1.4:
Electric Circuit Elements
Circuit elements are the basic building blocks of an electric circuit. They can be categorized as active and passive elements.
Active elements can generate energy, whereas passive elements absorb energy.
Examples of active elements include voltage or current sources, whereas resistors, capacitors, and inductors are examples of passive elements.
Circuit elements can be further classified as either linear or non-linear.
A circuit or an element is considered linear if the excitation and response of the element follow the principles of superposition and homogeneity.
Suppose a voltage v1 leads to a response i1, and a voltage v2 leads to a response i2. If the element responds to the sum of the voltages with the sum of the responses, then it satisfies the superposition principle.
In addition, the homogeneity property is satisfied when multiplying the input of a linear device by any constant results in an equivalent multiplication of the output.
Linear elements like resistors, capacitors, and inductors exhibit linear characteristics.
Elements like thermistors are non-linear, as they do not comply with these principles.
1.4:
Electric Circuit Elements
Circuit elements are the basic building blocks of an electric circuit. Essentially, an electric circuit is the interconnection of these elements. Within electric circuits, one can find two types of elements: passive and active. Active elements have the ability to generate energy, whereas passive elements do not. Passive elements include components like resistors, capacitors, and inductors, while active elements typically encompass generators, batteries, and operational amplifiers.
The most crucial active elements are voltage or current sources, which generally provide power to the connected circuit. There are numerous ways to categorize circuit elements. For instance, distinguishing linear models from nonlinear models is crucial because circuits composed entirely of linear circuit elements are simpler to analyze than those with some nonlinear elements.
An element or circuit is considered linear if the element's excitation and response meet certain conditions. Both superposition and homogeneity properties are satisfied by a linear element. Consider a scenario where the excitation is the current (i) and the response is the voltage (v). If the element is subjected to a current (i1), it delivers a response (v1). Similarly, when the element is exposed to another current (i2), it elicits a response (v2).
Any circuit element that fails to meet either the superposition or the homogeneity principle is classified as nonlinear. Thermistors are examples of such nonlinear elements.