A real battery is not just an emf. We can model a real 1.5 V battery as a 1.5 V emf in series with a resistor known as the “internal resistance”, as shown in the figure(Figure 1) . A typical battery has 1.0 ? internal resistance due to imperfections that limit current through the battery. When there’s no current through the battery, and thus no voltage drop across the internal resistance, the potential difference between its terminals is 1.5 V, the value of the emf. Suppose the terminals of this battery are connected to a 2.1?resistor.
How much current flows when the battery is connected to the 2.1? resistor?
What is the potential difference between the terminals of the battery? Hint: The potential difference between the terminals of the battery is given by the battery’s emf minus the voltage across the internal resistance.
What percentage of the battery’s power is dissipated by the internal resistance?
