0 resistance wire in parallel circuit

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around a problem related to a parallel circuit involving a zero resistance wire and its implications on current flow and voltage across components, specifically focusing on the behavior at a junction after a resistor.

Discussion Character

  • Conceptual clarification, Assumption checking

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster questions why current flows in a specific direction at a junction when one path has zero resistance, and whether there is a principle governing this behavior. Other participants discuss the implications of zero resistance on voltage and current through other components in the circuit.

Discussion Status

Participants are exploring the reasoning behind current flow in the circuit and discussing the effects of zero resistance on voltage across components. Some guidance has been offered regarding the relationship between resistance and current, but there is no explicit consensus on the interpretations being discussed.

Contextual Notes

There are references to specific parts of the problem that may require additional context or assumptions, such as the behavior of the inductor and the implications of finite current in the circuit.

ehrenfest
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In question 1 b at the following site:

http://ocw.mit.edu/NR/rdonlyres/Physics/8-02Electricity-and-MagnetismSpring2002/6D148C87-C69B-44B6-AECA-CB9D875E0F40/0/exam2.pdf

I am having trouble with 1b. At the junction right after R1, why does the current go only up and not left when the upper path has zero resistance? Is there a law that says current always travels in the path of least resistance?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
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ehrenfest said:
In question 1 b at the following site:

http://ocw.mit.edu/NR/rdonlyres/Physics/8-02Electricity-and-MagnetismSpring2002/6D148C87-C69B-44B6-AECA-CB9D875E0F40/0/exam2.pdf

I am having trouble with 1b. At the junction right after R1, why does the current go only up and not left when the upper path has zero resistance? Is there a law that says current always travels in the path of least resistance?

What is the voltage across the inductor in part b?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Yes current always takes the path with the smallest resistance.
 
You can also calculate the current in R2. Since current is finite and the resistance across the inductor is 0 in part b... the voltage across the inductor is I3*0=0. Hence the voltage across R2 is 0. I2=0/R2 = 0. So the current through R2 is 0.
 
I see. Thanks.
 

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