Basic Electrical Quantities

The standard unit of electricity is defined in a systematic way. First, the ampere is defined. After,
the ampere comes from the charge and coulomb of an electron.
The SI units to measure the electric expressions of voltage, resistance and current are Volt (v),
Ohm (Ω) and Ampere (A), respectively.
The electrical units for measurement of electric expressions are based on the International System
(SI) of units. Other units are derived from this SI unit of electricity.
The units are used in electric circuits, electronics and electric appliances to measure and describe
their capacity from small to large.

Standard Electrical Units of Measure

Electrical Parameter Measuring Unit Unit/Symbol Formula

Voltage Volt V or E V=I×R

Resistance Ohm R or Ω R=V/I

Current Ampere I or i I=V/R

Capacitance Farad C C=Q/V

Conductance Siemen G G=1/R

Charge Coulomb C Q = C×V

Power Watts W P = V × I or I2 × R

Inductance Henry L/H VL = -L(di/dt)

Frequency Hertz Hz f=1/T

Impedance Ohm Z Z² = R²+X²

Standard Units (Multiples and Submultiples)

There is a huge range of electric values between a minimum value and a maximum value of a
standard electric unit. For example, the resistance of a conductor can be as low as 0.001 ohms and
as high as 100000 ohms. We can avoid writing multiple zeros while describing the values of the
electric unit, if we use sub-multiples and multiple values of the standard unit. Below mentioned is
a table with their names and abbreviation.

Prefix Symbol Multiplier Power of ten

pico 1/1,000,000,000,000 p 1012

nano 1/1,000,000,000 n 109

micro 1/1,000,000 μ 106

mini 1/1,000 m 103

centi 1/100 c 102

none 1 none 100

kilo 1,00 c 10-2

kilo 1,000 K 10-3

Mega 1,000,000, M 10-6

Giga 1,000,000,000, G 10-9

Below mentioned is a set of points that describes the use of units or multiple units of resistance,
current and voltage.
● 1kV = 1 kilo-volt = 1,000 Volts.
● 1kΩ = 1 kilo-ohms = 1 thousand Ohms.
● 1mA = 1 milli-amp = one-thousandths (1/1000) of an Ampere.
● 1kW = 1 kilo-watt = 1,000 Watts.
● 100uF = 100 microfarads = 100 millionths (100/1,000,000) of a Farad.
● 1MHz = 1 mega-hertz = one million Hertz.
While converting one prefix to another, we have to multiply or divide the difference between the
two values.

What Are The Basic Units Of Electricity?

Voltage/Volts (V) - The amount of work required to move an electric charge from one point to
another is called voltage.

Current (I)/Amps (A) - Current is defined as the amount of charge (or electrons) passing through
a circuit per unit of time.

Resistance (R) /Ohms (O) - Resistance is the opposition offered to the flow of current in a circuit.

Power (P)/Watts (W) - Power is defined as the product of the work required and the number of
electrons passing through the circuit per unit time.

Other Electricity Units

Just like the standard units, other units are used to denote the values and quantities. They are:

Wh – The Watt-Hour is defined as the amount of electric energy consumed by an electric circuit
over a given time duration. For example, a normal electric bulb consumes 100 watts of power per
hour.

dB – A Decibel is a one-tenth unit of Bel (symbol B). It is used to represent a gain in voltage,
power or current.

θ – Phase Angle. It is the difference (in degrees) between the voltage waveform and the current
waveform, which have the same time period. It is a time difference that depends upon the circuit
element. Its value can be “leading” or “lagging”. It is also measured in radians.

ω – Angular Frequency is used in AC circuits to represent phase relation between two waveforms.

τ – Time Constant, The Time Constant is a characteristic of an impedance circuit. It is the time
taken by the output to reach 63.7% of its minimum or maximum value when subjected to step
response input. It is a measure of time reaction.

SI Unit of charge
The SI unit of electric charge is the coulomb. A coulomb is defined as an ampere second.

The Units of Electric Charge are Listed in The Table Mentioned Below
 Name Symbols Context Alternate Spellings prefixes

coulomb C SI coulombs SI

stacoulomb statC ESU statcoulombs SI

abcoulomb abC EMU ab coulombs SI

fanklin f Standard franklins SI

electron e Atomic electrons SI

Planck_charge planck planck_charges

These are the units of electric charge.

Do You Know?
There is nothing like “1 unit electricity”.

Throughout the world, there is one type or another type of measurement which has been taken as
a base amount of electric power. 1KWh is a mainly used unit of power. It is the amount of electric
power consumed in 1 hour by an electric appliance of 1000 W (1KW).

Electricity is Measured in Units of Electricity.

If you've ever looked at an electricity bill, you'll notice that the unit of electricity is usually
expressed in kilowatt-hours (kWh). The unit, in this case, reflects the actual measure of electricity
or the amount of energy consumed at a location. So, if you've ever wondered what the unit of
electricity is, the answer is below.
Electricity is Measured in Units of SI.

When it comes to the SI unit of electricity, the unit of power is Watt. The name was preserved in
honor of James Watt, the inventor of the steam engine. Watt is usually equal to one ampere under
one volt of pressure, however, electricity, which is a bigger quantity, is measured in kilowatt-hours
(kWh).

Electricity Unit - Standard Units

The Volt V, Ampere A, and Ohm are the standard units of electrical measurement for voltage,
current, and resistance, respectively.
Other commonly used electrical units are derived from SI base units. These electrical units of
measurement are based on the International (metric) System, generally known as the SI System.
When the amounts being measured are very big or very small, it is often essential to employ
multiples or sub-multiples (fractions) of these basic electrical measuring units in electrical or
electronic circuits and systems.
Electrical Units of Measurement
Electrical Parameter Measuring Unit Symbol Description

voltage volt V or E Unit of Electrical Potential

V=IxR

Current Ampere I or i Unit of Electrical Current I = V / R

Resistance ohm R or Ω Unit of DC Resistance R= V/I

Conductance Siemen G or ປ Reciprocal of Resistance G = 1/R

Charge Coulomb Q Unit of Electrical Charge Q = C x V

Inductance Henry L or H Unit of Inductance

VL = L(di/dt)

Power Watts W Unit of Power

P = V x I or I2 x R

Impedance Ohm Z Unit of AC Resistance Z2 = R2 + X2

What are the Four Basic Electricity Units?

The four fundamental units of electricity are:

• Voltage is the amount of effort necessary to transfer one electric charge from one location
to another. The volt is the measurement unit.

• Current is the amount of charge that passes through a circuit in a certain amount of time.
The unit is ampere.

• The opposition provided by the current flow in the circuit is known as resistance. The units
are ohms.

• The product of work done and the number of electrons travelling through the circuit in a
certain amount of time is called power. The watt is the measurement unit.
Volts, amps, ohms, and watts are the four basic units of electricity.
Units of Electricity (Others)
There are other conventional units of measurement for electrical qualities other than watt and
kilowatt, such as voltage, resistance, power, capacitance, inductance, and others. Some common
electricity units are listed below.

Electrical Parameter Measuring Unit Symbol

Voltage Volt V or E

Resistance Ohm R or Ω

Capacitance Farad C

Charge Coulomb Q

Inductance Henry L or H

Frequency Hertz HZ

Conductance Siemen G or ປ

Charge
charge, also known as electric charge, electrical charge, or electrostatic charge and symbolized q,
is a characteristic of a unit of matter that expresses the extent to which it has more or
fewer electrons than protons. In atoms, the electron carries a negative elementary or unit charge;
the proton carries a positive charge. The two types of charge are equal and opposite.
A particle, atom, or object with negative charge is said to have negative electric polarity; a
particle, atom, or object with positive charge is said to have positive electric polarity. The unit of
electrical charge in the International System of Units is the coulomb (symbolized C), where 1 C
is equal to approximately 6.24 x 1018 elementary charges.

When two objects having electric charge are brought into each other's vicinity, an electrostatic
force is manifested between them. (This force is not to be confused with electromotive force,
also known as voltage.) If the electric charges are of the same polarity, the electrostatic force is
repulsive. If the electric charges are of opposite polarity, the electrostatic force is attractive. In
free space (a vacuum), if the charges on the two nearby objects in coulombs are q1 and q2 and the
centers of the objects are separated by a distance r in meters, the net force F between the objects,
in newtons, is given by the following formula:
F = (q1q2) / (4ε0r2)

Where ε0 is the permittivity of free space, a physical constant, and is the ratio of a circle's
circumference to its diameter, a dimensionless mathematical constant. A positive net force is
repulsive, and a negative net force is attractive. This relation is known as Coulomb's law.

Resistance and Conductance

The electrical resistance of an object is a measure of its opposition to the flow of electric
current. Its reciprocal quantity is electrical conductance, measuring the ease with which an
electric current passes. Electrical resistance shares some conceptual parallels with
mechanical friction. The SI unit of electrical resistance is the ohm (Ω), while electrical
conductance is measured in siemens (S) (formerly called the 'mho' and then represented by ℧).
Electrical resistance is measured using an Ohmmeter.

The resistance of an object depends in large part on the material it is made of. Objects made
of electrical insulators like rubber tend to have very high resistance and low conductance, while
objects made of electrical conductors like metals tend to have very low resistance and high
conductance. This relationship is quantified by resistivity or conductivity. The nature of a
material is not the only factor in resistance and conductance, however; it also depends on the size
and shape of an object because these properties are extensive rather than intensive. For example,
a wire's resistance is higher if it is long and thin, and lower if it is short and thick. All objects
resist electrical current, except for superconductors, which have a resistance of zero.
The resistance R of an object is defined as the ratio of voltage V across it to current I through it,
while the conductance G is the reciprocal:

For a wide variety of materials and conditions, V and I are directly proportional to each other,
and therefore R and G are constants (although they will depend on the size and shape of the
object, the material it is made of, and other factors like temperature or strain). This
proportionality is called Ohm's law, and materials that satisfy it are called ohmic materials.

Capacitance

Capacitance is the capability of a material object or device to store electric charge. It is

measured by the change in charge in response to a difference in electric potential, expressed as
the ratio of those quantities. Commonly recognized are two closely related notions of
capacitance: self capacitance and mutual capacitance.[1]: 237–238 An object that can be electrically
charged exhibits self capacitance, for which the electric potential is measured between the object
and ground. Mutual capacitance is measured between two components, and is particularly
important in the operation of the capacitor, an elementary linear electronic component designed
to add capacitance to an electric circuit.

The SI unit of capacitance is the farad (symbol: F), named after the English physicist Michael
Faraday. A 1 farad capacitor, when charged with 1 coulomb of electrical charge, has a potential
difference of 1 volt between its plates.[2] The reciprocal of capacitance is called elastance.
Capacitance is expressed as the ratio of the electric charge on each conductor to the potential
difference (i.e., voltage) between them, which is expressed as C = Q/V.
Inductance
Inductance is the tendency of an electrical conductor to oppose a change in the electric
current flowing through it, or Inductance is the ability of an inductor to store energy and it does
this in the magnetic field that is created by the flow of electrical current.
The flow of electric current creates a magnetic field around the conductor. The field strength
depends on the magnitude of the current, and follows any changes in current.
When indicating an inductor on a circuit diagram or within an equation, generally the symbol "L"
is used. On circuit diagrams, inductors are generally numbered, L1, L2, etc.

The SI unit of inductance is the henry, H which can be defined in terms of rate of change of current
and voltage. The inductance of a circuit is one henry if the rate of change of current in a circuit is
one ampere per second and this results in an electromotive force of one volt.

Electrical power

Electric power is the rate, per unit time, at which electrical energy is transferred by an electric
circuit. It is the rate of doing work.

In terms of an electric circuit, electrical power is the rate, per unit time, at which electrical energy
is transferred by an electric circuit.

Symbol P

SI Unit Watt, joule per second

 Scalar or Vector Scalar Quantity

Formula P = VI

Electric Power Formula

The formula for electric power is given by

P = VI

where,
P is the power
V is the potential difference in the circuit.
I is the electric current.
Power can also be written as

P = I2 R

P = V2/ R

The above two expressions are obtained by using Ohm’s law, Where, voltage, current, and
resistance are related by the following relation:
V = IR

Power-Energy Formula
Since power is the rate of energy consumption, energy can directly be calculated using

P=E/t

Where,
E is the energy consumption (in Joules)
t is the time in seconds

P=VQ/t

Where,

• Q is the charge (in Coulombs)

• V is potential difference in volts
• t is the time in seconds

Where,

• R is the resistance in the circuit.

• V is the potential difference in the circuit
• I is the electric current
Watt: unit of power

The unit of power is the watt which is denoted by the symbol W and it is named after the Scottish
engineer James Watt (1736–1819).

Definition of the watt:

The watt is the SI unit of power defining the rate of energy conversion and it is equivalent to one
joule per second.

Electrical definition of the watt: one watt is the rate at which work is done when a current of one
ampere, I of current flows through a network which has an electrical potential difference of one
volt, V. W = V I

Electrical Energy

It is the ability of an electrical circuit to produce work by creating an action. This action can take
many forms, such as thermal, electromagnetic, mechanical, electrical, etc. Electrical energy can
be both created from batteries, generators, dynamos, and photovoltaics, etc. or stored for future
use using fuel cells, batteries, capacitors or magnetic fields, etc. Thus, electrical energy can be
either created or stored.

Units of Electrical Energy

The basic unit of electrical energy is the joule or watt-second. An electrical energy is said to be
one joule when one ampere of current flows through the circuit for a second when the potential
difference of one volt is applied across it. The commercial unit of electrical energy is the
kilowatt-hour (kWh) which is also known as the Board of trade unit (B.O.T).
1 kwh = 1000 × 60 × 60 watt – second
1 kwh = 36 × 105 Ws or Joules
Generally, one kwh is called one unit.
The work required to keep the charge Q in motion by the battery of voltage V is
W=VQ
From the definition of electric current,
Q=It
Therefore, W=VIt
According to Ohm’s law, V=IR
Therefore, W=(IR)It
Or, W=I2Rt
Since P= I2R
Then, W=Pt
Thus, the current flowing through the resistor R for time t is I, the electrical energy consumed to
is W which is converted into heat energy.