Chapter 10

AC Circuits

This lit bulb is part of an

AC circuit. The coil of wire
in the background would
have no effect on a DC cir-
cuit, but is a key compo-
nent of an AC circuit. It is
called an “inductor.”

10.1 Introduction
In this lab, we will conclude our study of AC electricity by looking in detail at how circuits
behave when an AC voltage is applied. The previous labs have taught us that AC is the
natural choice for easy power generation and transmission. Therefore, it is important to
understand how various types of circuit elements behave in the AC mode.
For our purposes, circuit elements can broadly be classified into three ideal devices:
resistors, capacitors, and inductors, denoted by R, C, and L respectively. Many real-world
devices can be modeled as combinations of these. Electric motors, for instance, are mostly
inductive in nature, with a non-negligible amount of internal resistance; we can model this
as a series combination of an inductor and a resistor. Your toaster oven, on the other hand,
is almost completely resistive and can be modeled simply as a resistor. Finally, a radio has a
tuning circuit that is inductive and capacitive. When you turn to a specific station, you are

1
2 Chapter 10—AC Circuits

varying a capacitor in the radio tuning circuit so that it is in resonance with the broadcast
frequency of the station.
An important property of resistors is that if an alternating current flows through them,
the voltage drop across them is proportional to the current. In experiments 10.3.1-10.3.3 you
will discover that this is not true for capacitors and inductors; while the voltage drop is still
a sine wave, it is phase shifted relative to the current. To better understand the behavior
of the AC circuits, we will be using phasors to represent voltages and currents. While some
textbooks may contain a definition of phasors, the discussion of their use is typically limited,
so we have included a full discussion of their use in Section 10.4 (note also that conventions
may vary between textbooks.)
Many systems have a “natural” frequency at which they tend to oscillate. Examples you
have previously encountered in mechanics include a mass on a spring, and a child on a swing
set. When such a system is driven by some external source at or near its natural frequency,
it can absorb energy very efficiently, causing the amplitude of the oscillations to increase
rapidly. This is the phenomenon of resonance, and it is familiar to anyone who has ever
made a swing go higher and higher by moving their legs and body back and forth at just
the right rate.
What would it mean for an electrical system to experience resonance? We would expect
to see the “response” of the system increase as the system is driven near its natural frequency
by an external AC voltage. In experiment 10.3.4 we will see that precisely this phenomenon
can occur in a series RLC circuit. To characterize the response of the circuit, we will
measure the voltage across the resistor. The voltage is directly related to the power dissipated
(P = V 2 /R), so a large voltage across the resistor means that the driver is very efficiently
delivering power to the circuit. In this experiment, we will use a light bulb as a resistor. Its
brightness will give you visible confirmation of resonance.

Reading
Before starting this lab, you should be familiar with the following physical concepts. If you
need to review them, or if you haven’t yet discussed them in your lecture course, consult the
indicated section in Cutnell & Johnson, Physics.

• Inductors, §22.8

• Reactance and phasors, §23.1-3

• Resonance in RLC circuits, §23.4

• You are required to read Section 10.4, Theory before coming to laboratory.

• This experiment will use an oscilloscope extensively. If you are even slightly uncom-
fortable with oscilloscope measurements, we strongly recommend that you review
the principles of thier operation as described in the Faraday’s Law lab.

Apparatus
• oscilloscope (HP-54603B)
Chapter 10—AC Circuits 3

Meter set to measure Probes at points

resistance (Ω) (b) and (c)

Figure 10.1: Measuring the internal resistance of the inductor.

• audio driver (Daedelon model EG-50)

• RLC circuit board (PASCO model CI-6512)

• digital multimeter (DMM) with probes (Meterman 15 XP)

• assorted banana cables

10.2 Preliminaries
10.2.1 Internal Resistance of the Inductor
For our experiment we wish to investigate a resistor, a capacitor and an inductor as ideal
devices. Unfortunately, our inductor is not quite ideal. It is primarily inductive but partially
resistive (due to the resistance of the wire windings). It will be important to know the internal
resistance of the inductor on the circuit board for later analysis. Measure its resistance before
any connections are made on the board. Set the digital multimeter (DMM) to measure
resistance(Ω) and measure the internal resistance of the inductor (the thing that looks like a
coil of wire) by placing the DMM probes across it (See Figure 10.1). Record the resistance
on your worksheet.

10.2.2 Initial Setup of Audio Driver

The audio driver will provide a source of AC voltage in this experiment. It is quite similar to
the function generator that you used in the Faraday’s Law experiment. A principle difference
is that it only provides sine waves, not triangle or square waves.
4 Chapter 10—AC Circuits

(b) Inductor (f) (c)

Capacitor
Steel Cylinder

(a) (e) Bulb (d)

Resistor

Figure 10.2: RLC Circuit Board with points (a)–(f) marked and important components
labeled. The white lines are printed on the board, and indicate electrical connections inside
the board.

Range Selector Frequency Control

Amplitude Control
Figure 10.3: Audio driver with controls labeled.
Chapter 10—AC Circuits 5

1. Connect the two outputs on the front of the audio driver (see Figure 10.3) to points (a)
and (d) on the RLC circuit board. In this configuration, the audio driver will provide
an alternating current to the 33 Ω resistor, 8.2 mH inductor, and 10 µF capacitor.

2. Turn on the audio driver, and make sure that the range selector (the knob on the left)
is set to 500 Hz.

3. Adjust the frequency selector (the knob on the right) until the audio driver is set to
about 850 Hz.

10.2.3 Initial Adjustment of Oscilloscope

At this point, turn the audio driver and oscilloscope on. At present, the oscilloscope isn’t
measuring anything, so now is a good time to make sure that it is set up properly. We’ll do
this in two parts. First, we’ll make sure that the oscilloscope is properly grounded and set
to trigger:

1. Connect the ground on the oscilloscope (labeled “ ”) to point (a) on the circuit board.

2. Connect the oscilloscope terminal labeled “External Trigger” to point (b) on the
circuit board. We will use the voltage across the resistor, which is in phase with the
current in the entire circuit, to trigger the oscilloscope.

3. Push the “Setup” key, then the screen key labeled “Default Setup”.

4. Turn both “Volts/Div” knobs until both input channels are on the 2.00 V scale. For
the rest of this experiment, do not change the “Volts/Div” setting without consulting
your GSI! If the two channels have different settings, your data will be unusable.

5. Turn the “Time/Div” knob until you are on the 500 µs scale (not the 500 ms scale!).

6. Push the “Source” key, then the screen key labeled “Ext.” This tells the oscilloscope
to use the “External Trigger” signal for triggering instead of the signal on Channel 1.

7. Push the “Slope/Coupling” key, then the screen key “Reject HF.” This tells the oscil-
loscope to ignore high frequency (HF) noise in the trigger signal.

Your oscilloscope is now configured to display the voltage at various points on your circuit
board, but is does not have a signal to display. We will now connect channels “1 X” and
“2 Y” to the RLC circuit board. Figure 10.4 contains a diagram of the completed setup.

1. Connect the oscilloscope terminal labeled “1 X” to point (b) on the circuit board. You
should see a sine wave on the screen. The oscilloscope is plotting the voltage difference
between the terminal “1 X” and ground.

2. Adjust the “Volume” knob on the audio driver until the maximum voltage across the
resistor is 4 V.

3. Connect the oscilloscope terminal labeled “2 Y” to point (a) on the circuit board.
This should not change your display.
6 Chapter 10—AC Circuits

Figure 10.4: After completing 10.2.3 your setup should be connected like this.

4. Push the “2” key until “On” is highlighted. You should now see a fuzzy horizontal
line across the middle of the screen. The oscilloscope is now also plotting the voltage
difference between the terminal “2 Y” and ground. In this case, that difference is
roughly zero.

5. Press the “±” key, then the the screen key “1-2”. The oscilloscope is now also plotting
the voltage difference between the terminal “1 X” and the terminal “2 Y.” This is the
signal will we use for the first part of the lab.

6. Push the “1“ key until “Off” is highlighted.

7. Push the “2” key until “Off” is highlighted.

8. Have your GSI check your setup!

In the Faraday’s Law lab we used the oscilloscope to plot the voltage difference between
one of the oscilloscope inputs and ground. In this experiment, we will plot the voltage
difference between the two oscilloscope inputs – you can think of the terminals “1 X” and
“2 Y” as being like the two inputs of a voltmeter.
Chapter 10—AC Circuits 7

10.3 The Experiments

10.3.1 AC Voltage and Current in the Resistor
Procedure

Be sure to go through the steps outlined in Section 10.2 (Preliminaries) before beginning the
experiments.
Make sure the oscilloscope is still connected to measure the resistor (terminal “1 X”
connected to (b), terminal “2 Y” connected to (a)), that that the maximum voltage across
the resistor is still set to 4 V, and the audio driver is still set to 850 Hz. It is important
that you keep this frequency the same for the measurements which follow.
Now, consider Ohm’s Law. What will the current in the resistor (and hence in the whole
series circuit) look like, given your sketch of VR ? On the same graph as your voltage wave,
draw what the current looks like, and label the maximum value.

Analysis

Draw a horizontal voltage phasor whose length corresponds to the maximum instantaneous
voltage drop that you read on the oscilloscope across the resistor on your worksheet. We set
the voltage phasor to be horizontal because the projection of this phasor at t = 0 is zero on
the y axis (see Section 10.4 for a discussion of phasors). The current is in phase with the
voltage across the resistor, so it is also a horizontal phasor at t = 0.
Determine the maximum current through every element in series by reference to the
resistor and Ohm’s law,
VR,max = Imax R (10.1)

where VR,max is the maximum voltage across the resistor, which you measured.

10.3.2 AC Voltage and Current in the Capacitor

Procedure

Before changing the oscilloscope connection to view the voltage across the capacitor, check
that the voltage across the resistor remains at 4.0 V. Store the resistor waveform by pressing
the “Autostore” key twice. The stored waveform will be displayed at a lower intensity. Next,
move the oscilloscope leads to measure the capacitor voltage, “1 X” to (d) and “2 Y” to
(c). Be careful to make the connections correctly – if you reverse the leads, you will get the
wrong phase shift.
Carefully, measure and record on your worksheet the amplitude and phase of the voltage
across the capacitor from your oscilloscope display. Figure 10.5 shows the phase extraction
procedure and illustrates the phasor diagram that results from the data shown. You will
need to use the oscilloscope cursors to accurately find the time difference between the two
waves. Draw a sketch of the display with the stored waveform (resistor) and continuous
waveform (capacitor) clearly marked.
8 Chapter 10—AC Circuits

Analysis
Draw a phasor diagram for the voltage across the capacitor. Remember, your reference for
the phase is the voltage across the resistor (which represents the current in the circuit).
Make particular note of the phase of the voltage across the capacitor relative to the current
in the capacitor. Does the current lead or lag behind the voltage applied to a capacitor?
With the data taken, you can determine the capacitive reactance from

VC,max = Imax XC . (10.2)

Capacitive reactance is
1
XC = . (10.3)
ωC
To within your errors, do your measured and calculated XC values agree? Finally, what XC
phase angle (current to voltage) did you derive for the capacitor? Does it agree with the
predicted value?

10.3.3 AC Voltage and Current in the Inductor

Procedure
Before changing the oscilloscope connection to view the voltage across the inductor, return
the oscilloscope leads to the resistor voltage points, “1 X” to (b) and “2 Y” to (a), and check
that the voltage across the resistor remains at 4.0 V.Next, move the oscilloscope to measure
the inductor voltage, “1 X” to (c) and “2 Y” to (b). Be careful to make the connections
correctly – if you reverse the leads, you will get the wrong phase shift.
Carefully, measure and record on your worksheet the amplitude and phase of the voltage
across the inductor from your oscilloscope display. Draw a sketch of the display with the
stored waveform (resistor) and continuous waveform (inductor) clearly marked.

Analysis
Draw a phasor diagram for the voltage across the inductor. Does the current lead or lag
behind the voltage applied to an inductor?
We can find the reactance of the inductor, XL , using

VL,max = Imax XL , (10.4)

and the measured voltage across the inductor. Compare the inductive reactance to the
resistance you measured for the coil in Section 10.2. Is it reasonable to neglect this resistance
in our measurement of the voltage phasor across the inductor? (Even if not, we will neglect
it for clarity in this discussion.) Compare the measured value of XL with the relation (which
can also be found in your text):
XL = ωL. (10.5)
Again, to within experimental error, does your value of XL agree with expectations? Finally,
to within experimental error how well does your measured phase angle ϕL agree with the
phase angle expected for an ideal inductor?
Chapter 10—AC Circuits 9

0.28 ms
|!| = x 360° = 85.4°
1.18 ms

v(t=0) !
Vmax

Figure 10.5: Determining ϕ: (Upper Left) First, determine the period of oscillation. (Lower
Left) Second, determine the difference in time between similar features on the stored resistor
trace and the currently-measured trace. (Upper Right) Third, divide the time difference by
the period and multiply by 360◦ . (Lower Right) Fourth, determine the sign by looking at
where the current trace crosses the y axis—if it crosses on the negative side, ϕ is negative
since the associated voltage phasor is below the x axis at that time; likewise, if it crosses
on the positive side, ϕ is positive. Note: you can also get ϕ directly from the relation:
ϕ = sin−1 [v(t = 0)/Vmax ].
10 Chapter 10—AC Circuits

10.3.4 Resonance in RLC Circuits (Frequency Dependence of Z)

Procedure
You do not need to use the oscilloscope in this experiment, so you can disconnect it from
the RLC circuit board. Construct an RLC circuit using the 10 µF capacitor, the inductor,
and the light bulb:

• Connect one output of the audio driver to the 10 µF capacitor (d).

• Connect a jumper from the inductor (b) to the connector just above the light bulb (f).

• Connect the other output of the audio driver to the connector just below the light bulb
(e).

To measure the voltage across the light bulb, simply connect your multimeter to the two
connectors above and below the bulb. Be sure that your multimeter is set to√measure AC
volts (Ve ). Recall that in this configuration, the meter reports VRM S = VM ax / 2
Begin with the audio driver frequency set to 100 Hz, and adjust the Volume knob until
the voltage reads approximately 0.2 V. The bulb will probably not light. Now measure Vbulb
as a function of frequency for 15-20 values ranging from 100 Hz to about 1500 Hz. (For
frequencies above 1000 Hz, you will need to adjust the range selector on the audio driver
to 5000 Hz.) Evenly-spaced frequencies are not necessarily best—use coarse measurements
(50 Hz spacing) when the voltage is changing more slowly and a finer scale when it is changing
more rapidly. Above 1000 Hz, it is sufficient to use a 200 Hz spacing. Record and plot your
data on your worksheet. Be sure to find the resonant frequency, fr , at which Vbulb reaches
its maximum value.

Analysis
The circuit can absorb the most energy from the audio driver when its impedance Z is at a
minimum. The impedance of the circuit is given by
p
Z = R2 + (XL − XC )2
p
= R2 + (ωL − 1/ωC)2 .

Because the inductive and capacitive reactance terms appear with opposite signs, and depend
in different ways on frequency, they can cancel each other out when XL = XC . This leads
to a minimum in the impedance at the resonant frequency,

1
fr = √ .
2π LC

Compute the resonant frequency for your circuit and compare it to your observations. Do
they agree?
At the resonant frequency, use your multimeter to measure the voltage drop across the
capacitor? Is it zero? What is the power dissipated in the capacitor? What about the
inductor?
Chapter 10—AC Circuits 11

Measuring the Inductance of an Unknown Inductor

Adjust the frequency on the audio driver so that your RLC circuit is at resonance again.
Now take the steel cylinder from your circuit board and insert it into the inductor. What
happens to the bulb?
Scan the frequency on the audio driver until you find the new resonant frequency of the
circuit. Based on this result, what is the inductance of the inductor when the steel cylinder is
inserted? Increasing the inductance by inserting a magnetic material into a coil is analogous
to increasing capacitance by adding a dielectric. For this reason, you will often see inductors
wound on an iron core.

10.4 Theory
10.4.1 Representing Voltages and Currents with Phasors
In this lab write-up we adopt a convention where the current flowing through an AC circuit
at any given time t is
i(t) = Imax cos(ωt), (10.6)
where ω is the angular frequency (in radians per second), which is related to the frequency,
f , (in hertz) by ω = 2πf . When you see ω, think “frequency,” since it is angular frequency
and is just a notational way of avoiding writing 2πf many times.
In AC, by our convention, the voltage across an inductor, capacitor, or resistor is also a
cosine function and has the form

V (t) = Vmax cos(ωt + ϕ), (10.7)

where ϕ is called the phase angle. Since AC voltage and current cycles are continuous
oscillations we arbitrarily set the current to start at zero when t = 0 as in Equation 10.6.
The voltage oscillation may be at a different point in its cycle so we account for this with a
phase angle1 .
Since the voltage across a circuit element can be out of phase with the current flowing
through it, keeping track of the voltages and currents in AC can be quite a chore. In order to
make it easier, the representation of voltages and currents by means of phasors is helpful. A
phasor is a vector of constant length, centered on the origin and rotating around the origin
at constant speed. For any vector A, ~ Ax = A cos(θ), where θ is the angle above the x axis
made by A, ~ as shown in Figure 10.6. If A~ rotates around the origin at a constant rate then
~
θ = ωt, the projection of A on the x axis is Ax = A cos(ωt).
We can express current as a vector-like quantity (a phasor). In this representation the real
current (physically the rate of charge flow) is the x axis projection of the current phasor.
1
Our timing convention of starting the current on the x axis at t = 0 is not universal, in fact, we differ
from most textbooks here. It is usual to adopt a timing convention setting the voltage at zero when t = 0
and then to put the phase angle in the expression for the current. Instead, we put the current at zero at
t = 0 and then put the phase angle in the expression for the voltage. We choose this convention because we
are dealing with a series RLC circuit in which the current is the same for each element. Since the current is
the common quantity in this lab, it is straightforward to reference the voltages to it. Switching between the
two starting time conventions is simple as long as you understand each. Refer to a textbook for a complete
discussion.
12 Chapter 10—AC Circuits

θ
x
Ax

Figure 10.6: Taking the x axis projection of a vector.

The tail of the current phasor is fixed at the origin and the head of the phasor rotates
counterclockwise with angular frequency ω. Some “snapshots” of this phasor rotation are
shown in Figure 10.7.
We also can express the voltage as a phasor. Both voltage and current phasors rotate
around the origin with the same angular velocity ω. The angle between these is ϕ and it
remains constant as the phasors rotate. Note: in this lab, we plot phasors as “snapshots” at
t = 0. We now explore the AC behavior of each of the devices below making use of phasors.

10.4.2 Resistors in AC
Resistors under AC behave in the same way as they do under DC—they resist the flow of
current, and in so doing, they dissipate some of the electrical energy as heat. A resistor does
not care which way the current happens to be flowing at the moment; only that the current
is flowing. Since the voltage and current in a resistor obey Ohm’s law:

Vmax = Imax R, (10.8)

Vmax is the maximum voltage across the resistor, Imax is the maximum current flowing
through the resistor, and R is the resistance. In a resistor, the applied voltage and the
current are in phase, ϕR = 0◦ . That is, when the applied voltage is a maximum, so is the
current; when the voltage is reversed, so is the current; and when the voltage is zero, so is
the current. This is shown in a phasor diagram in Figure 10.8.
In a resistor, power is dissipated by heating. As we have seen in previous labs, for a
resistive element, the average power dissipated per cycle is

Pavg = IRMS VRMS . (10.9)

2
This is most conveniently expressed as P = IRMS R. Remember that the RMS values for
voltage and current are used in AC. RMS values can √easily be found from the maximum
values, for example the RMS voltage is VRMS = Vmax / 2. Resistors in AC act very much
like resistors in DC. They obey Ohm’s law and the power dissipated is easily obtained as
the product of the RMS voltage and RMS current.
Chapter 10—AC Circuits 13

t=0 1
t=
I 8f
Phasor rotation
o
I θ=45

i(t)= I max I max

i(t) =
2

1 5
I t= t=
4f 8f
o I max o
θ=90 i(t) = θ=225
2

i(t)= 0

Figure 10.7: Rotation of a phasor that represents the current flowing through some circuit
element. The x axis projection of the phasor corresponds to i(t) at that given moment.

Phasor rotation Phasor rotation

VR
IR
IR VR

i (t) v (t)
R R

t=0 (later...)

Figure 10.8: Phasor diagram for a purely resistive circuit. Notice that the phase difference
is 0◦ .
14 Chapter 10—AC Circuits

Phasor rotation Phasor rotation

IC
IC
vC (t) i (t)
C

VC VC

t=0 (later...)

Figure 10.9: Phasor diagram for a purely capacitive circuit. Notice that the phase difference
is −90◦ .

10.4.3 Capacitors in AC
Capacitors, however, are slightly more complicated. We say that a capacitor reacts to (as
opposed to resists) the flow of AC current. Let’s look qualitatively at what happens in the
capacitor. When the voltage across the capacitor is zero, there is no electric field between
its plates (recall that for a parallel-plate capacitor, V = Ed), and no charge stored on the
plates (Q = CV ). It is at this point that it is easiest for charges to flow onto (charge)
the capacitor’s plates, so we say that the current to the capacitor is a maximum. Later,
when the voltage across the plates is large, there exists an electric field against which it is
difficult to move more charges from the plates. When the voltage across the capacitor is at
its maximum, the current is zero. When the voltage starts to decrease, the stored electric
field dissipates, and charge flows (but in the discharging direction). This process repeats
with the signs reversed and the AC cycle is completed.
We can restate this result simply: the voltage and current for a capacitor are 90◦ out of
phase, and the current leads the applied voltage. That is, when the applied voltage is going
through zero from low to high, the current is a maximum; and when the applied voltage is
a maximum, the current is zero, but is changing direction. This phase relationship is shown
diagrammatically in Figure 10.9.
In addition to the phase relationship between voltage and current, we need a relationship
between their maximum values. It turns out that there is a simple one between the maximum
voltage applied to a capacitor, and the maximum current through the capacitor in AC. It is
usually written as:
Vmax = Imax XC , (10.10)
where XC is called the capacitive reactance, and is a function of both the capacitance and the
frequency of the AC power source. Let’s look at the dimensions of XC . Since Equation 10.10
looks astoundingly similar to Ohm’s law, XC must be in ohms (in fact, it is helpful to think
of XC as an “R-like quantity”). Recalling that farads can also be expressed as seconds per
ohm, we suspect that XC has some sort of inverse dependence on capacitance. Given that,
we must have an inverse dependence on frequency to make the dimensions work.
This makes some intuitive sense when you think about the DC case: a discharged capac-
itor allows current to flow freely onto its plates, while a fully charged capacitor completely
hinders it. If the frequency of the power source were quite high, the capacitor, to an excellent
Chapter 10—AC Circuits 15

approximation, would be fully discharged. If the frequency were zero, the capacitor would
always be almost fully charged and XC would be infinite. This qualitative argument is, in
fact, correct and the exact dependence is
1
XC = . (10.11)
ωC
Thus, at low frequency a capacitor inhibits the flow of AC current but at high frequency it
passes AC.
Finally, in a capacitive circuit element, the instantaneous power is the product of the
instantaneous current and voltage. Unlike a resistive device this product can be positive or
negative meaning that the capacitor can store and return energy to the circuit. This results
because the current leads the voltage by 90◦ . For half of the AC cycle, power is supplied to
the capacitor, but for the other half cycle, power is derived from the capacitor. The average
power drawn over a full AC cycle for a capacitor is:

Pavg,C = 0 (10.12)

This is not surprising since we think of a capacitor as a device by which we can store energy
in the form of an E~ field and retrieve the energy without losses.

10.4.4 Inductors in AC
Let’s now consider an inductor in an AC circuit. As you may recall from your text, inductors
can store electrical energy in their magnetic fields. If the strength of this field should change
because the electrical current through the inductor changes, the inductor will transiently
have a potential difference across its terminals (this potential difference is called the back-
EMF ). Inductors always oppose the change in current in the circuit (Lenz’s law); thus, if a
current drops or rises, the inductor supplies a countering or back-EMF.
Let’s look qualitatively at what happens to the potential drop across an inductor when
an AC current is flowing through it. When the current flowing through the inductor is
(instantaneously) at its maximum value, there is no change in the magnetic field (since,
at that instant, the current isn’t changing). By Faraday’s law, this means that there is
no potential difference across the inductor’s terminals. As the current gets smaller, the
magnetic field within the inductor also gets smaller. This change is opposed, causing a
negative potential “drop” across the inductor (i.e., a positive potential difference) since the
inductor will try to maintain the previously higher levels of current. This voltage drop
becomes the most negative when the instantaneous current through the inductor is zero.
The current (and thus the magnetic field) changes directions. This process then continues
with the signs reversed and the full AC cycle is completed.
We summarize the timing relationship between current and voltage with reference to
the phasors by saying that the current and voltage are 90◦ out of phase. This is shown in
Figure 10.10. In an inductor, the voltage leads the current, which means that the phase
relationship between voltage and current is exactly opposite of the capacitor.
In addition to the phase relationships, there is a relationship between the maximum
voltage drop across the inductor and the maximum current that flows through it in AC.
This is usually written:
Vmax = Imax XL , (10.13)
16 Chapter 10—AC Circuits

Phasor rotation Phasor rotation

VL
VL
IL
IL
v (t) i L(t)
L

VC

t=0 (later...)

Figure 10.10: Phasor diagram for a purely inductive circuit. Notice that the phase difference
is +90◦ .

where XL is known as the inductive reactance, and is a function of both the inductance and
the frequency of the AC power source. Examine the dimensions of XL and note that it varies
directly with the frequency and current and its units are ohms (once again, it is helpful to
view XL as an “R-like quantity”).
Here also, we use the limiting cases to see what ought to happen at the extremes of
frequency. In the high-frequency case, the magnetic field in the inductor is always changing,
meaning that XL is high. If the frequency is zero the magnetic field doesn’t change, and XL
is near zero. This turns out to be correct and in fact,

XL = ωL, (10.14)

where L is the inductance. Thus, at high frequency an inductor inhibits AC current but at
low frequency it passes AC.
In terms of AC power, as in a capacitor, an inductor can both receive and deliver energy
to and from a circuit. Since the voltage leads the current by 90◦ and the instantaneous power
is P = IV , the power is positive for half the cycle and negative for the other half cycle. The
average power over a cycle is thus:
Pavg,L = 0 (10.15)
As we will see in the experiments section, the fact that the average power delivered to an
inductor and capacitor is zero will have important consequences for AC circuits composed
of series or parallel combinations of resistors, capacitors, and inductors.

10.4.5 Phasor Addition in a Series RLC Circuit

We can even keep track of the behavior of the instantaneous voltage and current for an
entire circuit using the phasor representation. For now, we will concentrate on how this
is done for a series RLC circuit. Since the resistor, the inductor, and the capacitor are in
series, Kirchhoff’s law tells us that the same instantaneous current is flowing through every
element of the circuit, meaning that the current phasor is at the same angle with respect to
the x axis for every element. To find the voltage phasor for the entire circuit, you add all of
the voltage phasors associated with each element as if they were vectors. (See Figure 10.11
for an example.) This net voltage phasor will also maintain a fixed phase angle with the
Chapter 10—AC Circuits 17

Vmax, L Vmax, R
( = Imax XL)
Vmax, C
Vmax, R Vmax, L
( = Imax XR) ! Vmax ( = Imax Z)

Vmax, C
( = Imax XC )

Figure 10.11: Addition of phasors associated with an ideal resistor, and ideal capacitor, and
an ideal inductor at a time corresponding to when the shared current phasor is crossing the
x axis. (The current phasor is deleted for the sake of clarity in the figure.)

current phasor (Why?). We can project this resultant phasor against the x axis to obtain
the instantaneous voltage across the entire circuit.
Since the sum of the voltage phasors is itself a phasor (refer to your textbook), the
magnitude of this phasor is given as:
q
V = VR2 + (VL − VC )2 . (10.16)

There is a relationship between the maximum voltage across the series RLC circuit and the
current.
Vmax = Imax Z, (10.17)
where Z is the impedance of the series circuit. It is easy to show from current voltage
relationships above (Equations 10.8, 10.10, and 10.13) and phasor addition that Z is given
by p
Z = R2 + (XL − XC )2 . (10.18)
This is the equivalent “R-like quantity” for the entire series RLC circuit. Similarly, the phase
angle for the series circuit is given by
XL − XC
tan ϕ = . (10.19)
R
We will refer to these equations as we explore voltage and current relationships for the RLC
circuits in the experiments below.

10.4.6 Remembering Voltage-Current Phasor Relationships

You must spend some time memorizing which phasor (current or voltage) leads which in each
situation in order to be completely fluent when discussing AC voltage and current responses.
It may be helpful to remember the mnemonic “ELI the ICEman” for this purpose.

10.5 Test Your Understanding

1. If 0.050 amp RMS current flows through a resistor in series with a 10 µF capacitor,
what will the voltage across the capacitor be at 750 Hz?
18 Chapter 10—AC Circuits

2. A 110 volt AC source of variable frequency is connected across an RLC series circuit.
If R = 42 Ω, L = 17.2 mH, and C = 27 µF, determine the frequency setting for the
AC source for which the most current will flow through the circuit.

3. A high-pass filter consisting of a 33 Ω resistor in series with a 10 µF capacitor. If the

input voltage is 2.0 V, at what frequency will this filter have a voltage of 1.0 V across
its resistor?

4. The FM radio station CIMX operates at 88.7 MHz. If the inductor in your RLC series
tuning circuit is 0.12 mH, what capacitance would you require in your tuning circuit
in order to receive the station?