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A-level practical assessment - 5

Determination of resistivity of a wire using a micrometer, ammeter and voltmeter.

This CAP involves measuring the diameter of a wire in order to find its area before using it in a circuit to find how its resistance varies with length.

You will then be expected to use a graph to find its resistivity and cooment on the uncertainty in your results.

Wire Diameter d/$\units{m}$ Cross sectional area A/$\units{m^{2}}$
1 2 3 Mean
4.6×10-4 4.2×10-4 4.3×10-4 4.4×10-4 1.5×10-7
  • Range = $\quantity{4.0×10^{-5}}{m}$
  • Absolute uncertainty = $±\quantity{2.0×10^{-5}}{m}$
  • Percentage uncertaint in area = $±9.1\%$


Length l/$\units{m}$ Potential Difference V/$\units{V}$ Current I/$\units{A}$ Resistance R/$\units{Ω}$
1 2 3 Mean
0.100 0.50 1.27 1.25 1.24 1.25 0.40
0.200 0.50 0.68 0.68 0.70 0.67 0.73
0.300 0.50 0.51 0.51 0.50 0.51 0.99
0.400 0.50 0.38 0.38 0.38 0.38 1.32
0.500 0.50 0.29 0.29 0.29 0.29 1.72
0.600 0.50 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 2.00
0.700 0.50 0.21 0.21 0.21 0.21 2.38
0.800 0.50 0.19 0.19 0.19 0.19 2.36