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PhET worksheet on electricity
Name: _____________________
Instructions:
Search through any internet application for “PhET”. The first hit should be “PhET
simulations from the University of Colorodo”. Open the “simulation” part of the site and
click on the physics link in the left margin.
Simulation 1- Electric Field Hockey
Scroll down until you see the above link. Open the Electric Field hockey and RUN the
Java application.
Click on the trace and field options and once you have arrange some charges, hit start and
see if you scored.
How many trials did you run before you scored? ____________
Was the Law of Electric Charges verified by the application?
What do you think is an Electric Field?
Simulation #2 - Circuit Construction Kit (AC + DC)
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SNC 1D
PhET worksheet on electricity
Name:_____________________
Open the link and run the application. The 4 requirements for any circuit are a power
source – the _______________, a load – the light bulb, a mechanism to create a
conductive path – the __________ and a complete loop. ( wire, battery)
Step 1. Create a simple circuit – 1 battery, 1 light bulb, wire and a complete loop.
a) Remove the battery by “right clicking on the icon” and reconnect the wire. What
happens in the circuit?
b) Return the battery but remove the light bulb. Reconnect the wire. What happens
in the circuit and why?
c) Return the light bulb and flip the battery. What happens to the charge flow?
d) Replace the battery with the AC icon. What do you think AC stands for?
e) Return the battery, removing the AC icon. “Right click” on the battery and
change its voltage. How does the energy in the circuit relate to the voltage?
f) “Right click” on the light bulb and change its resistance. What do notice about
the light intensity?
g) Select the Voltmeter in the right margin. Determine the voltage of the battery by
touching the wire on either side of the battery. ( V = __________.) Determine the
voltage across the light bulb by touching the wire on either side of the light bulb.
V = __________. Voltage represents the energy per charge carrier. What
conclusion can you draw about the energy provided by the battery and the energy
spent at the load?
h) What happens if you touch the wire at two spots near each other such that there is
no load or battery between the two tips? What does this tell you about the energy
spent in the wire?
i) Add a second battery to the circuit such that it is connected to one end of the
existing battery. Does it matter which way you connect the battery?
Write a brief paragraph outlining what you learned about simple circuits.
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SNC 1D
PhET worksheet on electricity
Step 2 – A series circuit
A circuit is considered a series circuit if it has more than one load but the charge only has
one path from one end of the battery to another.
Construct a series circuit with 2 light bulbs and 1 battery ( and wire of course)
a) Using the voltmeter measure the voltage across the battery and each load.
Battery _________ Light bulb 1 _______ Light bulb 2 _________
b) Using the non contact ammeter, measure the current at various spots in the circuit
and record the results
a. Spot 1 _______
Spot 2 _______
Spot 2 _______
c) With the circuit running, right click on one terminal on one of the light bulbs and
split the junction. What happens to the circuit?
d) Reattach the wire to the light bulb. Right click on one of the light bulbs and
change its resistance. Record the new voltages and the current with this new
circuit.
Battery _________
Light bulb 1 _______
Light bulb 2 _________
Spot 1 _______
Spot 2 _______
Spot 2 _______
e) Add two switches to the circuit and indicate their effect on the circuit. Do both
switches have to be closed? Explain.
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SNC 1D
PhET worksheet on electricity
Step 3 – A parallel circuit
A circuit is considered a parallel circuit if the charges have more than one path to travel
from one end of the battery to another. The circuit can be made rectangular such that the
different paths appear parallel but this rarely happens in the real world.
Construct a parallel circuit with one battery and 2 light bulbs
f) Using the voltmeter measure the voltage across the battery and each load.
Battery _________ Light bulb 1 _______ Light bulb 2 _________
g) Using the non contact ammeter, measure the current at various spots in the circuit
and record the results
a. Spot 1 _______
Spot 2 _______
Spot 2 _______
h) With the circuit running, right click on one terminal on one of the light bulbs and
split the junction. What happens to the circuit?
i) Reattach the wire to the light bulb. Right click on one of the light bulbs and
change its resistance. Record the new voltages and the current with this new
circuit.
Battery _________
Light bulb 1 _______
Light bulb 2 _________
Spot 1 _______
Spot 2 _______
Spot 2 _______
j) Add two switches to the circuit and indicate their effect on the circuit. Do both
switches have to be closed? Explain.
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