The science behind electric switches

How does an electric switch switch an appliance to turn off and on?

OBJECTIVES

• How does flipping a a switch cause an appliance to turn off or on??

MATERIALS NEEDED

• x1 light connected to a switch

What is a switch?

A switch is the part of a circuit that has the ability to open and close a circuit.

A circuit is a path or a closed loop that allows electricity to flow from one point to another. Moreover, it starts and stops at the the same point, and can have many elements in it. Given below is a diagram of a circuit.

The diagrams above show two simple circuits. The only difference in them, is that the switch in the first diagram is closed whereas the other one is open. Consequently, the bulbs are on and off respectively.

A circuit only works when the electric current is going in a full loop, in other words, your light can only turn on if its circuit is fully connected.

No one wants to keep their light on at all times. This is where the switch comes in and makes it easy to do the same.

Notice the difference between the on and off switch.

The 'on' switch keeps the circuit intact, whereas the 'off' one breaks the flow of the circuit. Thus, preventing the bulb from receiving consistent electric current and glowing.