All courses › Foundations of Physics › Ohm's law

Ohm's law

Current is charge per time, voltage is energy per charge, and resistance is a component's opposition to the current. Ohm's law links these three: doubling the voltage across a given resistance doubles the current. The law holds for most common components such as wires and resistors.

U=RIU = RIOhm's law
I=QtI = \dfrac{Q}{t}current, charge per time

Symbols

UUvoltageV
IIcurrentA
RRresistanceΩ\Omega

Example

A 12 V battery is connected to a resistance R=8.0R = 8.0 Ω. The current becomes I=U/R=12/8.0=1.5I = U/R = 12/8.0 = 1.5 A.

Convert mA and kΩ to A and Ω before calculating, or remember that mA times kΩ actually gives volts directly.
Practise electricity for free →

← Phase changes · Electric power →

Part of Foundations of Physics: Electricity.