Applying Kirchoff s rules using voltages, not currents

Method:
Assign an unknown voltage to every junction in the circuit. You can set
the voltage at one junction whichever one you choose to be anything
you like, usually zero.
For every pair of junctions which has a direct path between them (i.e.
not passing through other junctions), obtain the current in terms of the
voltage difference between the two ends, using Ohms law etc. If any path
only has a voltage source in it (no resistors), the voltage difference between
the two ends is fixed by the voltage source.
Impose the condition that the total current flowing into each junction
is equal to zero. This gives a set of equations for the various junction
voltages.
Solve the equations to find the junction voltages.
For each direct path between junction pairs, now that you know the voltage
difference between the ends, find the current.
Examples
Giancoli 26-41: Resistor network
To find the resistance between the specified points, connect a voltage source
with voltage V0 between them and apply Kirchoffs rules. Let us call the apex
of the triangle d.
In the first case, there is no symmetry in the problem. If Va = V0 and
Vc = 0, the currents flowing into b from all three paths leading into it add up to
(V0 Vb )/R + (0 Vb )/R + (Vd Vb )/R = 0. The currents flowing into d from all
three paths leading into it add up to (V0 Vd )/R+(Vb Vd )/R+(0Vd )/R0 = 0.
Combining these equations, we have
V0 + Vd 3Vb

V0 + Vb 2Vd = Vd R/R .

(1)

We do not apply Kirchoffs junction rule to a or c because the current flowing

along the path between them with the voltage source (the path has zero resistance and zero voltage drop outside the voltage source, so that the current from
Ohms law is 0/0). But the two equations are enough to obtain
4V0 R0 /(5R0 + 3R)

Vd

Vb

= V0 (3R0 + R)/(5R0 + 3R).

(2)

Therefore the total current flowing into the triangle from a towards b, c and d,
which is (V0 Vb )/R + (V0 0)/R + (V0 Vd )/R, is equal to


V0 2R0 + 2R
3R + R0
V0 8(R0 + R)
+
1
+
=
.
(3)
R 5R0 + 3R
5R0 + 3R
R 5R0 + 3R
This is, therefore, the current flowing into a from the battery. Therefore the
effective resistance of the triangle between a and c is R(5R0 + 3R)/[8(R + R0 )].
You have to work with two unknown voltages. By contrast, if you had used
the method in your book, you would start with 7 unknown currents (each path
in the triangle, and through the battery). You would apply Kirchoffs junction
rules to reduce this to 4 unknown currents (one junction equation is always
superfluous), and then use Kirchoffs loop rule to obtain 4 equations for these
4 currents. This is more complicated, but is certainly correct. You can do this
if you prefer.
In the second case, Va = V0 and Vb = 0. By symmetry, Vc = Vd . The total
current flowing into d from a, b and c is
0 Vd
V0 Vd
+
+ Vd Vd R = 0
R
R

(4)

so that V0 2Vd = 0. By symmetry, applying Kirchoffs rules to c gives the

same result. As before, we cant apply the junction rule to a or b. From our one
equation we have Vd = Vc = V0 /2, so that the total current flowing out from a
into the triangle is (V0 V0 /2)/R + (V0 V0 /2)/R + V0 /R = 2V0 /R. This must
be the current flowing into a from the battery. Since connecting a battery of
voltage V0 results in a current of 2V0 /R, the resistance of the circuit is R/2.
Giancoli 26-42: Resistors and voltage sources
There are two junctions in this problem. Since all the three direct paths between
these junctions have resistors in them, not just voltage sources, we do not know
the voltage difference between the junctions. Let the voltage at the junction
on the right be V1 and at the junction on the left be zero. The current flowing
from right to left along the topmost path is V1 /4. The currrent flowing along
the bottom path is (V1 3V )/0.45, because of the voltage drop V1 from right
to left, 3 Volts occurs across the battery, so that the rest must be across the
resistor. The currrent flowing along the middle path is (V1 2V )/0.45. All
these three have to add up to zero. This implies that V1 , which is the voltage
drop across the resistor R, is 2.367 V. Current flows from right to left in the
weaker battery, i.e. opposite to the direction it tries to push the current, because
it is overridden by the stronger battery.
Giancoli 24-40: Capacitors and voltage sources
We avoided these problems before. The nice thing is that you can solve them
applying exactly the same method as above, except that you have to work with
charges instead of currents. If the two plates of a capacitor of capacitance C
are at potentials Va and Vb , the charges on the two plates are Qa = (Va Vb )C
and Qb = (Vb Va )C, which are obviously equal and opposite.
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In the figure in your book, let the voltages at the four junctions be, from
top to bottom, V, V1 , V2 and zero. The charges on the capacitor plates that
are connected to the junction at voltage V1 are then (V1 V )C2 , (V1 V2 )C3
and V1 C1 . These must add up to zero. Similarly, the charges on the capacitor
plates that are connected to the junction at voltage V2 are (V2 V1 )C3 , V2 C4
and (V2 V )C5 . Using C1 = C3 = C5 and C2 = C4 we have
(V1 V )C2 + (2V1 V2 )C1

(2V2 V1 V )C1 + V2 C2

(5)

from which V1 /V = (C1 +C2 )/(3C1 +C2 ) and V2 /V = 2C1 /(3C1 +C2 ). Therefore
the total charge that has flowed out of the voltage source at terminal a, which
is on the capacitors C2 and C5 , is (V V1 )C2 + (V V2 )C5 which is equal to




C1 (C1 + 3C2 )
C1 + C2
2C1
+ C1
=V
.
(6)
Q = V C2
3C1 + C2
3C1 + C2
C2 + 3C1
The expression in square brackets is the equivalent capacitance.
Notice that we applied a junction rule (net zero charge) only at the junctions that lead to capacitors on all sides. For the top and bottom junction,
which are connected to terminals of the voltage source, we do not know how
much charge has flowed in from the battery in fact, that is what we are
trying to calculate and so there is no junction rule. So even though there are
four junctions, there are only two junction rule equations. But this was enough
to find the two unknown voltages V1 , V2 . This is exactly what happened in the
previous examples about resistor networks.
Circuits consisting of capacitors and several voltage sources can be solved in
the same way.
Capacitors and resistors and voltage sources
Things get complicated for these circuits. A simple case is when (as in your
homework) all the capacitors are either uncharged or you wait until they are
fully charged. The voltage drop across an uncharged capacitor is zero, and
so it can be replaced with a wire (a short circuit). Although the two are not
completely equivalent because current flows through the wire but not through
the capacitor, since current flows all the way up to one plate of the capacitor
and starts again from the other plate, as long as we are not interested in poking
into the innards of the capacitor we can pretend that current is flowing through
it. The current flowing into a fully charged capacitor is zero, because otherwise
the charge on the plates would change with time, which it does not. Therefore
it can be replaced with a cut wire (an open circuit) through which no current
flows. Thus the circuit is reduced to a collection of resistors and voltage sources,
but the reduced circuit is different initially from what it is after a long time.
To find the general solution as a function of time t, not just initially and after
a long time, we have to derive a set of differential equations for the circuit. The
equations are, in fact, easier to write down if you use loop currents instead of
junction voltages, just like your book does. But to find a steady state solution,
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we use Fourier transforms, where one can work with junction voltages. (This
does not work for the general time dependent solution.) In any case, this is
beyond the scope of this course.