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The effect of temperature on resistance
Resistance is a characteristic of all materials. Some materials
(e.g. air) have a high resistance. Other materials (e.g. gold)
have a very small resistance.

Electrical resistance is similar to friction, in that it is a resistance

to movement. Electrons drift slowly through a conductor when a
voltage is put across the ends. The metal’s atoms interfere with
the motion of the electrons, causing resistance.

The higher the temperature,

the faster the metal atoms
vibrate, and the more likely
they are to impede electron
electron metal flow, hence increasing
atom resistance.
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Ohm’s Law
Ohm’s Law states that:

The current in an ohmic conductor is proportional to

the voltage across it, provided that the temperature
and other physical conditions are kept constant.

We can write ‘voltage is proportional to

current’ in symbols as:
VI
If R is a constant:
V=R×I
R is the resistance, measured in ohms (Ω).

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Finding resistance from a graph
Compare the equation for an ohmic conductor to the general
equation for a straight line:

V = RI
y = mx + c
V
If a graph is plotted with voltage
on the y axis and current on the gradient = R
x axis, it can be seen that the I
gradient (m) is the resistance.
The y intercept (c) is 0.

Voltage–current graphs are often drawn with the axes the other
way around. In this case, the gradient = 1/R and R = 1/gradient.

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Plotting voltage–current graphs

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How well do you understand graphs?

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Which symbol and which graph?

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Ohm’s Law summary

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Equivalent resistance

R2
R3
R1 R4
R5

RT
R6
R7

When designing or analysing circuits, complex combinations of

resistors are common. To perform calculations, for example to
find a suitable fuse to protect the circuit, it is easier to use a
value for the total resistance of the circuit, RT.

RT can be called the equivalent resistance because it is the

single resistor that is equivalent to the complex combination.

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Resistors in series
To work out the equivalent resistance of resistors in series,
the resistor values can just be added together:

10 Ω 20 Ω 15 Ω

equivalent resistance = 10 + 20 + 15
= 45 Ω

In general for a number of resistors, n:

RT = R1 + R2 + … + Rn

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Resistors in parallel
To work out the equivalent resistance for resistors in parallel,
a more complex equation must be applied:

1 1 1 1
= + + … +
RT R1 R2 Rn

For example:
1 1 1 1
= + +
RT 10 20 15
10 Ω 1 6+3+4
=
RT 60
20 Ω 1 = 13
RT 60
60
15 Ω RT = Ω = 4.62 Ω
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Resistor combinations

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What is resistivity?
Which of the four examples below has the largest resistance,
and which has the smallest?

The resistance depends

on the size and shape of
copper the material (its cross-
sectional area and length)
and the material itself.

silver The measure of how

silicon much a particular material
opposes electron flow is
called the resistivity of
plastic the material.

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Introducing the resistivity equation
Resistivity is usually given the symbol r (the Greek letter rho).
Resistivity is calculated using the following equation:

resistance × cross-sectional area

resistivity =
length

RA
r=
L

The units of resistivity are ohm metres (Ωm).

Resistivity for a particular material varies with temperature,

so it is usually quoted for a particular temperature. This is
because resistivity depends on resistance, and resistance
varies with temperature.

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Using the resistivity equation

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Resistivity calculation

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Effect of temperature on resistivity

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Investigating the effect of temperature

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Resistivity of different materials

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E.m.f. and internal resistance

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Using the e.m.f. equations

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Finding e.m.f. and internal resistance

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E.m.f. summary

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Glossary

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What’s the keyword?

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Multiple-choice quiz

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