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FACULTY OF ENGINEERING, ARCHITECTURE & BUILT ENVIRONMENT

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
EV101 ELECTRICAL PRINCIPLES
Experiment 1
Ohms Law to a Resistor
Objective:
To test Ohms Law by plotting V vs I for a resistor.
To become familiar with the voltmeter ammeter methods for measuring
resistance, voltage, and current.
Apparatus and components:
1. Resistor: 1 k.
2. Breadboard.
3. DC power supply.
4. Multimeter.
5. Jumpers/cables/connectors.
Background theory:
Relation between currents which are flowing through an electrical or electronic
device/component and voltages across the device/component, as depicted in Fig. 1.1, is
very important. The resistance value of a resistor is depending on the length, l, the surface
area, A, and the resistivity, of its material to the current.
(i) Resistance vs conductors size. (ii) Current and voltage relationship on the resistor.
Fig. 1.1. The principles of resistance.
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Relation between resistor (R), current (I), and voltage (V) is stated by Ohms law as
I=V/R .. (1.1)
Equation (1.1) can be represented as a linear straight line of voltage vs current graph, as
depicted in Fig. 1.2. The slope of the line is proportional to the inverse of the resistor.
Fig. 1.2 Voltage vs current (Ohms law)
Procedure:
1. Build a circuit shown in Fig. 1.3 on the breadboard.
Fig. 1.3 Proving Ohms law on a resistor.
2. Measure the value of resistor, R, shown in Fig. 1.3 before switch ON the dc power supply.
Record the measurement results into Table 1.1.
3. Calculate current, I, flows in circuit of Fig. 1.3. Record the results in Table 1.1.
4. Switch ON dc power supply and set the output voltage, E, equal to 1 V.
5. Measure the voltage across the resistor,
R
V , of the circuit in Fig. 1.3 using Voltmeter. Use
the Voltmeter in appropriate range. Record the measurement results into Table 1.1.
6. Measure the current flowing in the circuit using Ammeter and record the measurement
results into Table 1.1. Dont forget to set the Ammeter in appropriate range.
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7. Re-do step 3 to 5 for each output voltage of dc power supply, E, given in Table 1.1.
Record the results.
Table 1.1 Calculation and measurement data for proving Ohms law on resistor.
R (theory)= 1 k R (measured) = ..
E (set values) I (calculated) V (measured) I (measured)
1 V
2 V
3 V
4 V
5 V
6 V
7 V
8 V
9 V
10 V
11 V
12 V
13 V
14 V
15 V
8. Plot the graph of V vs I on Fig. 1.4 for;
(i). E (set values) vs I (calculated)
(ii). V (measured) vs I (measured).
Fig. 1.4 I vs V on Resistor
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9. Calculate the slope of the graph and the value of resistor in Fig. 1.4.
]. [
] / [ /




R
V A V I
Discussion:
Conclusion: