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Transient behavior of simple RC circuits
American Journal of Physics -- December 2002 -- Volume 70, Issue 12, pp. 1187-1193
Issue Date: December 2002
I report on simulations of the evolution of surface charges, the retarded electric potential, and the electric field in a simple resistorcapacitor (RC) circuit and in an RC circuit with a switch. The circuits have high resistance, so radiation and inductive effects are not significant. The simulations illustrate nonquasistatic effects due to the finite speed of light, and should be useful in teaching students how circuits respond to changes. ©2002 American Association of Physics Teachers.
| History: | Received 25 October 2001; accepted 26 July 2002 |
| Permalink: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1119/1.1508444 |






