EC1003E INTRODUCTION TO ELECTRONICS

ELEMENTS IN AN ELECTRICAL
CIRCUIT
INTRODUCTION
 An electronic circuit is composed of various types of
components
 Some of these components are termed as active components
because they take part in the transformation of the energy.
Active components are capable of processing signals.
 E.g. Voltage source or Current source, Diode, Transistors
 While other components, which only dissipate or store energy,
are called as passive elements. Passive component does not
generate power, but instead dissipates, stores, and/or
releases it.
 E.g. Resistor, Inductor, Capacitor 2
BASIC QUANTITIES: CURRENT, VOLTAGE AND
POWER
 Voltage and current are two variables we like to
monitor in electrical circuits.
 These are usually changing with time
 Voltage (symbol V or sometimes E): The voltage
between two points is the cost in energy (work done)
required to move a unit of positive charge from the more
negative point (lower potential) to the more positive
point (higher potential).
 Equivalently, it is the energy released when a unit
charge moves “downhill” from the higher potential to the
lower 3
BASIC QUANTITIES: CURRENT, VOLTAGE AND
POWER
 Voltage is also called potential difference or electromotive force
(EMF).
 The unit of measure is the volt (usually expressed in V,mV,µV)
 Current (symbol I). Current is the rate of flow of electric
charge past a point.

 The unit of measure is the ampere, or amp, with currents

usually expressed in amperes (A), milli amperes (1mA= 10−3
A), microamperes (1μA=10−6 A), nano amperes (1 nA = 10−9 A),
or occasionally pico amperes (1 pA = 10−12 A). 4
IMPORTANT CIRCUIT ELEMENTS
 Resistor
 Inductor
 Capacitor
 Sources
 Voltage source
 Independent Voltage source
 Dependent Voltage source
 Current source
 Independent Current source
 Dependent Current source

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RESISTORS
 A resistor, as the name suggests, will resist electricity that
flows through it.
 Any situation that demands the flow of current to be controlled
at the desired level will require a resistor.
 Resistors can be made to control the flow of current, to work as
voltage dividers, to dissipate power and it can shape electrical
waves when used in combination of other components

Basic unit is ohms, (Ω)

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RESISTOR COLOR CODING

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POWER RATING

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TYPES OF RESISTORS

1. CARBON COMPOSITION RESISTOR

2. WIREWOUND RESISTOR

3. CARBON FILM RESISTORS

4. METAL OXIDE RESISTORS

5. METAL FILM RESISTORS 12

VARIABLE RESISTOR
 When a resistor is constructed so its value
can be adjusted, it is called a variable
resistor.

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RESISTORS IN SERIES AND PARALLEL

 Req = R1 + R2 + R3 +… Rn

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SAMPLE PROBLEMS
1. Find the color code for resistors having values: 10kΩ,
47kΩ, 1MΩ.

2. Find the equivalent resistance of two resistors

having values 10k Ωand 10k Ω when connected in
series and parallel .

3. Find the equivalent resistance of two resistors having

values 10k Ωand 100Ω when connected in series and
parallel

4. Design a voltage divider circuit to generate 5V from a

10 V DC supply.

5. Design a voltage divider circuit to generate 6V from a 15

15 V DC supply.
 CAPACITORS
 Capacitors are like small rechargeable batteries that
store small amounts of charge in them.
 Capacitors do two things at the same time:
1. They allow AC, or Alternating Current, to flow
through them.
2. They resist the flow of DC, or Direct Current,
through them.

Basic unit is Farad (F) 16

CAPACITORS

 Its basic form is a pair of closely-spaced metal plates,

separated by some insulating material, as in the
rolled up “axial-film capacitor” of Figure

 The capacitance is proportional to the area and

inversely proportional to the spacing.
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TYPES

 Fixed Capacitors
 Adjustable Capacitors

 Types of Fixed Capacitors

1. Mica Capacitors
2. Ceramic Capacitors
3. Paper Capacitors
4. Plastic Capacitors
5. Electrolytic Capacitors
6. Film capacitor 18
 Mica Capacitors Ceramic Capacitors Paper Capacitors

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Plastic Capacitors Electrolytic Capacitors Film capacitor
CERAMIC CAPACITOR VALUES AND CODES

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Mica Capacitors

Cylindrical capacitors with radial leads

(top and bottom) and axial leads (center).
All are electrolytic.

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CAPACITORS IN PARALLEL AND SERIES

 The capacitance of several capacitors in parallel is the

sum of their individual capacitances.

 Ctotal=C1+C2+C3+· · · .

 For capacitors in series, the formula is like that for

resistors in parallel:

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 INDUCTORS
 Inductance is the tendency of an electrical conductor to oppose a
change in the electric current flowing through it.
 The electric current produces a magnetic field around the
conductor.
 The magnetic field strength depends on the magnitude of the
electric current, and follows any changes in the magnitude of the
current.
 Inductors are essentially coils of wire that are wound around
other components.
 They are used as filters.

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Basic unit is Henry (H)

MUTUAL INDUCTANCE
 Mutual inductance is the main operating principle of generators,
motors and transformers.
 Mutual Inductance between the two coils is defined as the
property of the coil due to which it opposes the change of current
in the other coil, or you can say in the neighbouring coil.

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VOLTAGE SOURCE
 A voltage source is a device that provides a voltage
across its terminals.
 There are two types of voltage sources: independent
and dependent.
 An independent voltage source is a source whose output
voltage is not affected by any other quantity in the circuit.
The voltage of an independent voltage source is typically
represented by a battery symbol in circuit diagrams.
 A dependent voltage source is a source whose output
voltage is affected by another quantity in the circuit. The
dependent voltage source is typically represented by a
diamond symbol in circuit diagrams.
 In general, independent voltage sources are used to
supply power to circuits, while dependent voltage
sources are used to control the behavior of other 27
circuit elements.
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(a) An ideal independent voltage source,

(b) An ideal independent current source,

(c) voltage controlled voltage source,

(d) current controlled voltage source,

(e) voltage controlled current source,

(f) current controlled current source. 31