Are there different kinds of series circuits?

[huey910]

Homework Statement

there are two identical light bulbs in a torch, a battery at its end and we are asked to connect the bulbs so that there is maximum brightness.

Homework Equations

The Attempt at a Solution

I simply drew them in parallel because that provides more brightness than parallel according to P=IV ; however, the answer key draws the light bulbs connected to the same battery in separate loops - what is that? (I may not have explained the answer key circuit clearly - if one considers a bow tie, the center of the bow is the battery and the light bulbs are at the two ends of the bow) please explain, thank you!

 

[HallsofIvy]

Yes, that way the full voltage of the battery goes to each light. Putting them in parallel puts half the current through each bulb. Of course, you don't "get something for nothing". This way will drain the battery twice as fast.

 

[gneill]

Note that each of these circuit diagrams describe identical circuits: the connections of each component to the others are the same in all cases:

 

[huey910]

thank you very much, I understand now!

 

[asteriatic]

I would like to clarify that there are indeed different kinds of series circuits. The traditional series circuit consists of components connected one after the other, with only one path for the current to flow. In this case, the current passing through one component is the same as the current passing through the other components in the circuit.

However, there are also parallel series circuits, where components are connected in parallel with each other, but still in series with other components. In this case, the current is divided among the parallel branches, and the total current passing through the circuit is equal to the sum of the currents passing through each branch.

In the scenario described, it seems that the answer key is suggesting a parallel series circuit, where the light bulbs are connected in parallel with each other, but still in series with the battery. This would result in a brighter light because the current is divided among the two bulbs, providing more overall brightness.

It is important to note that the brightness of a light bulb is not solely dependent on the current passing through it, but also on the voltage across it. In this case, connecting the bulbs in parallel would result in a higher voltage across each bulb, thus increasing their brightness.

In summary, there are different kinds of series circuits, and in this scenario, the parallel series circuit would result in maximum brightness for the two bulbs. I hope this explanation helps to clarify any confusion.