Internal Resistance (Cambridge (CIE) AS Physics): Revision Note

Internal resistance

• All power supplies have some resistance between their terminals

  • This is called internal resistance (r)

• This internal resistance causes the charge circulating to dissipate some energy from the power supply itself

  • This is why the cell becomes warm after a period of time

• The internal resistance therefore causes a loss of voltage or energy loss in a power supply

• A cell can be thought of as a source of e.m.f with an internal resistance connected in series. This is shown in the circuit diagram below:

Circuit with e.m.f

Circuit showing the e.m.f and internal resistance of a power supply

• V_R is the terminal potential difference

  • This is the voltage available in the circuit itself

  • Terminal p.d = I × R (Ohm’s law)

• When a load resistor is connected, current flows through the cell and a potential difference develops across the internal resistance. This voltage is not available to the rest of the circuit so is called the ‘lost volts’

• V_r is the lost volts

  • This is the voltage lost in the cell due to internal resistance, so, from conservation of energy:

  • Lost volts = e.m.f − terminal p.d

  • Lost volts = I × r (Ohm’s law)

• The e.m.f is the sum of these potential differences, giving the equation below:

• Where:

  • E = e.m.f (V)

  • I = current (A)

  • R = load resistance (Ω)

  • r = internal resistance (Ω)

• IR is collectively known as the 'terminal potential difference'

• Ir is collectively known as the 'lost volts'