 0.707 V0 is specified as 120 V in USA and 220 V in Turkey.
VIII. * Microscopic View of Electric Current: Current
Density
Current density (j) is a vector defined as the electric current per unit cross-sectional
area. Direction of current density is the same as direction of electric field E inside the
wire. If there is a uniform current I through the cross-sectional area A of a wire, then
the magnitude of current density is
j = I/A .

VIII. * Microscopic View of Electric Current: Drift Velocity

Electrons in a conductor have large, random speeds
just due to their temperature. When a potential
difference is applied, the electrons also acquire an
average drift velocity (vd).
It is generally considerably smaller than the thermal velocity; and it is related to the
current in the wire, and also to the number of electrons per unit volume:

Here, n is the electron number density and V = A vd Δt is the volume covered by

moving charges of amount ΔQ during a time interval Δt. From this relation, we find

or
VIII. * Microscopic View of Electric Current
Using I = jA, R = ρl/A, and V = El in Ohm’s law V = IR, we write:

El = (jA)/(ρl/A) = jρl → j = E/ρ = σE .

So, microscopic statement of Ohm’s law in vector form reads:

Example (electron speeds and electric field in a wire): A copper wire of 8.0 mm2
cross-sectional area carries a 5.0 A current. Determine (a) the current density in the
wire, (b) electric field inside the wire, and (c) the drift velocity of the electrons.
(Copper has mass density ρm = 8.9 × 103 kg/m3, resistivity ρ = 1.68 × 10–8 Ω·m, and
molar mass M = 63.5 g/mol.)
(a) j = I/A = (5.0 A)/(8.0 × 10–6 m2) = 6.2 × 105 A/m2
(b) E = ρ j = (1.68 × 10–8 Ω·m)/(6.2 × 105 A/m2) = 1.0 × 10–2 V/m
(c) We need number density of free electrons (n). There is one free electron per Cu
atom. There are Avagadro’s number (NA) of Cu atoms in a mole of copper.
Volume of a mole of Cu is V = M/ρm. Thus, n = NA/(M/ρm) = … = 8.4 × 1028 m–3.
v = j/(ne) = (6.2 × 105 A/m2)/[(8.4 × 1028 m–3)/(1.6 × 10–19 C)] = 4.6 × 10–5 m/s
IX. * Superconductivity
In general, resistivity decreases as temperature
decreases. Some materials, however, have resistivity that
falls abruptly to zero at a very low temperature, called the
critical temperature, TC (see figure).

Experiments have shown that currents, once started, can flow through these
materials for years without decreasing even without a potential difference.
Critical temperatures are low; for many years no material was found to be
superconducting above 23 K.
More recently, novel materials have been found to be superconducting below 90 K,
and work on higher temperature superconductors is continuing.
X. * Electrical Conduction in the Nervous System
The nervous system depends on the flow of electric charge.
The basic elements of the nervous system are cells called
neurons. Neurons have a main cell body, small attachments
called dendrites, and a long tail called the axon (see figure a).
Signals are received by the dendrites, propagated along the
axon, and transmitted through a connection called a synapse.
This process depends on there being a dipole layer of charge
on the cell membrane, and different concentrations of ions
inside and outside the cell (see figure b). This applies to most
cells in the body. Neurons can respond to a stimulus and
conduct an electrical signal. This signal is in the form of an
action potential (see figure c), and can be transmitted through
the axon (see figure d).
(a)

(b) (c) (d)

Reference

Physics
for
Scientists & Engineers
with Modern Physics
4th edition
Giancoli