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Circuit scheme
The left and right vertical rails are the source nodes. Every horizontal row is one parallel branch. Resistors drawn in the same row are in series.
Branch and resistor results
| Element | Resistance | Current | Voltage drop | Power |
|---|
Background
Engineering basis, equations, assumptions, interpretation and practical limitations.
Series: Rbranch = R₁ + R₂ + …
Parallel: 1/Req = Σ(1/Rbranch)
Branch current: I = V/Rbranch
Resistor power: P = I²R
In a series chain, current is identical through every resistor and voltage divides. In parallel, voltage is identical across each branch and current divides according to branch resistance.
- Check each resistor’s calculated power against its rated power with margin.
- A lower-resistance parallel branch carries more current.
- Equivalent resistance of parallel branches is always below the smallest branch resistance.
- Zero-ohm branches are rejected because they represent an ideal short circuit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Practical questions about assumptions, inputs, interpretation and limitations.
Series resistances add directly because the same current flows through every resistor in the chain: Rtotal = R1 + R2 + … . The source voltage divides among the resistors according to their resistance values.
Parallel branches have the same voltage across them. Their conductances add, so 1/Rtotal = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + … . A lower-resistance branch carries more current.
The calculator first adds the resistors within each branch to obtain that branch resistance. It then combines the branch resistances in parallel and calculates branch current, individual resistor voltage drop and resistor power from Ohm’s law.
No. This tool models ideal DC resistor networks only. It does not calculate reactance, phase angle, frequency dependence, transient behavior or parasitic effects.
No. Calculations use the entered nominal resistance values. Real resistance changes with manufacturing tolerance and temperature, and resistor power ratings may require derating according to the component datasheet.