Introduction:
Some metals such as copper, silver and gold are very good conductors of electricity. This is because they all have only one electron on the outer shell. This means that they need only a tiny amount of energy in order to allow the electron to move. Non-metals, however, do not have free electrons, so even non-metals that only have one electron on their outer shell can still hold onto them tightly.
Aim Of The Investigation:
The aim of the investigation is to find out if there is a link between the thickness of a wire and resistance in a circuit.
Ohm’s Law:
Ohms law uses the formula of dividing the Voltage (V) by the current (I), then whatever the outcome of that is, is the resistance (R). For example Voltage = 4, Current = 2.65, 4÷2.65 = 1.509, therefore the resistance (R) = 1.509. We will use this formula in our experiment to find the resistance of the different wires and then once we have 3 different resistances from the given wire, we will work out the mean, in order to have a reliable answer with us, having removed any outliers the experiment may show.
Model Of Resistance:
Resistance measures a materials opposition to the flow of electric current. An example of a model of resistance is a motorway. For instance, if all the lanes are open on the road, there will be a steady flow and speed of the cars that are travelling on it. However, if there was to be an accident and now only one lane was open, the flow of traffic would be much slower, due to the fact that all cars are now travelling down one lane, as opposed to three or four. The same principle applies for the current of electricity.
Variables:
There are a number of variables that will affect the resistance of a wire. Of those shown below, the first four will be examined as part of this investigation.
Length Of Wire:
This will affect the resistance, as if the piece of wire is very long it will take the current a long