ID Resources: Topic 6– Direct Current

Circuits
1. Kirchhoff's junction rule is an example of _____. 5. For the junction shown in the figure, which
equation correctly expresses the sum of the
A. conservation of energy currents?

B. conservation of charge
C. conservation of mass
D. conservation of potential

2. Kirchhoff's loop rule is an example of _____.

A. conservation of energy
B. conservation of charge A. 𝑖1 + 𝑖2 + 𝑖3 + 𝑖4 = 0

C. conservation of mass B. 𝑖1 − 𝑖2 + 𝑖3 + 𝑖4 = 0

D. conservation of potential C. −𝑖1 + 𝑖2 + 𝑖3 − 𝑖4 = 0

D. 𝑖1 − 𝑖2 − 𝑖3 − 𝑖4 = 0
3. The diagram below represents currents in a
segment of an electric circuit. What is the
reading of ammeter A? 6. The single-loop circuit below has two
batteries and two resistors. What is the current
through the 4  resistor?
A. 1A
B. 2A
C. 3A
D. 4A

4. The figure below shows a network of currents.

What is the current 𝑖?

A. –3A
B. 3A A. 1.0 A

C. 13 A B. 1.5 A
D. 23 A C. 4.0 A
D. 6.0 A

Page 1 of 8
7. Which of the following equations represent 9. In the multiloop circuit shown in the figure,
the current 𝐼 in the circuit below. 𝑉1 = 6.00 𝑉, 𝑉2 = 12.0 𝑉, 𝑅1 = 10.0 𝛺, and
𝑅2 = 12.0 𝛺. What is the magnitude of current
𝑖2 ?

ε1 − ε2
A. I= A. 0.500 A
R1 + R 2
B. 0.750 A
𝜀1 + 𝜀2
B. 𝐼= C. 1.00 A
𝑅1 + 𝑅2
𝜀1 − 𝜀2 D. 1.25 A
C. 𝐼=
𝑅1 − 𝑅2
10. Which of the circuits shown in the figure will
𝜀1 + 𝜀2
D. 𝐼= not function properly?
𝑅1 − 𝑅2

8. Three resistors are connected across a battery

of unknown voltage as shown below.

A. 1 only
What value of R will produce the indicated B. 3 only
currents?
C. 2 and 4
D. 2, 3 and 4
A. 10 
B. 20  11. An ammeter can be used to measure
different ranges of current by adding a ______
C. 40  resistor connected in _______with the ammeter.
D. 60 
A. shunt series
B. shunt parallel
C. multiplier series
D. multiplier parallel

Page 2 of 8
12. In an RC circuit, ℇ = 6 𝑉, 𝑅 = 2000 𝛺 and Questions 16 and 17
𝐶 = 4 𝑚𝐹. What is the time constant? In the circuit shown in the figure, the capacitor,
C, is initially uncharged.
A. 0.5 𝑠
B. 1.5 𝑠
C. 2.0 𝑠
D. 8.0 𝑠

13. In an RC circuit the time constant is the 1. Immediately after the switch is closed, ___.
amount of time that it takes for the capacitor to
become charged to what percent? A. the current through R1 is zero

A. 25 % the current flowing through R1 is

B.
larger than that through R2
B. 50 % the current flowing through R2 is
C.
C. 63 % larger than that through R1

D. 86 % the current flowing through R1 is the

D.
same as that through R2
Questions 14 and 15
2. After the switch is closed for long time, _____.
A resistor and a capacitor are connected in series
to an ideal battery of constant terminal voltage.
A. the current through R1 is zero
14. At the moment contact is made with the the current flowing through R1 is
battery, the voltage across the capacitor is _____. B.
larger than that through R2
the current flowing through R2 is
A. zero C.
larger than that through R1
B. half of the battery's terminal voltage the current flowing through R1 is the
D.
C. equal to the battery's terminal voltage same as that through R2
greater than the battery's terminal
D. 18. An RC circuit is built using a 1.0 MΩ resistor,
voltage
an initially uncharged 20 µF capacitor, and a
battery with a terminal voltage of 5.0 V. Which
15. At the moment contact is made with the
equation would be used to determine the charge
battery, the voltage across the resistor is _____.
in coulombs on the plates of the capacitor as a
function of time?
A. zero
B. half of the battery's terminal voltage A. 𝑞 = 100 × 10−6 (1 − 𝑒 −𝑡/20 )
C. equal to the battery's terminal voltage B. 𝑞 = 100 × 10−6 (1 − 𝑒 𝑡/20 )
greater than the battery's terminal C. 𝑞 = 100 × 10−6 (𝑒 −𝑡/20 )
D.
voltage
D. 𝑞 = (1 − 𝑒 −𝑡/20 )

Page 3 of 8
19. At t = 0 the switch S is closed with the 22. A 24 V battery is connected to a switch, an
capacitor uncharged. If C = 50 µF, ℇ = 20 V, and ammeter, a 6 Ω resistor, a 1000 µF capacitor, and
R = 4.0 kΩ, what is the charge on the capacitor a 12 Ω resistor as shown below. The switch is
when I = 2.0 mA? closed at time 𝑡 = 0. What is the current
indicated by the ammeter a long time after the
A. 360 µC switch is closed?

B. 400 µC
C. 480 µC
D. 600 µC

20. A capacitor C is charged to a potential 𝑉0 and A. 0A

placed in series with resistor 𝑅 at time 𝑡 = 0.
What is the charge on the plates of the capacitor B. 1A
at time 𝑡 = 𝑅𝐶? C. 2A
D. 4A
A. 𝑄 = 𝐶𝑉0
𝐶𝑉0 23. The capacitor 𝐶 in the circuit below is
B. 𝑄=
𝑒 initially uncharged. The switch 𝑆 is then closed.
𝑉0
C. 𝑄=
𝑅
D. 𝑄 = 𝐶𝑉0 𝑒

21. A capacitor of capacitance 𝐶 is connected in Which of the following best represents the
series with a resistor 𝑅 and a battery of emf ℇ. current 𝑖 through the resistor 𝑅 as a function of
The graph below shows the charge 𝑞 on the time 𝑡?
capacitor approaching a value 𝑞𝑚𝑎𝑥 with
increasing time 𝑡.

A.

B.
Which of the following expressions represent
𝑞𝑚𝑎𝑥 ?

A. 𝑅/𝐶ℇ C.
B. 𝑅𝐶/ ℇ
C. ℇ/𝑅𝐶
D. 𝐶ℇ D.

Page 4 of 8
Free Response:

1. For the circuit below, use Kirchhoff’s loop rule to find the resistance 𝑅.

2. For the circuit below, use Kirchhoff’s loop rule to find the current 𝐼 in the circuit.

3. The ammeter shown in figure below reads 2.00 A.

a. Find the current 𝐼1 .

b. Find the current 𝐼2 .

4. An ammeter produces a full-scale reading when a current of 𝑖𝑖𝑛𝑡 = 5.10 𝑚𝐴 passes through it. The
ammeter has an internal resistance of 𝑅𝑖 = 16.8 Ω. To use this ammeter to measure a maximum current
of 𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 20.2 𝐴, what should be the resistance of the shunt resistor, 𝑅𝑠 , connected in parallel with the
ammeter?

Page 5 of 8
5. Consider a series RC circuit for which 𝑅 = 1.0 𝑀𝛺, 𝐶 = 5.0 µ𝐹, and ℇ = 30 𝑉as in the figure below.

a. Find the time constant of the circuit.

b. Find the charge on the capacitor 10 s after the switch is closed.

c. What is the time needed to discharge the capacitor to 30% of its initial value?

d. Explain what happens to the time constant of the RC circuit if both the capacitance and the
resistance are doubled?

6. Consider the RC circuit in the figure below for which 𝑅 = 1.50 𝑀Ω, 𝐶 = 4.00𝜇𝐹, and 𝜀 = 25.0 𝑉.

a. Calculate the time constant for the circuit.

b. Calculate the maximum charge on the capacitor after the switch

is closed.

c. Find the current in the resistor 10.0 s after the switch is closed.

Page 6 of 8
7. The figure below shows the charging and discharging of a capacitor.

a. What is the potential difference across each, the capacitor 𝐶 and the resistor 𝑅 at time 𝑡 = 0 in
figure 𝑎, when the switch was just closed?

b. How does the current through the resistor 𝑅 vary with time in figure 𝑏? Write an equation for the
current to represent this change.

c. Calculate the time constant of the circuit, if the capacitor discharges through the resistor and loses
60% of its charge in 15 s

8. In the circuit below, after the switch is closed and the capacitor is fully charged.

a. Find the current in the 2.0 Ω resistor, explaining

how you arrived at your answer.

b. What is the current in the 1Ω resistor?

Page 7 of 8
9. Draw the charging and discharging curves for a capacitor.

Charging/ Charge versus time graph Voltage versus time graphs

Discharging

Charging

Discharging

Page 8 of 8