To investigate How the Length of Wire affects its Resistance.

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Coursework:

“How the Length of Wire affects its Resistance”

Aim

To investigate How the Length of Wire affects its Resistance.

Hypothesis

 I predict that if “the length increases then the resistance will also increase in proportion to the length”. I think this because the longer the wire the more atoms and so the more likely the electrons are going to collide with the atoms. So if the length is doubled the resistance should also double. This is because if the length is doubled the numbers of atoms will also double resulting in twice the number of collisions slowing the electrons down and increasing the resistance.

The diagrams below backup what I have written above;

                     

                       

                                    Long Wire                                                       Short Wire

                              Flow of Current              Wire Particles (Resistance)

The diagram shows that if the wire is longer the same amount of current has to pass through a longer distance of space, and in a longer piece of wire there will be more atoms in the way increasing the resistance. When compared to a shorter wire the same amount of current has to pass through a shorter distance, and there won’t be as many atoms in the way so the resistance won’t be as great.

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Method

  1. I will set up the apparatus as shown in the circuit.
  2. I will get a wire of length 20cm and connect it to a wooden ruler.
  3. The first crocodile clip will be connected to the wire at 0cm.
  4. The second crocodile clip will be placed at the relevant length to which I am finding out the necessary information.
  5. The power supply will be turned.
  6. I will the read the readings from the Volt Meter and Ammeter.
  7. The numbers will be recorded in a table.
  8. I will turn off the power supply and move the second ...

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Punctuation, grammar and spelling done to a good standard mostly. Slight grammar problems in places. Format of the essay is good and the essay is easy to read and clearly set out.

Their explanation of resistance and predictions are good, but the diagrams do not sum up well what they want to explain. The two different diagrams are not accentuated enough to explain their meaning well. The shorter wire just seems to have as many atoms as the longer wire thus not demonstrating their point very well. Their method is outlined clearly but some points need to be expanded upon to gain true clarity of their meaning. A diagram would also have been helpful at this stage rather than later. They identify factors which could affect the experiment which is good as this shows deeper understanding of the experiment and would make their results more reliable but again the points need expansion as they are not explained well. The evaluation and graph analysis are very well done outlining a number of factors and improvements.

Overall a good essay. It explains the concept of resistance fairly well, but some of their statements are limited in the scientific depth they go into and this should be improved upon throughout. Their conclusion and evaluation are very well done relating to the question set well.