Series & Parallel Circuits
- A series circuit consists of a string of two or more components, connected end to end:
Diagram showing two bulbs connected in series
- A parallel circuit consists of two or more components attached along separate branches of the circuit
Diagram showing two bulbs connected in parallel
Series Circuit
- A series circuit consists of a string of components connected in the same loop to a power supply
- In a series circuit:
- The current is the same at all points around the loop
- The potential difference of the power supply is shared between the individual components
- Two disadvantages of series circuits are:
- If one of the components breaks, all of the others will stop working
- The components cannot be controlled (switched on and off) separately
Construction of a simple series circuit with an ammeter, voltmeter, cell and resistor
Parallel Circuit
- The advantages of this kind of circuit are:
- The components can be individually controlled, using their own switches
- If one component stops working the others will continue to function
- In a parallel circuit, the current splits up - some of it going one way and the rest going the other
- This means that the current in each branch will be smaller than the current from the power supply
