| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| charge | A fundamental property of matter that can be positive or negative, determining how objects interact electromagnetically. |
| charge carrier | Particles that carry electric charge through a medium, such as electrons in a wire. |
| conventional current | The direction of electric current flow defined as the movement of positive charges from the positive terminal to the negative terminal of a power source. |
| current | The flow of electric charge through a conductor, measured in amperes (A). |
| electric potential difference | The difference in electric potential energy per unit charge between two points in a circuit, measured in volts; also called voltage. |
| electromotive force | The energy per unit charge provided by a source such as a battery to move charge through a circuit; abbreviated as emf (ε). |
| electron | Negatively charged particles that serve as the primary charge carriers in most common electrical circuits. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| circuit | A closed or open path composed of electrical loops and circuit elements through which electric charge may flow. |
| circuit element | A component in an electric circuit, such as a resistor or bulb, through which current flows and across which a potential difference exists. |
| circuit schematic | A diagram used to represent and analyze electric circuits using standardized symbols for circuit elements. |
| closed circuit | A circuit in which charges are able to flow through a complete path. |
| conventional current | The direction of electric current flow defined as the movement of positive charges from the positive terminal to the negative terminal of a power source. |
| electric potential difference | The difference in electric potential energy per unit charge between two points in a circuit, measured in volts; also called voltage. |
| electrical loop | A closed path in a circuit through which charges may flow. |
| open circuit | A circuit in which charges are not able to flow due to a break in the path. |
| short circuit | A circuit in which charges flow with no change in potential difference. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| charge | A fundamental property of matter that can be positive or negative, determining how objects interact electromagnetically. |
| conductor | A material through which electric charge can move, with resistivity that typically increases with temperature. |
| cross-sectional area | The area of a cross-section of a conductor, which is inversely proportional to its resistance. |
| current | The flow of electric charge through a conductor, measured in amperes (A). |
| electric potential difference | The difference in electric potential energy per unit charge between two points in a circuit, measured in volts; also called voltage. |
| electrical characteristics | The properties of circuit elements that describe how they respond to and affect electric current and voltage, including resistance and conductivity. |
| Ohm's law | The relationship stating that current through a conductive element is directly proportional to the potential difference across it and inversely proportional to its resistance (I = ΔV/R). |
| ohmic materials | Materials that obey Ohm's law and maintain constant resistance regardless of the current flowing through them. |
| resistance | The opposition to the flow of electric current through a material or circuit element. |
| resistivity | An intrinsic property of a material that measures its resistance to electric current flow; remains constant for ohmic materials regardless of temperature. |
| resistor | Circuit elements designed to provide resistance to current flow and convert electrical energy into thermal energy. |
| thermal energy | The energy produced when a resistor converts electrical energy, which can increase the temperature of the resistor and its surroundings. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| brightness | The luminous intensity of a bulb, which increases with the power dissipated by the bulb. |
| circuit element | A component in an electric circuit, such as a resistor or bulb, through which current flows and across which a potential difference exists. |
| current | The flow of electric charge through a conductor, measured in amperes (A). |
| electric potential difference | The difference in electric potential energy per unit charge between two points in a circuit, measured in volts; also called voltage. |
| energy transfer | The movement of energy into, out of, or within an electric circuit through the work done by electric forces. |
| power | The rate at which energy is transferred, converted, or dissipated in an electric circuit, measured in watts. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| closed loop | A complete path in a circuit that starts and ends at the same point, allowing current to flow continuously. |
| conservation of energy | The principle that the total energy in an isolated system remains constant, with energy transforming between different forms but not being created or destroyed. |
| electric potential | A scalar quantity that represents the electric potential energy per unit charge at a point in space, measured in volts. |
| electric potential difference | The difference in electric potential energy per unit charge between two points in a circuit, measured in volts; also called voltage. |
| Kirchhoff's loop rule | A principle stating that the sum of potential differences across all circuit elements in a single closed loop must equal zero, based on conservation of energy. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| conservation of charge | The principle that the total electric charge in an isolated system remains constant over time. |
| current | The flow of electric charge through a conductor, measured in amperes (A). |
| junction | A point in a circuit where two or more conductors meet, allowing current to split or combine. |
| Kirchhoff's junction rule | A principle stating that the total electric charge entering a junction per unit time equals the total charge exiting that junction per unit time, based on conservation of electric charge. |
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| capacitor in parallel | Capacitors connected with all positive plates connected together and all negative plates connected together, where the equivalent capacitance equals the sum of individual capacitances. |
| capacitor in series | Capacitors connected end-to-end in a single path, where the same charge accumulates on each capacitor and the equivalent capacitance is less than the smallest individual capacitance. |
| charging capacitor | A capacitor in a circuit that is accumulating charge on its plates, with increasing potential difference and decreasing current over time until reaching steady state. |
| conservation of charge | The principle that the total electric charge in an isolated system remains constant over time. |
| discharging capacitor | A capacitor in a circuit that is releasing stored charge from its plates, with decreasing potential difference, charge, and current over time until reaching steady state. |
| electric potential energy stored in the capacitor | The energy stored in a capacitor due to the separation of charge on its plates, which changes during charging and discharging and approaches a constant value at steady state. |
| equivalent capacitance | The single capacitance value that can replace a collection of capacitors in a circuit while maintaining the same electrical behavior. |
| fully charged | The state of a capacitor after a long charging time when it has reached maximum potential difference and zero current flows in the circuit branch containing it. |
| potential difference across a capacitor | The voltage between the plates of a capacitor, which changes over time during charging and discharging and asymptotically approaches a steady-state value. |
| RC circuit | A circuit containing a resistor and capacitor in combination, where the capacitor charges or discharges through the resistor over time. |
| steady state | A condition reached after a long time interval where the potential difference across a capacitor and current in the circuit branch remain constant. |
| time constant | A measure of how quickly a capacitor charges or discharges in an RC circuit, defined as τ = R_eq × C_eq, representing the time for charge to reach approximately 63% of final value when charging or 37% of initial value when discharging. |