In electrical engineering, circuit problems typically fall into four basic categories:
1. **Ohm’s Law Problems:**
These involve calculating voltage, current, or resistance in a circuit using Ohm’s Law, which states \( V = IR \). Problems might ask you to determine any one of these quantities when the other two are known, or they might involve series and parallel resistances.
2. **Kirchhoff’s Laws Problems:**
These involve applying Kirchhoff’s Voltage Law (KVL) and Kirchhoff’s Current Law (KCL) to analyze complex circuits. KVL deals with the sum of voltages around a closed loop being zero, while KCL deals with the sum of currents entering a junction being equal to the sum of currents leaving.
3. **Circuit Analysis Problems:**
These are more general problems that require analyzing a circuit using techniques like nodal analysis, mesh analysis, or using Thevenin’s and Norton’s theorems. They might involve finding voltages and currents throughout a circuit, especially when dealing with multiple components and sources.
4. **AC Circuit Problems:**
These involve analyzing circuits with alternating current (AC). Problems might include calculating impedance, phase angles, and power in AC circuits using techniques such as phasor analysis or using complex numbers to handle reactance and impedance. These problems often deal with components like capacitors and inductors, which behave differently in AC circuits compared to DC circuits.
These categories cover a broad range of circuit problems encountered in both educational and practical electrical engineering scenarios.