Concord Consortium: Measuring Voltage in Ac Circuits

Measuring the voltage in a circuit is like measuring the drop in pressure across two points. Learn more with this tutorial.

See how oscillations in an AC circuit don't always rise and fall together.

Measuring voltage drops across resistances in series-parallel circuits requires an understanding of both series and parallel circuit behavior. Learn more with this tutorial.

When measuring the current in parallel circuits, compare the circuit's total current with the current through just one resistor.

Find out how measuring voltage in a circuit is like measuring the pressure in a water pipe.

See how Ohm's Law can tell us that the voltage across resistors will depend on that current value I and each R-value.

Use Ohm's Law to calculate the current in parallel circuits.

The voltage in AC circuits oscillates at a rate known as the frequency. With an oscilloscope, see and measure the length of time between signals, and calculate the frequency of an AC signal.

Use the series and parallel resistance formulas to determine the total resistances of the parts. Then, use Ohm's Law to calculate the voltage drops across each part.

Measure current through resistances in series-parallel circuits requires current-measuring skills used in both series and parallel circuits.