series and parallel circuits

connected circuits

Circuits can be connected in two ways

Series and parallel

Series circuit

A circuit that has only one path for a current to travel

Parallel circuit

A circuit that has more than one path for a current to travel

Charges with one path to follow

Electrons must travel through all components of a circuit

If one part of a circuit is not connected, all electrons are blocked in the current stops eg switch open

Voltage and current in a series circuit

In an electric circuit that charge that leaves a battery loses all its voltage before it returns to the battery

Load in a series circuit

Each load in a circuit loses a portion of its total voltage supplied by the battery

Total voltage in a series circuit

In a series circuit total voltage of the circuit = some of the voltage loss on the loads

The current in each part of the series circuit is equal

Resistors in a series

Resistors placed in a series increases the total resistance Of the circuit

If you increase the total resistance of the circuit, the total current throughout the circuit decreases