In a potentiometer setup, if the known voltage is increased, what happens to the length of the wire required to balance the unknown voltage?
Practice Questions
1 question
Q1
In a potentiometer setup, if the known voltage is increased, what happens to the length of the wire required to balance the unknown voltage?
It increases
It decreases
It remains the same
It becomes zero
If the known voltage is increased, a longer length of wire will be required to balance the unknown voltage, as the potential gradient remains constant.
Questions & Step-by-step Solutions
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Q
Q: In a potentiometer setup, if the known voltage is increased, what happens to the length of the wire required to balance the unknown voltage?
Solution: If the known voltage is increased, a longer length of wire will be required to balance the unknown voltage, as the potential gradient remains constant.
Steps: 6
Step 1: Understand that a potentiometer is used to measure voltage by comparing it to a known voltage.
Step 2: Recognize that the known voltage is applied across a wire, creating a potential gradient (voltage per unit length).
Step 3: If the known voltage is increased, the potential gradient along the wire also increases.
Step 4: To balance the unknown voltage, you need to find a point on the wire where the voltage matches the unknown voltage.
Step 5: Since the potential gradient is higher with the increased known voltage, you will need a longer length of wire to reach the same voltage as the unknown voltage.
Step 6: Therefore, if the known voltage is increased, a longer length of wire is required to balance the unknown voltage.
