Name: Amaquin, Lera Mae C.

BSECE 1-7
Date: May 6, 2023
Group Name: GROUP 4
Subject: Physics Lab 2

Laboratory Activity: Ohm’s Law

OBJECTIVES

The movement of charge in a conductor, referred to as current, is possible because

electrons can move when a voltage is applied. A good conducting material transfers
electrons easily and is said to have low resistance, while a poor conductor transfers
electrons less readily and has high resistance. In many materials, it is found that
current is directly proportional to voltage. Georg Ohm discovered this and formalized
this relationship as Ohm's Law. In this experiment you measure the voltage, current,
and resistance of circuits, and test Ohm’s law by predicting one of these quantities
based on the other two. The objectives of this experiment are as follows:
1. To measure current and voltage in a circuit
2. To calculate resistance using different methods given current and voltage
measurements
3. To test Ohm’s law

THEORY

When there is a potential difference V between two points in a circuit, a current

flows.
Experimentally it is found that for many materials if the temperature remains
constant, the voltage V is proportional to the current I, as shown in equation 2.1.
Ohm’s Law V = IR (2.1)
The proportionality constant R is the resistance between the two points considered.

ACCEPTED VALUES
The accepted value for the resistance R is measured directly from the resistor, which
you do at the end of the procedure for this experiment.

APPARATUS

• resistors (220 Ω, 1 kΩ, 10 kΩ)

• jumper wires
• DC power supply (5 volts, you may use a power-bank with used USB cord exposing
the + and – terminals).
• Alligator clips (at least 2pcs)
• multimeters
• fuse
• breadboard
Simple electric circuits consist of conducting wires, resistors, power supplies, and
fuses. A circuit diagram is a model of a circuit that corresponds to the arrangement of
the components, denoted by the following symbols:

DC power supplies provide a potential difference that

causes current to flow through a closed circuit at a
constant rate.
Conducting wires provide a medium through which charge can move.
Resistors provide resistance to charge moving.

Fuses are safety devices that break a circuit when a

current threshold is exceeded
A simple example of a circuit diagram is shown in figure 2.1. A fuse is always
included in the circuits to protect the equipment. When too high a current
flows through a fuse it interrupts the current.

Figure 2.1 A simple circuit diagram displaying four essential components

In this experiment you measure the current and voltage at specific points on the
circuit. To do this you'll use an instrument called a multimeter. You will connect two
multimeters to the circuit at the same time, with one set up to measure current and the
other set up to measure voltage.
Multimeters can be set for several functions.
• to measure direct (DC) or alternating (AC) current
• to measure voltage (V), current (A) or resistance (Ω)
They can also be set for the maximum value of the quantity to be measured. For an
illustration see figure 2.2.
To use the multimeter to measure current (ammeter), set the meter to DC and 200
mA. Then connect the multimeter in series with the circuit, meaning that you plug
the source of the current in in the mA socket and the destination of the current into
the COM socket of the multimeter. For example, to measure the current before a
resistor, plug the wire from the power supply into the mA socket and plug a wire
connected to the resistor into the COM socket.
To use the multimeter to measure voltage (voltmeter), set the meter to DC and 5 V.
Then connect the multimeter in parallel with the circuit, meaning that you plug the
source of the current into the V socket and the destination of the current into the
COM socket of the multimeter. For example, to measure the voltage across a resistor,
plug a wire from the end of the resistor nearest the power supply into the V socket
and plug a wire connected to the other end of the resistor into the COM socket.
 Figure 2.2 Locating the DC V and mA settings on the MASTECH MS8250D
auto ranging.

In a circuit diagram, the voltmeter and ammeter are denoted by the following
symbols:
Ammeters measure current and are setup in series

Voltmeters measure voltage and are setup in parallel

Ammeters are always connected in series so that the current to be measured flows
through the instrument. Voltmeters are connected in parallel with the portion of the
circuit across which the potential difference is measured. In figure 2.3, the circuit
diagram for this experiment is shown with the ammeter in series with the resistor and
the voltmeter in parallel with the resistor.

Figure 2.3 A circuit diagram with an ammeter setup in series and a voltmeter
setup in parallel
 PROCEDURE

1. Connect the circuit shown in figure 2.3. To install the ammeter, plug the wire
from the power supply into the mA socket and plug a wire connected to the
resistor into the COM socket. To install the voltmeter, plug a wire from the end
of the resistor nearest the power supply into the V socket and plug a wire
connected to the other end of the resistor into the COM socket. Verify your
circuit design with the lab instructor.
2. Set the voltmeter to DC and the 5 V scale as illustrated in figure 2.2.
3. Set the ammeter to DC and the mA scale. On this scale, you multiply the reading
by 10−3 amperes. For example a reading of 100.0 means 100.0 × 10 −3 = 0.1000
amps or 100 milliamps.
4. Record the resistance, voltage and the corresponding current in the data table.
5. Turn off the power supply and disconnect the circuit.
6. Connect one end of the resistor to the volt ohms terminal of the multimeter, and
the other end to COM. Switch the meter to the ohms scale and record the
resistance value indicated on the meter as the directly measured resistance on
your data table. If the meter shows “OL” overload, switch to the next highest
resistance scale.
7. Repeat the steps (1 to 6) using different value of resistors.

DATA

Power Supply (9V and 250mA) (AC to DC Charger)

Fuse (1A)
Table 1:

Resistance
Voltage Current
Set-up Resistor (Direct
(V) (A)
measurement), Ω
220 Ω 5% 213 7.7 0.25
220 Ω 5% 212 7.81 0.25
Set-up 1 220 Ω 5% 210 8.17 0.25
220 Ω 5% 211 8.20 0.25
220 Ω 5% 211 8.22 0.25
1 kΩ 5% 952 9.39 0.25
1 kΩ 5% 951 9.38 0.25
Set-up 2 1 kΩ 5% 952 9.37 0.25
1 kΩ 5% 950 9.36 0.25
1 kΩ 5% 949 9.35 0.25
10 kΩ 5% 9630 9.65 0.25
10 kΩ 5% 9510 9.6 0.25
Set-up 3 10 kΩ 5% 9630 9.63 0.25
10 kΩ 5% 9560 9.71 0.25
10 kΩ 5% 9530 9.73 0.25

Figure 1: Schematic Design

CALCULATION AND ANALYSIS

To compute the Standard Deviation :

sqrt[Σ(xi - x)^2 / (n-1)]

Where:
xi is each individual measurement value
x is the mean of all the measurements n is the total number of measurements

To compute the Percent Error:

[(|Measured Value - Accepted Value|) / Accepted Value] x 100%
where:
Measured Value= Is the data/measurement
Accepted Value = Average

To compute Average:
Summation of Measured Value/Number of Measured Values

To compute the Uncertainty:

u = k * sqrt[(s^2/n) + b^2]
where:
u is the uncertainty
k is the coverage factor, which depends on the level of confidence desired (for
example, k=2 corresponds to a 95% confidence interval)
s is the standard deviation n is the number of measurements
b is the systematic error, if known

Table 2: Resistance in the circuit (R = V/I)

Average Standard Deviation Uncertainty Error%
30.8 -3.99%
31.24 -2.62%
Set up 1 32.68 32.08 2.79 0.82 1.87%
32.8 2.24%
32.88 2.49%
37.56 0.21%
37.52 0.106%
Setup 2 37.48 37.48 0.062 0.08 0%
37.44 0.107%
37.4 -0.214%
38.4 -0.673%
38.6 -0.156%
Setup 3 38.52 38.66 0.218 0.26 -0.363%
38.84 0.466%
38.92 0.673%

Voltage and Current Relationship

Figure 2.1: 220 Ohms Figure 2.2: 1 kiloOhms Figure 2.3: 10kiloohms
CONCLUSION

Hence, in doing this experiment, the data and calculations supported the physical
principle or law being tested. Apart from this, in measuring the data, there are some
experimental errors that have been manipulated, particularly with the important sources
that affect this, such that a common type of error is a blunder due to carelessness in
making a measurement that arises from defective or improperly calibrated instruments.
The accuracy of our measurements is still limited due to so-called statistical uncertainties
and the uncertainty introduced in a measurement due to random fluctuations, vibrations,
etc. There are also so-called instrumental uncertainties, which are due to the limited
accuracy of the measuring instruments we use. Unfortunately, there is no single solution
that can have that impact. Instead, when performing our laboratory operations, we need to
concentrate on a combination of experimental design improvement and procedural
development in order to improve our results.