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According to Ohm's law, which of the following physical quantities must remain constant for the current to be directly proportional to the potential difference?
Temperature
Pressure
Volume
Density
Temperature
Ohm's law states that the current flowing through a conductor is directly proportional to the potential difference across its ends, provided that physical conditions, primarily temperature, remain constant. If the temperature changes, the resistance of the conductor changes, causing a deviation from linear behavior.
Ohm's law states that the current flowing through a conductor is directly proportional to the potential difference across its ends, provided that physical conditions, primarily temperature, remain constant. If the temperature changes, the resistance of the conductor changes, causing a deviation from linear behavior.
Think of electrical resistance like walking through a crowded corridor; if the people (atoms) start running around frantically due to heat (temperature), it becomes much harder for you (electrons) to walk through at a steady pace.
Ohm's Law: V = IR (Very Important Resistance)
V=I├ЧR тАФ Ohm's Law where V is potential difference, I is current, and R is resistance
R=╧БAlтАЛ тАФ Resistance formula where ╧Б is resistivity
The resistance of a metallic conductor is given by R=ne2╧ДAmlтАЛ, where m is the mass of the electron, l is length, n is electron density, e is charge, A is area, and ╧Д is the relaxation time. As temperature increases, the thermal vibrations of the lattice increase, leading to frequent collisions of electrons and a decrease in ╧Д, which causes R to increase, thereby violating the proportionality.
Ohm's law is only applicable to Ohmic conductors.
Resistivity (╧Б) is a function of temperature for metallic conductors.
Metals show an increase in resistance with an increase in temperature.
Simplifies circuit analysis
Essential for designing electrical networks
Not applicable to non-Ohmic devices like semiconductors, diodes, or transistors
Resistor color coding calculation
Determining current in a series circuit
For most metals, resistance increases linearly with temperature in a moderate range: RtтАЛ=R0тАЛ(1+╬▒╬ФT).
Option B (Pressure), C (Volume), and D (Density) do not directly influence the linear relationship of V and I in the same fundamental way temperature does for a fixed metallic wire.
A is correct тАФ Temperature must remain constant because changes in temperature significantly alter the atomic lattice vibrations, which directly changes the resistance of the conductor.
Always remember that Ohm's law is an empirical law; it is not a fundamental law of nature like Newton's laws, which is why it holds only under specific conditions (constant physical state).