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Linear and Nonlinear Resistors: X 1 1 X 1 R R

This document provides instructions for an experiment to compare the behavior of linear and nonlinear resistors. Students are asked to: 1) Construct a simple series circuit using a variable resistor and either a regular resistor or light bulb. 2) For the regular resistor, measure the voltage and current and verify Ohm's Law. For the light bulb, measure voltage and current and note that the relationship is nonlinear. 3) Analyze the data to determine the exponent n and constant A for the light bulb, showing it follows a power law relationship rather than Ohm's Law.

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Abeer Owaineh
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49 views2 pages

Linear and Nonlinear Resistors: X 1 1 X 1 R R

This document provides instructions for an experiment to compare the behavior of linear and nonlinear resistors. Students are asked to: 1) Construct a simple series circuit using a variable resistor and either a regular resistor or light bulb. 2) For the regular resistor, measure the voltage and current and verify Ohm's Law. For the light bulb, measure voltage and current and note that the relationship is nonlinear. 3) Analyze the data to determine the exponent n and constant A for the light bulb, showing it follows a power law relationship rather than Ohm's Law.

Uploaded by

Abeer Owaineh
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Memorial University of Newfoundland Department of Physics and Physical Oceanography Physics 2055 Laboratory

Linear and Nonlinear Resistors


Introduction
The current in an electrical circuit depends on the magnitude of the source voltage and the resistance of the various components. For a linear component, the voltage-current ratio is constant. This is usually referred to as Ohms Law, stated as V = IR (1)

but for a nonlinear component, the V /I ratio is not constant. So, while the resistance at a particular V and I can be obtained from Ohms law, it will vary as voltage and current is allowed to vary. In this experiment you will study the dierent behaviours of a regular resistor and a light bulb.

Procedure
1. Construct the series circuit shown, using V 12 volts dc. Rx is an unknown resistance and R1 is a variable decade resistance box. Starting with R1 = 0 , measure the voltage across Rx and the current I . By increasing R1 in suitable steps obtain a series of voltage and current values, and plot a graph of VRx vs IRx . 2. Verify that the resistor obeys Ohms law and hence determine a value for Rx . What is the uncertainty in Rx ? Check your result by measuring its value using a DMM. 3. How does the resistance of the voltmeter aect the voltage reading across a particular resistor? Does it matter if the voltmeters resistance is low ( few k), or large ( M)? Explain your answer.

Non-Linear Resistors
1. Non-linear conductors such as semiconductors, thermistors and diodes do not have a constant resistance. Instead, we can write the voltage drop as a function of current in

V A R1

Rx VR

Figure 1: A simple series circuit to study Ohms law

the form V = A.I n where A is a constant. 2. Replace the resistance Rx by a light bulb and obtain a data table which shows the voltage drop across the bulb and the current. Plot this data and explain why you think the graph displays this behaviour. 3. Use the laboratory computers to determine values for n and A, and discuss the significance of these results. (2)

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