Series Connections
2. What Defines a Series Circuit?
Imagine a single lane highway. All the cars (electrons) have to follow each other, one after the other. That's essentially what a series circuit is. In a series connection, components are connected one after another along a single path. The current has only one route to take.
Think of those old-fashioned Christmas lights. If one bulb burns out, the entire string goes dark. That's because the circuit is broken, and the electricity can't flow. Each bulb is like a link in a chain, and if one link breaks, the entire chain falls apart. It's a single path, a single lane highway and all the current flows through all elements.
In a series circuit, the current is the same through all components, which is a defining characteristics. However, the voltage is divided across the components, so each bulb receives a portion of the total voltage of the source. This explains why adding more bulbs to the string might make them dimmer — each bulb gets less voltage.
The total resistance in a series circuit is simply the sum of all the individual resistances. So, if you have three light bulbs with resistances of 10 ohms, 20 ohms, and 30 ohms, the total resistance of the circuit is 60 ohms. This higher resistance limits the current flowing through the circuit.
