Chapter 2

Current and Voltage

Course: CSE 1205 Electrical Engineering and Circuit Analysis

Books: Introductory Circuit Analysis

- Boylestad
Fundamentals of Electrical Circuits
- Charles Alexander, Matthew
Sadiku

Dr. Mst. Najnin Sultana

Assistant Professor
Dept. of CSE
Northern University Bangladesh
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Current and Voltage
Objectives

Explain the concept of electrical charge

Define voltage and discuss its characteristics
Define current and discuss its characteristics
Define resistance and discuss its characteristics
Describe a basic electric circuit
Make basic circuit measurements

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Current and Voltage
Atomic Structure

• An atom is the smallest particle of an element that retains the characteristics of

that element
• An atom has a nucleus, consisting of positively charged particles called protons,
and uncharged particles called neutrons
• The basic particles of negative charge, called electrons, orbit the nucleus

FIG. 2.1 The hydrogen atoms

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Current and Voltage
Electron shells and Orbits
• Electrons orbit the nucleus at discrete distances from the nucleus
• Orbits are grouped onto energy bands known as shells
• A given atom has a fixed number of shells
• Each shell has a fixed maximum number of electrons permissible at energy
levels (orbits)

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Current and Voltage
Valence Electrons
• Electrons with the highest energy exist in the outermost shell, known as the
valence shell, and electrons in this shell are called valence electrons
• Valence electrons possess more energy and are relatively loosely bound to the
atom
• If a valence electron acquires enough external energy to leave the atom, the
process is known as ionization
• The escaped electron is called a free electron

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Categories of Materials
Conductors readily permit current flow, due to a large number of free electrons in
the material
Conductors are characterized by 1, 2, or 3 valence electrons in their atomic structure
Semiconductors have 4 valence electrons
Insulators have few free electrons, and tend not to permit current to flow through
them

Electrical Charge
The charge of an electron and that of a proton are equal in magnitude but opposite
in polarity
The force acting between charges is called an electric field

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Current and Voltage

The thermal energy that the electrons gain from the

surrounding medium.

When atoms lose their free electrons, they acquire a net

positive charge and are referred to as positive ions.

The free electrons are able to move within these

positive ions and leave the general area of the parent
atom, while the positive ions only oscillate in a mean
fixed position.

For this reason, the free electron is the charge carrier in

a copper wire or any other solid conductor of electricity

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Current and Voltage
Coulomb Electrical charge (Q) is measured in coulombs (C)
By definition: One coulomb is the total charge possessed by 6.25 x 10^18 electrons
Q = (number of electrons)/(6.242 x 10^18) = 1.6 x 10^ (-19) C

Positive and Negative Charge

• A neutral atom has the same number of electrons and protons, hence no net
charge
• If a valence electron acquires enough energy to move away from an atom, the
atom is left with a net positive charge (positive ion)
• If an atom acquires an extra electron in its outer shell, it has a net negative
charge (negative ion)

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Current and Voltage
Electrical current is the rate of flow of charge
The movement of free electrons from negative to positive is electrical current (I)
By definition: electrical current is the rate of flow of charge

Ampere: The Unit of Current

One ampere is the amount of current that exists when a number of electrons having
a total charge of one coulomb move through a given cross-sectional area in one
second

Practice Ex. 2.1, 2.2 and so on for MCQ

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Current and Voltage
Electrical current is the rate of flow of charge
From Book Sadiku,

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Current and Voltage
Electrical current is the rate of flow of charge
From Book Sadiku,
A direct current (dc) flows only in one direction and can be constant or
time varying.

An alternating current (ac) is a current that changes direction with respect

to time.

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Current and Voltage
Electrical current is the rate of flow of charge
From Book Sadiku,

Example 1.2:

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 Chapter 2
Current and Voltage
Electrical current is the rate of flow of charge
From Book Sadiku,

Practice Problem 1.2, Ex 1.3

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Current and Voltage
Voltage The unit of voltage is the volt (V) By definition:
One volt is the potential difference (voltage) between two points when
one joule of energy is used to move one coulomb of charge from one point
to the other

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Current and Voltage
Voltage

Practice Ex. 2.3, 2.4

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Current and Voltage
Voltage
From Sadiku,

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Current and Voltage
Voltage
Potential: The voltage at a point with respect to another point in the electrical
system. Typically the reference point is ground, which is at zero potential.
Potential difference: The algebraic difference in potential (or voltage) between
two points of a network. Voltage: When isolated, like potential, the voltage at a
point with respect to some reference such as ground (0 V).
Voltage difference: The algebraic difference in voltage (or potential) between
two points of the system. A voltage drop or rise is as the terminology would
suggest.
Electromotive force (emf): The force that establishes the flow of charge (or
current) in a system due to the application of a difference in potential. This term is
not applied that often in today’s literature but is associated primarily with sources of
energy.
In summary, the applied potential difference (in volts) of a voltage source in an electric circuit is the
“pressure” to set the system in motion and “cause” the flow of charge or current through the electrical
system.

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Current and Voltage
Voltage

Batteries (chemical action)

• A battery is a type of voltage source that converts chemical energy into
electrical energy
• The way cells are connected, and the type of cells, determines the voltage and
capacity of a battery

Other Voltage Sources

• Solar Cells convert light energy into electrical energy
• Generators convert mechanical energy into electrical energy
(electromechanical)
• Electronic power supplies (rectification) do not produce electrical energy, but
they convert the ac voltage from the wall outlet into a constant dc voltage for
use in our circuits

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Current and Voltage
Voltage Notation

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Resistance is the opposition to current
• The property of a material that restricts the flow of electrons is called resistance
(R)
• By definition: Resistance is the opposition to current
• Where there is current through any material that has resistance, heat is produced
by the collisions of electrons and atoms

Ohm: The unit of Resistance

• By definition: One ohm of resistance exists if there is one ampere of current in a
material when one volt is applied across the material
• The symbol of an ohm is omega (Ω)

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Current and Voltage
Conductor

• Conductors are those materials that permit a generous flow of electrons with
very little external force (voltage) applied
• In addition, good conductors typically have only one electron in the valence
(most distant from the nucleus) ring

Insulator
• Insulators are those materials that have very few free electrons and require a
large applied potential (voltage) to establish a measurable current level

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Conductor Insulator

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Current and Voltage

The Basic Circuit

• An electric circuit consists of a voltage source, a
load, and a path for current between the source and
the load
• A closed circuit is one in which the current has a
complete path
• An open circuit is one in which the current path is
broken, or incomplete

Ground
• Ground is the reference point in electric circuits and
has a potential of 0 V with respect to other points in
the circuit
• All ground points in a circuit are electrically the same
and are therefore common points
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Current and Voltage
Basic Circuit Measurements
• A voltmeter measures voltage across (in parallel) a resistance or load
• An ammeter is inserted in the current path (in series) to measure current
• Resistance is measured across a resistor, out-of-circuit, with an ohmmeter
• Digital Multimeters (DMM’s) measure voltage, current and resistance

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Application Example:
• 12V Car Battery Charger

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Current and Voltage
Application Example:
• 12V Car Battery Charger

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Application Example:
• Answering Machines/Phones dc Supply

Rectification The process by which an ac signal

is converted to one that has an average dc level.

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Current and Voltage
MCQ Practices:

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MCQ Practices:

W = VQ, Q = IT

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 Chapter 2
Current and Voltage
Summary
• An atom is the smallest particle of an element that retains the characteristics of that
element
• Free electrons make current possible
• Like charges repel, opposite charges attract
• One coulomb is the charge of 6.25x1018 electrons
• One volt is the potential difference between two points when one joule of energy is used to
move one coulomb from one point to the other

Summary
• An electric circuit consists of a source, a load, and a current path
• An open circuit has an incomplete current path
• A closed circuit has a complete current path
• An ammeter is connected in line with the current path
• A voltmeter is connected across the current path
• An ohmmeter is connected across a resistor (the resistor must be out-of-circuit)

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