- #1
goldensquid2000
- 3
- 1
Hi everyone, I'm new to this forum so I apologise in advance if I may have posted in the wrong forum or made a similar error.
I recently conducted an experiment with some peers where we measured the voltage across a charging capacitor in an RC circuit over a period of time. The diagram is attached at the bottom of this post.
The problem is, with some of the latest time values, the voltage read by the voltmeter exceeded 12 volts, the input voltage in the entire circuit. At this stage, the only explanation I have for this phenomena is the idea of current overflow into the voltmeter.
From my understanding, a voltmeter measures voltage through the current flowing into the voltmeter which interacts with a magnetic field, turning a coil and displaying a voltage value. The torque of the coil is proportional to the amount of current flowing through said coil. My guess is that when the capacitor was fully charged, no current would run through it, thus meaning all of the circuit's current would be redirected through the voltmeter and treating it as if it were in series. This extra amount of current might have caused the increased "voltage" value displayed.
At this stage, I'm mostly hypothesising, any feedback and alternative suggestions would be great, thanks!
I recently conducted an experiment with some peers where we measured the voltage across a charging capacitor in an RC circuit over a period of time. The diagram is attached at the bottom of this post.
The problem is, with some of the latest time values, the voltage read by the voltmeter exceeded 12 volts, the input voltage in the entire circuit. At this stage, the only explanation I have for this phenomena is the idea of current overflow into the voltmeter.
From my understanding, a voltmeter measures voltage through the current flowing into the voltmeter which interacts with a magnetic field, turning a coil and displaying a voltage value. The torque of the coil is proportional to the amount of current flowing through said coil. My guess is that when the capacitor was fully charged, no current would run through it, thus meaning all of the circuit's current would be redirected through the voltmeter and treating it as if it were in series. This extra amount of current might have caused the increased "voltage" value displayed.
At this stage, I'm mostly hypothesising, any feedback and alternative suggestions would be great, thanks!