Abeka Science Matter and Energy Test 7 Practice

In a parallel circuit, currents split into separate paths, but the total current that leaves the source must supply all of them. The voltage across every branch is the same, so each branch draws current I = V/R for its own resistance. Since the source feeds all branches at once, the currents in each branch add together to give the total current: I_total = I_branch1 + I_branch2 + … + I_branchN. This holds true no matter how the resistors compare or what the supply voltage is; changing the voltage changes how much current each branch takes, but the total is still the sum of the branch currents. If a branch carries no current (infinite resistance), it simply adds zero to the total.