Electricity

circuit breaker

A circuit breaker is an automatically operated electrical switch designed to protect an electrical circuit from damage caused by Over current/overload or short circuit. Its basic function is to interrupt current flow after Protective relays detect faults condition.

parallel circuit

A parallel circuit has two or more paths for current to flow through. Voltage is the same across each component of the parallel circuit. The sum of the currents through each path is equal to the total current that flows from the source.

series circuit

A series circuit is a circuit where there is only one path from the source through all of the loads and back to the source. This means that all of the current in the circuit must flow through all of the loads. One example of a series circuit is a string of old Christmas lights.

alternating current

Alternating current (AC), is an electric current in which the flow of electric charge periodically reverses direction, whereas in direct current (DC, also dc), the flow of electric charge is only in one direction.

electric circuit

An electric circuit is a path in which electrons from a voltage or current source flow. Electric current flow in a closed path is called an electric circuit. The point where those electrons enter an electrical circuit is called the "source" of electrons.

electric current

An electric current is a flow of electric charge. In electric circuits this charge is often carried by moving electrons in a wire. It can also be carried by ions in an electrolyte, or by both ions and electrons such as in a plasma.

insulator

An electrical insulator is a material whose internal electric charges do not flow freely, and therefore make it nearly impossible to conduct an electric current under the influence of an electric field.

direct current

Direct current (DC) is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. Direct current is produced by sources such as batteries, power supplies, thermocouples, solar cells, or dynamos.

electric charge

Electric charge is the physical property of matter that causes it to experience a force when placed in an electromagnetic field. There are two types of electric charges: positive and negative.

electric force

Electric charge is the physical property of matter that causes it to experience a force when placed in an electromagnetic field. There are two types of electric charges: positive and negative.

electric field

Electric field is defined as the electric force per unit charge. The direction of the field is taken to be the direction of the force it would exert on a positive test charge. The electric field is radially outward from a positive charge and radially in toward a negative point charge.

induction

Electromagnetic induction is the production of an electromotive force across a conductor exposed to time varying magnetic fields. Michael Faraday, who mathematically described Faraday's law of induction, is generally credited with its discovery in 1831.

grounding

Grounding is the process of removing the excess charge on an object by means of the transfer of electrons between it and another object of substantial size. When a charged object is grounded, the excess charge is balanced by the transfer of electrons between the charged object and a ground.

static electricity

Static electricity is an imbalance of electric charges within or on the surface of a material. The charge remains until it is able to move away by means of an electric current or electrical discharge.

superconductor

Superconductors are materials that conduct electricity with no resistance. This means that, unlike the more familiar conductors such as copper or steel, a superconductor can carry a current indefinitely without losing any energy.

resistance

The electrical resistance of an electrical conductor is a measure of the difficulty to pass an electric current through that conductor. The inverse quantity is electrical conductance, the ease with which an electric current passes.

battery

a container consisting of one or more cells, in which chemical energy is converted into electricity and used as a source of power.

conductor

a material or device that conducts or transmits heat, electricity, or sound, especially when regarded in terms of its capacity to do this.

fuse

a safety device consisting of a strip of wire that melts and breaks an electric circuit if the current exceeds a safe level.

voltage

an electromotive force or potential difference expressed in volts.

potential difference

the difference of electrical potential between two points.