[Advanced Physics Topic]

These two rules are very useful for analysing and solving circuit problems.

Kirchoff’s First Law
For any junction in an electrical circuit, the sum of currents flowing into that junction is equal to the sum of currents flowing out of that junction.

This is sometimes called Kirchoff’s Current Law or Kirchoff’s Junction Rule.

This law results from conservation of charge.

 

 

Kirchoff’s Second Law
The algebraic sum of all voltages (potential differences) around any closed loop in an electrical circuit is zero.

This is sometimes called Kirchoff’s Voltage Law or Kirchoff’s Loop Rule.

This law results from the concept of conservation of energy.

 

D.C. Circuits