Skip to main content
Library homepage
 

Text Color

Text Size

 

Margin Size

 

Font Type

Enable Dyslexic Font
Physics LibreTexts

3: Electromagnetic Fields in Simple Devices and Circuits

( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\)

  • 3.1: Resistors and Capacitors
    This page discusses the electromagnetic field analysis of electronic components such as resistors, capacitors, and inductors, focusing on their behaviors across various frequencies. It explains the operation and failure mechanisms of resistors and capacitors, their charge voltage relationships, and energy storage. Additionally, it provides the capacitance formula for cylindrical capacitors and compares their behavior to parallel-plate capacitors.
  • 3.2: Inductors and Transformers
    This page covers the design and behavior of solenoidal inductors and transformers, focusing on inductance properties affected by coil turns, gaps, and materials. It highlights the relationship between inductance, stored energy, and design constraints, especially in air-wound and toroidal inductors. The text addresses circuit configurations, transformer operation, and mitigations against eddy currents in iron-core transformers.
  • 3.3: Quasistatic Behavior of Devices
    This page discusses the behaviors of electroquasistatic and magnetoquasistatic devices, focusing on how electric and magnetic fields interact under varying conditions, as per Maxwell's equations. It highlights the calculation of inductance and magnetic energy in short wire segments while employing quasistatic assumptions.
  • 3.4: General circuits and solution methods
    This page explains Kirchoff's Laws, which dictate circuit behavior through voltage and current relationships. KVL states the sum of voltages in a closed loop equals zero, while KCL asserts the sum of currents at a node is zero, though dynamic circuits may cause these laws to fail. It outlines a circuit analysis at node "a," utilizing KCL to create simultaneous equations in matrix form for voltages at several nodes, ultimately calculating the resistance between nodes a and d as 0.
  • 3.5: Two-element circuits and RLC resonators
    This page covers RLC resonators' behavior, detailing the governing equations and solutions for various circuit configurations (RC, RL, LC). It introduces resonant frequency, Q factor, and energy dynamics in inductors and capacitors, emphasizing energy oscillation and exponential decay due to resistance. The text further discusses series and parallel resonators, optimal power transfer, and the significance of matching source and load resistances.


This page titled 3: Electromagnetic Fields in Simple Devices and Circuits is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by David H. Staelin (MIT OpenCourseWare) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.

Support Center

How can we help?