Working with electronics
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Explainer Video
Summary
Working with electronics
In a nutshell
There are many electronic devices that are used nowadays in experiments, so it is important to know how to use them.
Measuring potential difference and current
Potential difference is the difference in energy between two points in a circuit. The current is how fast electrons travel across the whole circuit.
Voltmeters
Potential difference can be measured using a voltmeter. Voltmeters are connected in parallel across the equipment you want to measure.
There are two sockets and wires in the voltmeter, commonly red (positive) and black (negative), which are connected to the voltmeter to give a reading.
Ammeters
Current can be measured by using an ammeter, in a similar way to the voltmeter, which involves the red and black wires being connected in series.
Multimeters
Multimeters can measure current, potential difference and resistance. They have different ports for you to plug the cables into to calculate each different variable.
Light gates
Light gates are a piece of equipment that measures time, speed and acceleration, by measuring the time between interruptions to the light beam.
Below is an image of a light gate.
Light gates are connected to computers and the length of the object can be input to calculate speed.
In order to find the acceleration, an object that interrupts the light beam twice is needed, so the duration of each interruption can be used to calculate acceleration. Alternatively, two light gates could be used.
Light gates can also be used as a stopwatch.
FAQs - Frequently Asked Questions
What are light gates?
Light gates are a piece of equipment that measures time, speed and acceleration, by measuring the time between interruptions to the light beam.
What does a multimeter measure?
Multimeters measure potential difference, current and resistance.
What can be used to measure current?
An ammeter is used to measure current.
What can be used to measure potential difference?
A voltmeter is used to measure potential difference.