Category: 1. AC Circuit

A parallel resonant circuit consists of a parallel R-L-C combination in parallel with an applied current source The Parallel RLC Circuit is the exact opposite to the series circuit we looked at in the previous tutorial although some of the previous concepts and equations still apply. However, the analysis of a parallel RLC circuits can be a little more…

Series RLC circuits consist of a resistance, a capacitance and an inductance connected in series across an alternating supply Thus far we have seen that the three basic passive components of: Resistance, Inductance, and Capacitance have very different phase relationships to each other when connected to a sinusoidal alternating voltage. But we can connect these passive elements together to…

The opposition to current flow through an AC Capacitor is called Capacitive Reactance and which itself is inversely proportional to the supply frequency  Capacitors store energy on their conductive plates in the form of an electrical charge. The amount of charge, (Q) stored in a capacitor is linearly proportional to the voltage across the plates. Thus…

The opposition to current flow through an AC Inductor is called Inductive Reactance and which depends lineally on the supply frequency When connected to an AC supply, the current flowing through an inductive coil produces a self-induced emf opposing the emf that initially set up the current. For a time-varying circuit which contains AC inductance,…

The impedance of a resistor connected to a time-varying supply is simply its AC resistance as the current in it is in-phase with the voltage across it In a DC circuit the opposition to current flow is simply called resistance. In an AC circuit, resistance is called impedance. That is, impedance, measured in Ohms, is…

The mathematics used in Electrical Engineering to add together resistances, currents or DC voltages use what are called real numbers But real numbers are not the only kind of numbers we need to use especially when dealing with frequency dependent sinusoidal sources and vectors. As well as using normal or real numbers, Complex Numbers were introduced to…

Phasor Diagrams are a graphical way of representing the magnitude and directional relationship between two or more alternating quantities Phasor diagrams present a graphical representation, plotted on a coordinate system, of the phase relationship between the voltages and currents within passive components or a whole circuit. Generally, phasors are defined relative to a reference phasor…

Sinusoidal Alternating Waveforms are time-varying periodic waveforms with parameters including voltage and frequency Sinusoidal waveforms are periodic waveforms whose shape can be plotted using the sine or cosine function from trigonometry. Electrical circuits supplied by sinusoidal waveforms whose polarity changes every cycle and are commonly known as “AC” voltages and current sources. When an electric…

AC Sinusoidal Waveforms are created by rotating a coil within a magnetic field and alternating voltages and currents form the basis of AC Theory The AC waveform used the most in circuit theory is that of the sinusoidal waveform or sine wave. A periodic AC waveform in the form of a voltage source produces an…

AC Waveform and AC Circuit Theory AC Sinusoidal Waveforms are created by rotating a coil within a magnetic field and alternating voltages and currents form the basis of AC Theory The AC waveform used the most in circuit theory is that of the sinusoidal waveform or sine wave. A periodic AC waveform in the form…