Electronics

Fundamentals
Week 1 - Lecture 2
Mark Bocko

Topics:
Charge, Coulombs Law
Current
Electric fields
Voltage
Resistors, Ohms Law
Kirchoffs Laws
Series and parallel resistors
Voltage and current dividers

Electric Charge
Coulombs Law (1783)

F =k

q1q2
r

Newtons
k = 8.988 x 109 Nt-m2/Coul2

1 Newton is the force required to accelerate 1 kg by 1 m/sec2

Newtons 2nd Law

a
m = 1 kg

1 Newton

F = ma

1 m/sec2

Charge can be + or
Like charges repel
Opposite charges attract
Pith balls

q1

r
F

q2

For:
q1 = q2 = 1 Coul
r = 1 meter
F = 8.988 x 109 Nt

Thats a huge Force!

Enough to levitate about 5000, 200 ton locomotives!

1 Coulomb is a lot of charge! "

1897 J.J. Thompson discovered that charge comes in
corpuscles electrons
1908 - Millikan measured the charge of a single electron

1 electron = 1.602 x 10-19 Coulomb

1 Coulomb = 6.242 x 1018 electrons
Problem: Coulombs Law
When you are unpacking objects packed in styrofoam
peanuts the peanuts usually stick to everything! How
many electrons would there need to be on a styrofoam
peanut of size 1 cm3 to be picked up by your hand from a
distance of 5 cm? Assume that the styrofoam peanut and
your hand both have the same amount of charge on them,
but with opposite signs. (the density of styrofoam is about
0.035 gram/cm3 and the Earths gravitational acceleration is
g = 9.8 m/sec2.

+q
5 cm

-q

Answers:
Coulomb
Force

mg

Gravity
Force

a)
b)
c)
d)

6.2 x 1018 electrons

6.1 x 1010 electrons
9.8 x -9 electrons
1 electron

Electrical Current
For our purposes its not important that charge is made up of
discrete particles we will treat charge like a fluid that is
infinitesimally divisible.

-q surplus of electrons
+q deficit of electrons
1 Ampere = 1 Coulomb/sec

+ current corresponds to positive charge

moving in the direction indicated by arrow

Positive direction

+ q

Positive current

- q

Negative current

+ q

Negative current

- q

Positive current

Another look at Coulombs Law

q1

q2

F =k

q1q2

r2

Electric Field: E
q2
F = q1 k 2 = q1E 2
r
F = q1E2
q1

q1

E2

q2

E1

q2

where

E2 = k

q2
r2

Electric field lines

are directed
radially from the
charge q2

q1
F = q2 k 2 = q2E 1
r

F = q2E1 = q1E2

Electric Field between two charged plates

E
q

+Q

-Q

Electric field points

from +Q to -Q

F = qE
To move the charge against the electric field
force requires that we do work.
d

W=Fxd
Work
Energy

Force Distance

E
+q

F
d

F
d

mg sin

W = mg sin x d

W = qE x d
+q

E
-q

= positive so work is done

by the electric field on the
charge (energy is added)
W = -qE x d

-q

= negative so work must

be done to move the charge

Electric Potential (Voltage)

E

+Q
+q

F
d

-Q

The charge is moving in the direction

of the E-field force.

+q

The E field does work on the

charge (adds energy).
So we say that the charge moves
from a higher to a lower electric
potential.
The charge is moving against the
direction of the E-field force.

E
-q

F
d

-q

Work must be done to move the

charge against the force (spend
energy).
So we say that the charge moves
from a lower to a higher electric
potential.

V2

V1

V = V2 V1

Work done by the Electric eld to bring a charge

from potenQal V2 to V1

W = qV = q(V2 V1)

Conclusions:
So, if q is positive and V2 > V1 the field does
work (adds energy) to the charge.
V2

Higher
potenQal

Lower
potenQal

V1
If q is positive and V2 < V1 we have to do
work to move the charge.
Lower
potenQal
q

V1
Higher
potenQal

V2
Only the difference in potential matters we can
set the zero of voltage any place we wish.
So rather than writing V we just use V for the
voltage (potential) difference between two points.

Ohms Law
Resistor
R

V = IR
or

I = V/R

For a fixed voltage:

" "higher resistance less current
Analogy: Fluid flowing through a pipe or a straw:

p2

large ow
resistance

p1

Small ow

p2

small ow
resistance

p1

Large ow

A first Simple Circuit

Introduce the battery
" " source of voltage (potential difference)

+
V

V
-
-

A first simple circuit: how much current flows through R?

+
I

V
-

R
-

Voltage across R is V so
by Ohms law

I = V / R

a
Kirchos Voltage Law: The sum of the voltages in going
around a closed path in a circuit is zero.

V
n

=0

Solving the circuit with KVL

+

+
V

V
n

=0

-
a

Start at the point a and proceed clockwise.

Voltage increases by V (go from to +)
Then voltage drops across resistor (+ to -)

V IR = 0
V = IR I = V/R

This is a lot of formality just to retrieve Ohms Law!

A slightly more complicated circuit

(voltage divider)
+
R1

I
+

Find the current I

Find the voltage at b

-
b
+
R2

V
-
a

Series resistors:

R series = R1 + R2

Voltage divider:

R2
Vb = V
R1 + R2

Special Cases:
"R1 = R2 ; Vb = V
"R2 >> R1 ; Vb V

Volume Control Circuit

Max Volume
Signal

I
Output

Min Volume

Logarithmic vs. linear potentiometer

hap://www.bcae1.com/potenQo.htm

Why do we use logarithmic pots

for volume control?
Human perception of loudness is logarithmic.
To double perceived loudness the sound pressure
level must increase by a factor of about 2.8,
which is about (9 decibels).

V
dB (Volts ) = 20log

Vref
Voltage
Increase

1 (ref)

2.8

7.8

22

35
30

Output

Poten.
Posi*on

V =Vref 10

dBV
20

25
20
15
10
5
0
0

10

PotenQometer posiQon

Loudness perception
is subjective!

12

Kirchoffs Current Law

The sum of all currents entering or
leaving a node of a circuit is zero.
i1
i3

Pick a consistent convention:

current flowing into node is positive
current flowing out of node is negative

i2

i1 + i2 i3 = 0
Charge is neither destroyed or
created in a circuit.
What goes in must come out.

Current divider
a i2

i1

R1

R2
b

Find i, i1, i2
KVL Loop 1:

(1)

V i1R1 = 0 i1 = V/R1

KVL Outer Loop: (2) V i2R2 = 0 i2 = V/R2

KCL @ node a:

(3)

i i1 i2 = 0

i V/R1 V/R2 = 0
i = V(1/R1 + 1/R2) = V/R//
1/R// = 1/R1 + 1/R2 1/R// = (R2 + R1)/R1R2
Parallel Combination R1, R2

R1R2
R // =
R1 + R2

Current divider cont.

i
1
V

a i2
i1
R1

R2
b

(1)

V i1R1 = 0 i1 = V/R1

(2)

V i2R2 = 0 i2 = V/R2

(3)

i i1 i2 = 0

Using KCL and KVL in a more complex problem.

(Nodal analysis)

i
2

i2

1
a

12V
i3

i4
i1
10

i5

1
b
2

Find all of the currents (as indicated) in the above

circuit and then find the voltage at points a and b.