FUNDAMENTALS OF ELECTRIC CIRCUITS

Electric circuit theory and electromagnetic theory are the two fundamental theories upon which all
branches of electrical engineering are built. Many branches of electrical engineering, such as power,
electric machines, control, electronics, communications, and instrumentation, are based on electric circuit
theory. Therefore, the basic electric circuit theory course is the most important course for an electrical
engineering student, and always an excellent starting point for a beginning student in electrical engineering
education. Circuit theory is also valuable to students specializing in other branches of the physical sciences
because circuits are a good model for the study of energy systems in general, and because of the applied
mathematics, physics, and topology involved.

In electrical engineering, we are often interested in communicating or transferring energy from one point
to another. To do this requires an interconnection of electrical devices. Such interconnection is referred to
as an electric circuit, and each component of the circuit is known as an element.

An electric circuit is an interconnection of electrical elements.

A simple electric circuit is shown in Fig. 1.1. It consists of three basic elements: a battery, a lamp, and
connecting wires. Such a simple circuit can exist by itself; it has several applications, such as a flashlight,
a search light, and so forth. A complex circuit is displayed in Fig. 1.2, representing the schematic diagram
for a radio receiver. Although it seems complicated, this circuit can be analyzed using the techniques we
cover in this course.

Our goal in this course is to learn various analytical techniques and computer software applications for
describing the behavior of a circuit like this.

Figure 1.1. A simple electric circuit. Figure 1.2. A complex electric circuit.

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 Electric circuits are used in numerous electrical systems to accomplish different tasks. Our objective in
this course is not the study of various uses and applications of circuits. Rather, our major concern is the
analysis of the circuits. By the analysis of a circuit, we mean a study of the behavior of the circuit: How
does it respond to a given input? How do the interconnected elements and devices in the circuit interact?

We commence our study by defining some basic concepts. These concepts include charge, current,
voltage, circuit elements, power, and energy. Before defining these concepts, we must first establish a
system of units that we will use throughout the text.

1.1.SYSTEM OF UNITS

1.2. CHARGE AND CURRENT

The concept of electric charge is the underlying principle for explaining all electrical phenomena. Also,
the most basic quantity in an electric circuit is the electric charge. We all experience the effect of electric

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 charge when we try to remove our wool sweater and have it stick to our body or walk across a carpet and
receive a shock.

Charge is an electrical property of the atomic particles of which matter consists, measured in
coulombs (C).

We know from elementary physics that all matter is made of fundamental building blocks known as atoms
and that each atom consists of electrons, protons, and neutrons. We also know that the charge e on an
electron is negative and equal in magnitude to 1.602 x 10-19 C, while a proton carries a positive charge of
the same magnitude as the electron. The presence of equal numbers of protons and electrons leaves an
atom neutrally charged. The following points should be noted about electric charge:

• The coulomb is a large unit for charges. In 1 C of charge, there are 1/(1.602 x 10-19) = 6.24 x 1018
electrons. Thus, realistic or laboratory values of charges are on the order of pC, nC, or µC.
• According to experimental observations, the only charges that occur in nature are integral
multiples of the electronic charge e = - 1.602 x 10-19 C.
• The law of conservation of charge states that charge can neither be created nor destroyed, only
transferred. Thus, the algebraic sum of the electric charges in a system does not change.

We now consider the flow of electric charges. A unique feature of electric charge or electricity is the fact
that it is mobile; that is, it can be transferred from one place to another, where it can be converted to
another form of energy. When a conducting wire (consisting of several atoms) is connected to a battery (a
source of electromotive force), the charges are compelled to move; positive charges move in one direction
while negative charges move in the opposite direction. This motion of charges creates electric current. It
is conventional to take the current flow as the movement of positive charges. That is, opposite to the flow
of negative charges, as Fig. 1.3 illustrates.

Although we now know that current in metallic

conductors is due to negatively charged
electrons, we will follow the universally accepted
convention that current is the net flow of positive

Figure 1.3. Electric current due to flow of charge. charges. Thus,

This convention was introduced by Benjamin Electric current is the timer rate of change of

Franklin (1706–1790), the American scientist charge, measured in amperes (A).

and inventor.

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 Mathematically, the relationship between current i, charge q, and time t is

(1.1)

where current is measured in amperes (A), and

1 ampere = 1 coulomb/second

The charge transferred between time to and t is obtained by integrating both sides of Eq. (1.1). We obtain

(1.2)

The way we define current as i in Eq. (1.1) suggests that current need not be a constant-valued function.
As many of the examples and problems in this chapter and subsequent chapters suggest, there can be
several types of current; that is, charge can vary with time in several ways. If the current does not change
with time, but remains constant, we call it a direct current (dc).

A direct current (dc) is a current that remains constant with time.

By convention the symbol I is used to represent such a constant current. A time-varying current is
represented by the symbol i. A common form of time-varying current is the sinusoidal current or
alternating current (ac).

An alternating current (ac) is a current that varies sinusoidally with time.

Such current is used in your household to run the air conditioner, refrigerator, washing machine, and other
electric appliances. Figure 1.4 shows direct current and alternating current; these are the two most common
types of current. Once we define current as the movement of charge, we expect current to have an
associated direction of flow. As mentioned earlier, the direction of current flow is conventionally taken as
the direction of positive charge movement. Based on this convention, a current of 5A may be represented
positively or negatively as shown in Fig. 1.5. In other words, a negative current of -5A flowing in one
direction as shown in Fig. 1.5(b) is the same as a current of +5A flowing in the opposite direction.

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 1.3. VOLTAGE

As explained briefly in the previous section, to move the electron in a conductor in a particular direction
requires some work or energy transfer. This work is performed by an external electromotive force (emf),
typically represented by the battery in Fig. 1.3. This emf is also known as voltage or potential difference.
The voltage vab between two points a and b in an electric circuit is the energy (or work) needed to move a
unit charge from a to b; mathematically,

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 (1.3)

where w is energy in joules (J) and q is charge in coulombs (C). The voltage or simply v is measured in
volts (V), named in honor of the Italian physicist Alessandro Antonio Volta (1745–1827), who invented
the first voltaic battery. From Eq. (1.3), it is evident that
1 volt = 1 joule/coulomb = 1 newton-meter/coulomb
Thus,

Voltage (or potential difference) is the energy required to move a unit charge through an element,
measured in volts (V).

Figure 1.6. Polarity of voltage vab. Figure 1.7. Two equivalent representations of the same voltage vab: (a)
point a is 9 V above point b; (b) point b is -9 V above point a.

Figure 1.6 shows the voltage across an element (represented by a rectangular block) connected to points
a and b. The plus (+) and minus (-) signs are used to define reference direction or voltage polarity. The
vab can be interpreted in two ways: (1) Point a is at a potential of vab volts higher than point b, or (2) the
potential at point a with respect to point b is vab. It follows logically that in general

vab = - vba

For example, in Fig. 1.7, we have two representations of the same voltage. In Fig. 1.7(a), point a is +9 V
above point b; in Fig. 1.7(b), point b is -9 V above point a. We may say that in Fig. 1.7(a), there is a 9-V
voltage drop from a to b or equivalently a 9-V voltage rise from b to a. In other words, a voltage drop
from a to b is equivalent to a voltage rise from b to a. Current and voltage are the two basic variables in
electric circuits. The common term signal is used for an electric quantity such as a current or a voltage (or
even electromagnetic wave) when it is used for conveying information. Engineers prefer to call such
variables signals rather than mathematical functions of time because of their importance in
communications and other disciplines. Like electric current, a constant voltage is called a dc voltage and
is represented by V, whereas a sinusoidally time-varying voltage is called an ac voltage and is represented
by v. A dc voltage is commonly produced by a battery; ac voltage is produced by an electric generator.
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 1.4. POWER AND ENERGY

Although current and voltage are the two basic variables in an electric circuit, they are not sufficient by
themselves. For practical purposes, we need to know how much power an electric device can handle. We
all know from experience that a 100-watt bulb gives more light than a 60-watt bulb. We also know that
when we pay our bills to the electric utility companies, we are paying for the electric energy consumed
over a certain period of time. Thus, power and energy calculations are important in circuit analysis. To
relate power and energy to voltage and current, we recall from physics that:

Power is the time rate of expending or absorbing energy, measured in watts (W).

We write this relationship as

(1.5)

where p is power in watts (W), w is energy in joules (J), and t is time in seconds (s). From Eqs. (1.1),
(1.3), and (1.5), it follows that

(1.6)

(1.7)

The power p in Eq. (1.7) is a time-varying quantity and is called the instantaneous power. Thus, the power
absorbed or supplied by an element is the product of the voltage across the element and the current through
it. If the power has a + sign, power is being delivered to or absorbed by the element. If, on the other hand,
the power has a - sign, power is being supplied by the element. But how do we know when the power has
a negative or a positive sign? Current direction and voltage polarity play a major role in determining the
sign of power. It is therefore important that we pay attention to the relationship between current i and
voltage v in Fig. 1.8(a). The voltage polarity and current direction must conform with those shown in Fig.
1.8(a) in order for the power to have a positive sign. This is known as the passive sign convention. By the
passive sign convention, current enters through the positive polarity of the voltage. In this case, p = +vi or
vi > 0 implies that the element is absorbing power. However, if p = -vi or vi < 0, as in Fig. 1.8(b), the
element is releasing or supplying power.
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 Passive sign convention is satisfied when the current enters through the positive terminal of an element
and p = +vi. If the current enters through the negative terminal, p = -vi.

Unless otherwise stated, we will follow the passive sign convention throughout this text. For example, the
element in both circuits of Fig. 1.9 has an absorbing power of +12 W because a positive current enters the
positive terminal in both cases. In Fig. 1.10, however, the element is supplying power of +12 W because
a positive current enters the negative terminal. Of course, an absorbing power of -12 W is equivalent to a
supplying power of +12 W. In general,

+Power absorbed = -Power supplied

In fact, the law of conservation of energy must be obeyed in any electric circuit. For this reason, the
algebraic sum of power in a circuit, at any instant of time, must be zero:

(1.8)

This again confirms the fact that the total power supplied to the circuit must balance the total power
absorbed. From Eq. (1.6), the energy absorbed or supplied by an element from time to time to is

(1.9)

Energy is the capacity to do work, measured in joules (J).

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 The electric power utility companies measure energy in watt-hours (Wh), where

1 Wh = 3,600 J

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