Electrical Resistance

Prof Mohamed Eladawy

 Electrical Resistance
Definition
The electrical resistance of an object is a measure of its opposition to the passage of
a steady electric current.
Discovered by Georg Ohm in the late 1820s. Electrical
resistance shares some conceptual parallels with the mechanical
notion of friction. The SI unit of electrical resistance is the ohm,
symbol Ω. Resistance's reciprocal quantity is the electrical
conductance.

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, and is the ease with which an electric current passes.
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Electrical resistance shares some conceptual parallels with the notion of
mechanical friction. Adawy
 Resistance value
Length Cross section
Area

R  L / A
Resistance
Resistivity

An object of uniform cross section will have a resistance proportional to its

length and inversely proportional to its cross-sectional area, and proportional to
the resistivity of the material.
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 Classification of Resistances

According to its value, 1kΩ, 2k , …..

According to its power, 0.25watt, 0.5watt. 1watt, …..
When replace a resistance with another one, both of
them should have the same power, or the new one can
has a higher power than the old one.
Take care of replacing a resistance with another one
having a lower power than the first. 4

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 Ohm’s Law
The voltage applied on a resistance is directly proportional to the current
through it, and according to the following relation:

V=RxI V
We notice that:
 The relation is linear,
The slope of the straight line is the value R,
The value of the resistance does not depend I
on the frequency.

When an electric current of one ampere passes through a component

across which a potential difference (voltage) of one volt exists, then the
resistance of that component is one ohm.
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 Measuring resistance

Units of resistance is Ohm Ω, Kilo Ohm KΩ, Mega Ohm MΩ

We measure resistance using Ohm meter. It

contains a battery that passes current
through the resistance. Then measure the
resultant voltage drop, from which it
calculate the resistance value, R=V/I
 Measuring resistance
Digital Multimeter

Analog Multimeter

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 Resistance Color Code

accuracy
First two digit of
the resistance
value Multiplication
factor or number
of zeros

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Resistance Color Code

ppm=part per million

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EXAMPLES OF DIFFERENT RESISTANCES

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 VARIABLE RESISTANCE
Variable resistances always have 3
terminals

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 Connecting a variable resistance
(potentiometer)

1 2

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 RESISTOR NETWORK

Set of resistances in one package, with the possibility

of different connections between them.

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 Special Purpose Resistances
1- Thermistors
A thermistor is a type of resistor whose resistance is dependent on temperature.
Thermistors are of two opposite fundamental types:
• With Negative Temperature Coefficient, NTC
thermistors, resistance decreases as temperature
rises. An NTC is commonly used as a temperature
sensor.
• With Positive Temperature Coefficient, PTC
thermistors, resistance increases as temperature
rises. PTC thermistors are commonly installed in
series with a circuit, and used to protect against
overcurrent conditions, as resettable fuses.

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 Special Purpose Resistances
1- Thermistors

Assuming a first order approximation for the relation of resistance change with
temperature, we can write:

Thermistors can be classified into two types, depending on the sign of k. If k is

positive, the resistance increases with increasing temperature, and the device is
called a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) thermistor. If k is negative, the
resistance decreases with increasing temperature, and the device is called a
negative temperature coefficient (NTC) thermistor. Resistors that are not
thermistors are designed to have a k as close to zero as possible such that the 15
resistance remains almost constant. Adawy
 Special Purpose Resistances
2- Resistance thermometer
Resistance thermometers, also called resistance temperature detectors (RTDs), are
sensors used to measure temperature. Many RTD elements consist of a length of
fine wire wrapped around a ceramic or glass core but other constructions are also
used. The RTD wire is a pure material, typically platinum, nickel, or copper. The
material has an accurate resistance/temperature relationship which is used to
provide an indication of temperature. As RTD elements are fragile, they are often
housed in protective probes.

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 Special Purpose Resistances
3- Photoresistance
A photoresistor (or light-dependent resistor, LDR, or photo-conductive cell) is a
light-controlled variable resistor. The resistance of a photoresistor decreases with
increasing incident light intensity; in other words, it exhibits photoconductivity. A
photoresistor can be applied in light-sensitive detector circuits, and light-activated
and dark-activated switching circuits.

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Special Purpose Resistances
3- Photoresistance

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 Special Purpose Resistances
4- Varistor ‫المقاومة الجهدية‬
A varistor is an electronic component with an electrical resistance that varies with
the applied voltage. Also known as a voltage-dependent resistor (VDR), it has a
nonlinear, non-ohmic current–voltage characteristic that is similar to that of a
diode. In contrast to a diode however, it has the same characteristic for both
directions of traversing current. At low voltage it has a high electrical resistance
which decreases as the voltage is raised. When used as protection devices, they
shunt the current created by the excessive voltage away from sensitive components
when triggered.

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 Carbon Composition Resistors

Carbon composition are the oldest design and usually the cheapest of the
resistors. Carbon granules are mixed with a filler material and inserted into a
tubular casing. In modern designs the carbon is mixed with a ceramic filler. The
value of resistance is determined by the amount of carbon added to the filler
mixture. Typical tolerances are +/-10% or 20%.
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 Wire Wound Resistors

Wirewound resistors are very variable in construction and physical appearance.

Their resistive elements are commonly lengths of wire, usually an alloy such as
Nickel/Chromium (Nichrome) or Manganin (Copper/Nickel/Manganese) wrapped
around a small ceramic or glass fibre rod and coated in an insulating flameproof
cement film. They are normally available in quite low values of resistance (single
ohms to a few Kilohms) but can dissipate large amounts of power. In use they may Adawy

get very hot.

 Wire Wound Resistors

High power wirewound resistors may be housed in a finned metal case that can
be bolted to a metal chassis to dissipate the heat generated as effectively as
possible. With all types of wire wound resistor, fire protection is important and
flame proof cases or coatings are vital. Lead-out wires are normally welded
rather than soldered to the resistor Adawy
 Metal Film Resistors

These resistors are made from small rods of ceramic coated with metal (such as a
nickel alloy) or metal oxide (such as tin oxide). The value of resistance is controlled
firstly by the thickness of the coating layer (the thicker the layer, the lower the value
of resistance). Also a fine spiral groove may be cut along the rod using a laser to cut
the carbon or metal coating effectively into a long (spiral) strip, which forms the
resistor. Metal film resistors can be obtained in a wide range of resistance values
from a few Ohms to tens of millions of Ohms with a very small TOLERANCE. For
example a typical value might be 100KΩ +/- 1% or. Adawy