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SAI INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
CLASS - VIII
Subject – CHEMISTRY
Chapter – CHEMICAL EFFECT OF ELECTRIC CURRENT
TOPIC – LED (Light Emitting Diode), Effects of Electric Current
LESSON NOTES
DETECTION OF WEAK ELECTRIC CURRENT FLOWING THROUGH A CONDUCTING
LIQUID:
The current flowing in an electric circuit is usually detected by using a small electric bulb.
When an electric current flows through the electric bulb, due to the heating effect of current,
the filament of the bulb gets heated up and glows to produce light.
But, when the current flowing through the circuit is too weak, the heating effect is also too
small, due to which the filament does not get heated up sufficiently and the bulb glows
dimly.
Therefore, an electric bulb or a torch bulb cannot be used to detect weak electric current
flowing through a liquid in a circuit.
So, the weak electric current flowing through liquids can be detected in two ways:
a) By using a LED (Light Emitting Diode)
b) By using a Magnetic Compass
a) By using a LED:
We can use LED (light-emitting diode) in place of a torch bulb, for detecting weak
electric current passing through a liquid.
LED is a semi-conductor device which glows even when a very weak current passes
through it.
There are two wires, called Leads, attached to an LED, where, one lead is slightly
longer than the other.
While connecting LED in the circuit, in place of a bulb, the longer lead is connected
to the positive terminal of the battery and the shorter lead is connected to the
negative terminal of the battery.
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