Question

A battery is replaced with one of lower emf. State and explain how the resistance of the lamps would have to change in order to achieve the same brightness.

Answer 1

The brightness of the lamp is proportional to the current flowing through the lamp: the larger the current, the brighter the lamp.

The current flowing through the lamp is given by Ohm's law:

`I=(V)/(R)`

where

V is the potential difference across the lamp, which is equal to the emf of the battery, and R is the resistance of the lamp.

The problem says that the battery is replaced with one with lower emf. Looking at the formula, this means that V decreases: if we want to keep the same brightness, we need to keep I constant, therefore we need to decrease R, the resistance of the lamp.