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MEDICAL PHYSICS

CHAPTER NO 03 CURRENT ELECTRICITY

CONTENTS
• OHM’S LAW,
• ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS AND THEIR UNITS,
• RESISTANCE, TYPES OF RESISTANCE, UNITS
• TYPES OF CURRENT,
• CELL AND BATTERIES,
• SIMPLE VOLTAIC CELL,
• WET AND DRY LACHLANHE CELL,
• COMBINATION OF CELLS IN SERIES AND PARALLEL,
• CONTENTS CONT;
• THERMAL EFFECTS OF CURRENT ,
• CHEMICAL EFFECTS OF A CURRENT,
• ELECTROLYSIS AND ELECTROLYTIC BURNS,
• IONIZATION OF GASES AND THERMIONIC EMISSION,
• ELECTRONIC TUBES, DIODES AND TRIODES.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Ohm’s law
ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS AND THEIR UNITS
Ohm's Law states that in a simple electrical circuit, the voltage equals the electrical current times the
resistance.
V = IR
where:
V is the voltage in volts
I is the current in amperes or amps
R is the resistance in ohms

Voltage
Voltage is the electrical potential energy and is measured in volts.
A good analogy is to think of a water hose. There is water pressure or potential energy on the other side
of the faucet or outlet valve.
The unit symbol for volts is V, as in 110V.

Current
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Current indicates the amount of electrons passing through the wire and is measured in amperes or amps
for short. For some reason, they use I to indicate current instead of a different letter. The unit symbol for
amps is A, as in 2.0A.
Electrical current is similar to the rate of water flowing through a hose.

Resistance
Electrical resistance can be thought of as the "friction" on the movement of electrons in a wire.
Resistance is measured in ohms, and the unit symbol for it is the Greek letter omega, Ω.
Resistance value is designated in units called the "Ohm." A 1000 Ohm resistor is typically shown as 1K-
Ohm ( kilo Ohm ), and 1000 K-Ohms is written as 1M-Ohm ( megohm ).

TYPES OF RESISTANCE
There are two classes of resistors;
FIXED RESISTORS
VARIABLE RESISTORS.
They are also classified according to the material from which they are made. The typical resistor is made
of either carbon film or metal film. There are other types as well, but these are the most common.

Fixed Resistors
A fixed resistor is one in which the value of its resistance cannot change.
Carbon film resistors
This is the most general purpose, cheap resistor. Usually the tolerance of the resistance value is ±5%.
Carbon film resistors have a disadvantage; they tend to be electrically noisy.

Metal film resistors

Metal film resistors are used when a higher tolerance (more accurate value) is needed. They are much
more accurate in value than carbon film resistors.
They have about ±0.05% tolerance.

Metal film resistors

Variable Resistors
There are two general ways in which variable resistors are used.
One is the variable resistor which value is easily changed, like the volume adjustment of Radio.
The other is semi-fixed resistor that is not meant to be adjusted by anyone but a technician.
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Resistor color code

RESISTENCE IN CIRCUIT
Resistors in Series
A series circuit is one with all the loads in a row. Like links in a chain. There is only one path for the
electricity to flow.

Resistors in Parallel
A parallel circuit is one that has two or more paths for the electricity to flow. In other words, the loads
are parallel to each other.

Laws of Resistance
1.The resistance of a conductor varies directly as its length.
2.The resistance of a conductor varies inversely to its cross section area.
3. The resistance of a conductor depends on the material.
4. The resistance of a conductor depends on its temperature.
The above factors can be summed up mathematically as

where ρ is constant representing the nature of material and is known as specific resistance.

TYPES OF CURRENT
AC - Alternating Current
DC - Direct Current

AC - Alternating Current
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Alternating Current is current in which the direction changes with time.

AC Sources:
Power Plant (Mains Supply)
Generators (e.g. Backup and Emergency Generators at Commercial Buildings)

DC - Direct Current
Direct Current is unidirectional. The magnitude may vary but the direction is always fixed.
DC Sources:
Dry Cells
Secondary Cells (e.g. Car Battery)
Photovoltaic Cells (Solar Cells)
DC Generators
AC to DC adapters

Electricity
CELL AND BATTERIES
In order to provide a potential difference, or electro-motive force (EMF) a store of energy is required.
One such method is a battery or cell.
Any device that converts chemical energy into electrical energy.
The term battery is used when several electrical cells are connected together to provide a source of a
potential difference in a circuit. If it is just a single chemical source then it is called a cell.

SIMPLE VOLTAIC CELL

In a simple voltaic cell a zinc plate and a copper plate are immersed in a very dilute solution of sulphuric
acid, taken in a glass vessel. These two metal plates are called electrodes and the solution is called the
electrolyte. The copper plate and the zinc plate are externally connected to a bulb
Zinc loses electrons more readily than copper, as it is more electropositive than copper. Each zinc atom
loses two free electrons and hence gains two units of positive charge.
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As copper is lower in the metal activity series, it does not undergo a similar reaction and hence remains a
region of deficiency of electrons.

So, when the zinc plate and the copper plate are connected by means of a metal wire, free electrons from
the zinc plate flow to the copper plate and the bulb connected externally starts glowing.

ALSO CALLED Zinc Carbon

This is commonly known as the Leclanché Cell and despite being the oldest type of battery it is still the
most commonly used as it is very low-cost. Traditional Zinc Carbon batteries cannot be reused when
their chemical energy has been released

COMBINATION OF CELLS IN SERIES AND PARALLEL

CELLS IN SERIES
These batteries are in a series. The longer the series, the more Volts you have running through the bulb.
Three 1.5 Volt batteries provide 4.5 Volts.
You may have noticed that the traditional flashlight comes in various sizes to accommodate a varying
number of batteries stacked end to end.

CELLS IN PARALLEL
Devices that require more current are typically designed to use larger cells because the larger cells are
capable of delivering a proportionally larger current. The battery cells in a laptop are set up in a
combination of series and parallel to provide the correct current and voltage.
4S2P means four cells in a series and two parallel.
THERMOELECTRICITY
Thermoelectricity refers to the phenomena that occur at the junctions of dissimilar conductors when a
temperature difference exists between the junctions. The same phenomenon occurs within a single
conductor too, with the two ends are maintained at different temperatures.
Seebeck Effect
This effect is named after common Johann Seebeck, a German physicist, who discovered it in 1821.
He found that Bismuth, are joined at their ends (called a junction) through a sensitive galvanometer, and
the two junctions are kept at different temperatures, then the galvanometer shows a deflection.
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Cont;
This emf generated in the circuit is called thermoelectric emf or thermo-emf, for short. The resulting
current is known as thermoelectric current. The two junction circuit is called a thermocouple.
This effect is called thermoelectric effect because heat energy is directly converted into electrical energy
Another example of thermo electrical
Applications of Thermoelectricity
Thermoelectric thermometer
This provides the most accurate and conveinient measurement of temperature.
Thermoelectric Detector
The thermopile is a sensitive device used for detection and measurement of intensity of heat or high
radiation. It is based on Seebeck effect.
Cont;

Thermocouple current-meter
Thermoelectric effects are also used to measure current. A thermocouple current-meter consists of a
resistance R, a thermocouple and a sensitive galvanometer.
Thermoelectric generator
Thermo-couples can be used to generate electric power using Seebeck effect, in remote areas.
CHEMICAL EFFECTS OF A CURRENT
Solid and molten metals are good conductors of electricity due to free electrons. When current
flows through metals, only heating occurs and no chemical effect is observed.
Most liquids have no free electrons and hence do not conduct electricity, e.g., water.
Cont;
When an acid, base or an inorganic salt is added to water it dissociates into positive and negative
ions which conduct electricity. The solutions which conduct electric current are called electrolytes
and the vessel containing it along with electrodes is called an electrolytic cell.
CHEMICAL EFFECTS OF A CURRENT
When an electric current passes through a liquid it may cause a chemical reaction to occur in the liquid.
The passage of an electric current through a conducting liquid causes chemical reactions. The resulting
effects are called Chemical effects of currents.

ELECTROLYSIS
The splitting (lysing) of a substance or decomposing by forcing a current through a cell to produce a
chemical change for which the cell potential is negative.
OR
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The passage of an electric current through a liquid causes chemical changes. This process is known
as electrolysis.
Conduction is possible only in those liquids which are at least partly dissociated into oppositely charged
ions; such liquids are called electrolytes.
The electrolytic cell
Electric current forces charges on electrodes
Electrolysis
Schematic of the electroplating of a spoon.
Molten NaCl Electrolytic Cell
cathode half-cell (-)
REDUCTION Na+ + e-  Na

anode half-cell (+)

OXIDATION 2Cl-  Cl2 + 2e-

overall cell reaction

2Na+ + 2Cl-  2Na + Cl2

ELECTROLYTIC BURNS
FIRST WE READ ABOUT ELECTRICAL MUSCELS STIMULATION EMS
Electrical stimulation uses an electrical current to cause a single muscle or a group of muscles to
contract. By placing electrodes on the skin in various locations the physical therapist can recruit the
appropriate muscle fibers.
ELECTROLYTIC BURNS
Burns produced by the constant D.C. are electrolyte or chemical burns.
Tissue is destroyed and the burn appears, as a grey spot surrounded by the reddened area.

REASION OF ELECTROLYTIC BURN

Burns are most liable to occur if the current is applied with metal in contact with the tissues, as the
tissues are then directly involved in the chemical actions. This may occur if the electrode, clip, or end of
the lead projects over the edge of the pad.

REASION OF ELECTROLYTIC BURN

Concentration of current may also cause burn as more chemicals are formed in the area of concentration
than elsewhere. This may be due to a break in the skin to the presence of un dissolved slats on the pad, to
pads of uneven thickness or with creases or with raw edges of pads that are unevenly damp.
REASION OF ELECTROLYTIC BURN
If the pads are too thin for the intensity and duration of the treatment, chemicals may soak through skin,
or if the pads have been properly washed after a previous treatment and still contain some chemicals, the
same thing may occur.
If the patient has not received adequate warning of the sensations she will experience, she may tolerate
too much current or concentration may pass undetected.
IONIZATION OF GASES
Gases are made of molecules with no linking force between them (by opposition to liquids, and even
more to solids!). A gas naturally has a small ionization rate, this means a small quantity of ionized
molecules compared to the total quantity of molecules in a given volume.

PLASMA
A plasma can be seen as a highly ionized gas.
This definition is not very academic, but it describes quite well what a plasma is.
‘A ionized gas, so ionized that it local charges are large enough with a long enough lifetime to produce
effects!’
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CONT;
Plasma was first identified in a Crookes tube, and so described by Sir William Crookes in 1879 (he
called it "radiant matter") in which cathode rays, that is electrons, were discovered
THERMIONIC EMISSION
Thermionic emission, also known as thermal electron emission, is the process by which charge carriers,
such as electrons or ions, move over a surface or some sort of energy barrier by the induction of heat.
When we heat up the metal we get a cloud of electrons that are ‘boiling’ off the metal surface and then
(usually!) falling back again.
This property of ‘boiling off’ electrons is called ‘Thermionic Emission’ as the emission of electrons is
produced by the heat.

OR
This property of ‘boiling off’ electrons is called ‘Thermionic Emission’ as the emission of electrons is
produced by the heat.
ELECTRONIC TUBES, DIODES AND TRIODES
In electronics, a vacuum tube/ electron tube /thermionic valve is a device used to amplify, switch,
otherwise modify, or create an electrical signal by controlling the movement of electrons in a low-
pressure space.
Tubes depend on the thermionic emission of electrons.

DIODES
It basically consists of two parts or ‘Electrodes’, surrounded by an envelope which allows them to
operate in a vacuum.
diode is a two-terminal electronic component that conducts electric current in only one direction.
The most common function of a diode is to allow an electric current in one direction (called the diode's
forward direction) while blocking current in the opposite direction (the reverse direction). Thus, the
diode can be thought of as an electronic version of a check valve.
TRIODE
The tri part of triode means 3. There are three elements in a triode, the cathode, grid, and plate or anode.
If we write an ode to tri we have a 3 element tube. The heater doesn't count since it doesn't take part in
the operation, it just provides the heat.
Electrons are emitted from the cathode exactly the same as in a diode.
They collect in a space charge around the cathode and protect it from heavy positive ions that could do
serious damage.
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In normal operation the grid is made negative with respect to the cathode and never goes positive.
The grid does not attract electrons and because its wires are very thin, in modern tubes, few electrons run
into it by accident.
The electric field of the grid repels the negatively charged electrons and limits the number that can pass
through to the plate. If the grid is made negative enough no electrons at all can get through. As the grid is
made less negative it lets more and more electrons through.