General Module

Physics 2 4
I. Introduction

The flicker of numbers on a handheld calculator, nerve impulses carrying signals of vision to the brain,
an ultrasound device sending a signal to a computer screen, the brain sending a message for a baby to twitch
its toes, an electric train pulling its load over a mountain pass, a hydroelectric plant sending energy to
metropolitan and rural users—these and many other examples of electricity involve electric current, the
movement of charge. Humankind has indeed harnessed electricity, the basis of technology, to improve our
quality of life. Whereas the previous modules concentrated on static electricity and the fundamental force
underlying its behavior, this module will be devoted to electric and magnetic phenomena involving current.
In this module, we have transition from stationary changes to moving charges that make up current in
actual circuits. What we have learned about electrostatics should now help us understand how circuits come
about, keeping in mind that the charges are not static anymore. This module is about current, resistance and DC
circuit.

FOURTH QUARTER
2FOU
II. Objectives
At the end of this module, you are expected to be able to:
A. Calculate the electric power for a current, circuit and resistance.
B. Calculate values associated with series and parallel combinations.
C. Reflect on the value of being optimistic to find your purpose and motive in life.

III. Review and Pretest:

Review
Directions: Calculate the following and write your answer on the ACTIVITY NOTEBOOK. (Two points
each)

1. A charge Q = 3 µC is added to a conducting ring of radius R = 27 cm. Calculate the potential at the center of the
ring.

Pretest
Directions: Choose the letter of the CORRECT answer in each item and write your answer on the
ACTIVITY NOTEBOOK. (One point each)
_____________1. Which of the following does NOT affect the capacitance of a parallel-plate capacitor?
A. area of the plates C. material between the plates
B. thickness of the plates D. distance between the plates

_____________2. What is the resistance of the starting motor of an automobile if it takes a current of 100 amp
at the instant of making connection to a 6-volt battery whose internal resistance is 0.01 ohm?
A. 0.05 ohm C. 3.05 ohms
B. 2.00 ohms D. 5.00 ohms
_____________3. Two coils of 24 ohms and 48 ohms, respectively are connected in parallel. What is their
combined resistance?
A. 4 ohms C. 12 ohms
B. 8 ohms D. 16 ohms
_____________4. The amount of work an electric current can do depends
on____________________________________.
A. where the current comes from. C. the rate of current flow.
B. the amount of charge that is moving. D. the direction of current flow.

_____________5. Three resistors, 2 ohms, 3 ohms and 6 ohms, respectively, are connected in parallel. This
combination is then connected in series with an 8-ohm resistor. Find the current through each resistor if 18 volts
is applied across the whole combination.
A. 8 amperes C. 4 amperes
B. 6 amperes D. 2 amperes
IV. Content:

Lesson 10: Current

An electric circuit is a closed conducting path that allows charges to flow from one point to another
continuously. Every circuit needs a way of maintaining an electric field or potential difference across conductors
to keep the movement of free charges.

At its most basic, a circuit contains a power supply, a device that dissipates energy (the resistor
in the circuit shown in Figure 10.1), and wires that connect all the parts together. You can add more parts to
basic circuits when you understand how they work and the science behind them.

A
B
Sources: (A) Electricity clipart simple electric circuit, Picture #2650392 electricity clipart simple electric circuit (webstockreview.net)
(B) Electric Circuit -Types Of Electric Circuit - Industrial News - News - Zhejiang NeoDen Technology Co., Ltd. (neodensmt.com)

Figure 10.1: Some simple circuits

Current is the steady flow of charge. Given a conducting wire made of a metal (see Figure 10.2),
we define current I as the rate of flow of charge across a plane, given as the cross-section of the conductor.
When an electric field is applied between the two ends of the conductor, the charges move across the plane.
We can calculate current as:
(Equation 1) 𝑄
𝐼 =
𝑡
This equation gives us the unit coulomb per time, known as the ampere (A), named after French
physicist Andrè Marie Ampère.

Lesson 10.1: Current density

There is another kind of current that we sometimes use. Current density J is the current I per unit
area A. In symbols: (Equation 2)
𝐼
𝐽 =
𝐴
It is expressed in amperes per square meters (A/m2). Current density is a vector quantity. It points in
the direction of the electric field. Area is also a vector in this equation. It is perpendicular to the cross-section.

German physicist, Georg Simon Ohm, discovered that current density is directly proportional to the
electric field that induces the current. There are two ways of writing this relationship. One is by using the resistivity
ρ of the materials as the constant of proportionality:
(Equation 3)
𝐸 = 𝜌 𝐽,

where E is the electric field.

The other version of this relationship is
(Equation 4) 𝐽 = 𝜎 𝐸,

where the constant σ is the conductivity of the material (not the charge density which we used in
previous Modules). These two equations are the original forms of a relationship known as Ohm’s law.

Ohm quantified the ability of current to flow within a conductor in terms of the conductor’s properties
of conductivity or resistivity. The conductivity of a material relates how well the materials allows the movement
of charge carriers; the resistivity is just the inverse: it relates how poorly the materials allows the movement of
charge carriers. These two constants are inversely related:

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(Equation 5) 1
𝜌 =
𝜎

The unit of resistivity ρ is ohmmeter (Ω·m); the unit of conductivity σ is (Ω·m)-1

The resistivities of a few sample substances are listed in Table 10.1. These constants were
measured at a temperature of 20° C. In the case of a metallic conductor, the resistivity increases with
increasing temperature. This dependence is given in the equation below:

(Equation 6) 𝜌 = 𝜌0 [1 + 𝛼 (𝑇 − 𝑇0 )],

in which ρ0 is the resistivity at a reference temperature, such as T0 = 20°C, T is any temperature other than T0, and 𝛼 is the
temperature coefficient of resistivity is given in the unit per Celsius degree (/°C, is also written as (C°) -1).

Substance Resistivity (Ω·m)

Silver 1.47 x 10-8

Copper 1.72 x 10-8
Gold 2.44 x 10-8
Conductors
Aluminum 2.75 x 10-8
Metals
Tungsten 5.25 x 10-8
Steel 20 x 10-8
Lead 22 x 10-8
Mercury 95 x 10-8

Manganin (Cu 84%, Mn 12%, Ni

44 x 10-8
Alloys 4%)
Constantan (Cu 60%, Ni 40%) 49 x 10-8
Nichrome 100 x 10-8

Pure Carbon (graphite) 3.5 x 10-5

Semiconductors
Pure Germanium 0.60
Pure Silicon 2300

Amber 5 x 1014
Glass 1010 – 1014
Lucite >1013
Insulators Mica 1011 – 1015
Quartz 75 x 1016
Sulfur 1015
Teflon >1013
Wood 108 – 1011

Table 10. 1: Resistivities of some materials at 20°C.

For most materials, resistivity increases with temperature; the opposite is also true: resistivity, and consequently
resistance, decreases when temperature goes down. The properties and behavior of different materials at very
low temperatures is a whole branch of study itself.

Example 10.1: If a wire has 1.25 x 1016 electrons flowing through its cross-section in one second, what is the
current in the wire?
Solution: Current is the amount of charge per unit time. So, we need to get the total charge flowing:
𝑄 = 𝑛 𝑒 = 1.25 𝑥 1016 (1.6 𝑥 10−19 𝐶) = 0.002 𝐶
Now, we can calculate the current.
𝑄 0.002 𝐶
𝐼 = = = 0.002 𝐴 = 2 𝑚𝐴
𝑡 1 𝑠
Example 10.2: In the previous problem, the wire has a diameter of 3.26 mm. If it is made out of aluminum, find
1. the magnitude of the current density in the wire.
2. the magnitude of the electric field in the wire.

Solution: From the previous problem, we found the current to be I = 2 mA.

1. To find the current density, we need the cross-sectional area of the wire. We can use the
diameter directly:

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𝜋𝑑 2 𝜋(3.26 𝑥 10−3 𝑚 )2
𝐴 = = = 8.35 𝑥 10−6 𝑚2
4 4
Now, we can find the current density using Equation 2:
𝐼 2 𝑥 10−3 𝐴
𝐽 = = = 239. 61 𝐴 / 𝑚2
𝐴 8.35 𝑥 10−6 𝑚2
2. We can get the electric field by first getting the resistivity of aluminum from Table 10. 1 and
using Equation 3.
𝐸 = 𝜌𝐽 = (2.75 𝑥 10−8 𝛺 · 𝑚) (239. 61 𝐴 / 𝑚2 ) = 6.59 𝑥 10−6 𝑁/𝐶

Example 10.3: The temperature coefficient of resistivity of copper is 0.00393 / C°. If a certain length of a
copper wire has a resistance of 1 kΩ at 20°C, find its resistance at
1. 0°C
2. 100°C

Solution: We are given 𝛼 = 0.00393 / C° and R0 = 1 kΩ

1. While the Equation 6 presents the relationship between the resistivities, for the
same wire, we can rewrite the equation using R instead of ρ:

(Equation 7) 𝑹 = 𝑹𝟎 [𝟏 + 𝜶 (𝑻 − 𝑻𝟎 )]

When T = 0° C,
𝑹 = 𝑹𝟎 [𝟏 + 𝜶 (𝑻 − 𝑻𝟎 )]
= 1000 𝛺 [1 + 0.00393 / 𝐶° (0°𝐶 − 20°𝐶].
= 921. 4 Ω
2. For T= 100°C,
𝑹 = 𝑹𝟎 [𝟏 + 𝜶 (𝑻 − 𝑻𝟎 )]
= 1000 𝛺 [1 + 0.00393 / 𝐶° (100°𝐶 − 20°𝐶]
= 1314.4 Ω

Activity 10: Current

General instructions
1. Read and answer each question carefully.
2. Any kind of erasures in your equations and/or answers means wrong. Be sure to enclose your answer in a box.
3. Use ONLY pen with black ink. Pencils are NOT allowed.
4. Write your answers on the ACTIVITY NOTEBOOK.

DIRECTIONS: Solve the following: (Three points)

1. In a copper wire of diameter 2 mm, 3 x 1023 electrons flow in one second. Calculate the following:
• Current
• Current density magnitude
• Electric field magnitude
2. The resistivities of some materials are shown in Table 10.1. Calculate the conductivity of the
following:
• Silver
• Nichrome
• Pure silicon
• Wood

Lesson 11: Resistance

Ohm’s law relates current to the potential difference between the two ends of a conductor. In this section,
we will derive a more useful form of Ohm’s law.
In Figure 11.1, we see a conductor of length l with a potential
difference V across its ends. For this conductor, we can write V = Ed as
(Equation 8)
V = El
A I From Equation 3, we can write:
𝐸
𝐽 =
E 𝜌
V

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Figure 11.1: A conductor of length I with We equate this equation with Equation 2 and we get:
𝐸 𝐼
a potential difference V. =
𝜌 𝐴
Then, we substitute the E from the Equation 8 to get:
v/l 𝐼
=
ρ 𝐴
We simplify and rearrange leaving V to the left side of the equation:
𝑉 𝐼
= 𝐴,
𝜌𝑙
𝜌𝑙
𝑉= 𝐼,
𝐴
𝜌𝑙
in which refers to properties of the conductor itself: its resistivity, length, and cross-sectional area. We call this quantity
𝐴
the resistance of the wire. Thus, the resistance of the wire is:
𝝆𝒍
(Equation 9) 𝑹 =
𝑨
The unit of resistance is volts per ampere, which we call Ω (pronounced “ohm”), named after George
Simon Ohm. The equation below asserts a linear relationship between the potential difference across a
conductor and the current that goes through it:

This is the more familiar version of Ohm’s law, in which R is a constant pertaining to the resistance of
the conductor.

In our derivation, we started with the electric field and its relationship to current density and ended up
with potential difference and its relationship to current. We arrived at a simple equation that is easy to work with
because there are devices that can easily measure potential difference (or voltage for short) and current in a
circuit.

Example 11.1: A potential difference of 9V is maintained across a conductor in a circuit. If a conductor has a
resistance of 10 Ω, how many electrons flow through the conductor’s cross section in 5 seconds?

Solution: We are given V = 9 V, R = 10 Ω, and t = 5 s. First, we use Ohm’s law to calculate the
current I:
𝑉 0.9 𝐶
𝐼 = = = 5.625 𝑥 1018 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑠
𝑅 1.6 𝑥 10−19 𝐶

This is the number of electrons that flow in one second.

Since we want the number of electrons in 5 second, we simply multiply the answer by 5, so our final
answer is 2.8125 x 1019 electrons flow through the conductor in 5 seconds.

Activity 11: Resistance

General instructions
1. Read and answer each question carefully.
2. Any kind of erasures in your equations and/or answers means wrong. Be sure to enclose your answer in a box.
3. Use ONLY pen with black ink. Pencils are NOT allowed.
4. Write your answers on the ACTIVITY NOTEBOOK

DIRECTIONS: Solve the following: (Three points)

1. What is the resistance of a silver wire 15 m long at 20˚C and whose diameter is 0.00085 m? The ρ silver at
20˚C is 1.60 x 10-8 Ω-m.
2. The resistance of a copper wire is 50 Ω at 10˚C. Find its resistance at 15˚C. The temperature coefficient of
copper is 0.0039/˚C.

Lesson 12: Circuit symbol

Studying circuit becomes easier if we have neat diagrams to look at, especially when the circuit becomes
more complicated by multiple loads and branches. We start with a few standards electrical symbol (see Figure
12.1).
So far, we have used battery. It has two lines: the short one is the negative terminal; the long one is the
positive terminal. We have also used to simply remind us that resistors can be long wires squeezed into a small

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coil. The capacitor is similar to the battery except that both lines are equal in length. A switch is a safety device
used to conveniently open or close a circuit. Only switch on the circuit if you are sure that your connections are
correct.

Finally, we use two measuring devices, the ammeter and voltmeter. We will devote a lesson on these
two later in this module.

Source: Pinterest

Figure 12.1: Common electrical symbols

Lesson 13: Resistors in series and parallel

Resistors can be combined in two ways: series and parallel connections. In this section, we will
differentiate them and learn about their properties.

Source: Series circuit | electronics | Britannica

Figure 13.1: Series and parallel of bulbs

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Lesson 13.1: Resistors in series

When two or more resistors are connected in series., the same current must flow through each resistor.
Thus, if we have two resistors in series, the current I through the whole circuit is equal to the current through
each resistor:
(Equation 10)
I = I1 = I2
Think of current as flowing charges. When a charged particle enters point a in the circuit in Figure 13.2,
it cannot just disappear into thin air. It must come out of point b and then point c in succession and then
recirculate.

Figure 13.2: The circuit on the left is equivalent to that on the right.

The potential from the a to c is equal to the voltage V of the battery. A charge carrier that goes through
R1 will undergo a potential drop before it goes through R2. When it emerges from point c, its potential is back to
zero, common with the negative terminal of the battery.

Therefore, for a series connection of resistors, the sum of the potential drops of each device give us the
total voltage, which in this case is also the terminal voltage VT.
(Equation 11)
𝑉𝑇 = 𝑉1 + 𝑉2

We can apply Ohm’s law to the whole circuit, but we can also apply it to individual elements of the circuit.
We know that V = IR, so we replace Equation 11 with the corresponding expression for voltage:

𝑉𝑇 = 𝑉1 + 𝑉2
𝐼𝑅𝑒𝑞 = 𝐼1 𝑅1 + 𝐼2 𝑅2

in which Req refers to the equivalent resistance of the combination. As shown in Figure 13.2, we can
replace the two resistors in series with a single resistor that will have the same current as the original.

In the above equation, the current is the same throughout, so we can cancel it:

𝑅𝑒𝑞 = 𝑅1 + 𝑅2

When resistors are connected in series, the equivalent resistance is simply the sum of all resistances. If
there are more than two resistors, just keep adding:

(Equation 12) 𝑅𝑒𝑞 = 𝑅1 + 𝑅2 + ⋯

Example 13.1.1: In Figure 13.3, calculate the following:

1. Equivalent resistance
2. Current in the circuit Figure 13.3
3. Potential drop at each resistor

Solution:
We are given the following:
𝑉𝑇 = 24𝑉, 𝑅1 = 8𝛺, 𝑅2 = 12𝛺, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑅3 = 4𝛺

1. To find the equivalent resistance, we add up the given resistors (Equation 12):

𝑅 𝑒𝑞 = 𝑅1 + 𝑅2 + 𝑅3 = 8𝛺 + 12𝛺 + 4𝛺 = 24𝛺

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This tells us that a single resistor of resistance 24 Ω can be used instead of the given 3 to make an
equivalent circuit.

2. The total current I in the circuit is the total voltage divided by the equivalent resistance (Ohm’s
law):
𝑉𝑇 24𝑉
𝐼= = =1𝐴
𝑅𝑒𝑞 24𝛺

This also means that the current through every resistor is 1 A.

3. We can apply Ohm’s law for each resistor to get the potential drop across each:

𝑉1 = 𝐼𝑅1 = (1𝐴)(8𝛺) = 8𝛺
𝑉2 = 𝐼𝑅2 = (1𝐴)(12𝛺) = 12𝛺
𝑉3 = 𝐼𝑅3 = (1𝐴)(4𝛺) = 4𝛺

Lesson 13.2: Resistors in parallel

Req

V
+ –

Figure 13.4: The circuit on the left is equivalent to that on the right.

When resistors are connected in parallel, current branches out. As shown in Figure 13.4, at point a, the
current I split into two because there are two branches. Think of the current as moving charges. A charge carrier
going from point a to point b can only go through one resistor but not both. When a charge reaches point b, its
potential is zero. We know this because point b is connected to the negative terminal of the battery; they are at
the same potential, which we set to be zero. At point b, the two branch currents combine again. Points a and b
are what we call junctions. They indicate that the device is in parallel. A path between junctions is what we repair
to as a branch.

The branch currents I1 and I2 add up to give the current I from the battery.

(Equation 13) 𝐼 = 𝐼1 + 𝐼2 + ⋯

The rule is that the main or total current I of the combination is equal to the sum of all branch currents.
So, if there are more than two branches, just keep adding up the currents.

In parallel connection, the branches are the same potential. Note that point a is connected directly to the
positive terminal of the battery so they are at the same potential. For example, if the battery has a terminal
voltage of 1.5 V, then the potential at points a is 1.5 V and the potential at point b is zero. So, the potential
difference across each branch is 1.5 V. This is the rules for voltage for parallel connections:

(Equation 14) 𝑉 = 𝑉1 − 𝑉2 = ⋯
Now, we are going to find an equation that will give us the equivalent resistance Req in parallel connection.
To do this, we apply Ohm’s law to each branch current in Equation 13.
𝐼 = 𝐼1 + 𝐼2
𝑉𝑇 𝑉1 𝑉2
= +
𝑅𝑒𝑞 𝑅1 𝑅2
Considering that the voltages are all equal, we cancel them all out to yield:
1 1 1
(Equation 15) = +
𝑅𝑒𝑞 𝑅1 𝑅2
Thus, in the special case of a circuit having only two resistors in parallel, Equation 15 give us:
𝑅1 𝑅2
(Equation 16) 𝑅𝑒𝑞 =
𝑅1 + 𝑅2

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In general, if there are more than one resistor, the equivalent resistance is:

(Equation 17) 1
𝑅 = 1
𝑅1
+ 𝑅1 + 𝑅1 ⋯
2 3

Example 13.2.1: In Figure 13.5, find the following:

1. Equivalent resistance of the circuit
2. Total current in the circuit
3. Current through each resistor

Solution:
We are given V = 1.25 V, R1 = 2 Ω, R2 = 5 Ω, and R3 = 10 Ω
1. From Equation 17, the equivalent resistance is:
1
Req = 1 1 1
2𝛺 + 5𝛺 + 10𝛺
= 1.25 𝛺
2. Now, we use Ohm’s law again to find the total current in the circuit:

𝑉𝑇 1.25 𝑉
𝐼 = = = 1𝐴
𝑅𝑒𝑞 1.25 𝛺
3. Finally, we also use Ohm’s law again for each resistor, knowing that the potential drop across
each resistor is the same: 1.25 V.
𝑉𝑇 1.25𝑉
𝐼1 = = = 0.625𝐴
𝑅1 2𝛺
𝑉𝑇 1.25𝑉
𝐼2 = = = 0.25𝐴
𝑅2 5𝛺
𝑉𝑇 1.25𝑉
𝐼3 = = = 0.125𝐴
𝑅3 10 𝛺

A good way of confirming that you got all the answers right at this point to add up these three branch
currents (you should get exactly 1 A). We can also combine series and parallel together.

Activity 12: Circuit symbol

General instructions
1. Read and answer each question carefully.
2. Any kind of erasures in your equations and/or answers means wrong. Be sure to enclose your answer in a box.
3. Use ONLY pen with black ink. Pencils are NOT allowed.
4. Write your answers on the ACTIVITY NOTEBOOK

R1 = 3 Ω
DIRECTIONS: Solve the following: (Three points)
1. Three resistors are in series as shown in
Figure 13.6. Calculate the following:
• The equivalent resistance of the
group
V=7V R2 = 6 Ω
• The total current in the circuit when
R3 = 2 Ω
the group is connected to 7-volt
battery.
• The voltage drops across each
resistor. Figure 13.6

2. Three resistors 2Ω, 3Ω, and 5Ω are connected in (a) series (b) parallel. Find the equivalent resistance, the
current in each resistor and the potential difference across each resistor if the network is connected to a power
source of 50V.

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VI. GENERALIZATION

Generalization
Electric circuit is the path for transmitting electric current. It includes a device that gives energy to the
charged particles constituting the current, such as a battery or a generator, devices that use current, such as
lamps, electric motors, or computers, and the connecting wires or transmission lines.
There are many types of series circuits. Computers, televisions and other household electronic devices
all work through this basic idea. A loop is created to link the power source to a switch that in turn links to the
device requiring electricity that is linked back to the power source. In order to turn the device on and off, the
switch breaks and reconnects the circuit. If any part of the linking system is broken, the entire system will fail.
Another form of the circuit is parallel, which avoids the issue of breakdown using parallel links.

VII. References

Cook, C. (2018). Breaking through General Physics 2 for senior high school. C & E Publishing, Inc.
Young and Freedman. (2012). University physics. Pearson Education, Inc.

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