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AC, power & resonance formulas

Sinusoidal steady state, AC power and resonance. 30 formulas for GATE EC, EE, IN Networks (Electric Circuits), each with when to use it. Each is explained in the topic notes.

All 30 AC, power & resonance formulas

AVERAGE VALUE

Any periodic waveform; integrate over any one full period.

RMS VALUE

Any periodic waveform. Square first, then average, then take the root.

SINUSOID

. The full-cycle average is zero; the rms value does not depend on the phase .

FORM FACTOR AND CREST (PEAK) FACTOR

is the half-cycle average for a waveform whose full-cycle average is zero; is the largest absolute value. For a sine, and .

RMS OF A SUM OF DIFFERENT FREQUENCIES

Only when the components have different frequencies (dc counts as frequency zero): products of different frequencies average to zero over the common period. Add same-frequency terms as phasors first.

ELEMENT IMPEDANCES

Inductor: voltage leads current by . Capacitor: current leads voltage by . Resistor: in phase.

IMPEDANCE

: inductive, current lags. : capacitive, current leads. is the angle by which voltage leads current. The arctangent form assumes (a passive impedance); for , or with the sign of .

ADMITTANCE

only when . Susceptances: capacitor , inductor .

COMBINATIONS AND DIVIDERS

Same as dc, with complex numbers: the voltage divider is for elements in series, the current divider for two parallel branches. Magnitudes add only when the phasors are in phase.

ACTIVE, REACTIVE AND APPARENT POWER

rms values. is the average of . is the amplitude of the part of that flows back and forth between the source and the fields of L and C, with zero average.

COMPLEX POWER

rms phasors, power absorbed by the load. With peak phasors, . The conjugate goes on the current; writing instead flips the sign of .

POWER IN EACH ELEMENT

and are positive magnitudes. An inductor absorbs reactive power, a capacitor delivers it, and neither absorbs average power.

POWER FACTOR

Lagging when current lags voltage (, , inductive); leading when current leads (, , capacitive); unity at . Always state lagging or leading with the number.

CONSERVATION OF COMPLEX POWER

Every element taken with the passive sign convention. and of loads add whether they are in series or parallel; apparent powers do NOT add in general (only when every load has the same power-factor angle).

SHUNT CAPACITOR FOR PF CORRECTION

, = pf angles before and after (lagging taken positive), = rms voltage across the capacitor, in W. For a final leading pf take negative.

AVERAGE POWER WITH HARMONICS

, = rms values of the -th harmonic; = angle by which leads . A harmonic present in only one of , contributes nothing. Power factor using the full rms values. If is a pure sinusoid and only is distorted, this becomes : distortion factor times displacement factor.

LOAD POWER

rms. Start every restricted-load problem from this expression.

CONJUGATE MATCH

rms (with a peak value it is ). The Thevenin source then delivers twice this power, so the efficiency measured against the Thevenin equivalent is 50%.

PURELY RESISTIVE LOAD

When the load cannot have reactance. Gives less power than the conjugate match unless .

RESONANT FREQUENCY

Ideal series RLC and ideal parallel RLC (frequency-independent R). The value of R does not shift it.

QUALITY FACTOR, SERIES RLC

is the total series resistance, including the coil's own resistance and the source's internal resistance.

VOLTAGE MAGNIFICATION (SERIES)

The L and C voltages are apart and cancel, but each is times the supply voltage.

HALF-POWER FREQUENCIES (SERIES)

Constant-amplitude voltage source. At and : , , , impedance angle at (capacitive) and at (inductive). is their exact geometric mean.

BANDWIDTH (SERIES)

Exact for any . For high (roughly ), ; the arithmetic symmetry about is only approximate, the geometric one is exact.

QUALITY FACTOR AND BANDWIDTH, PARALLEL RLC

Ideal parallel RLC. Current magnification: at , . A current source with internal resistance puts in parallel with : use in and BW.

SERIES-PARALLEL EQUIVALENT AT ONE FREQUENCY

A series and a parallel combination of and have the same impedance at the frequency where the values are computed, and only there. For , and , which is where the tank result below comes from.

PRACTICAL TANK (COIL R, L IN PARALLEL WITH C)

= frequency of unity pf; = dynamic impedance (purely resistive) at that frequency. A real exists only if . Exactly, with the coil taken at this ; for , and .

FIRST-ORDER LOW-PASS

At : ( dB), phase . Asymptotic roll-off dB/decade above .

FIRST-ORDER HIGH-PASS

At : , phase . Asymptotic slope dB/decade below .

STANDARD SECOND-ORDER FORMS

Match the denominator to read and directly: series RLC has , parallel RLC has . Damping ratio . The band-pass and band-stop bandwidth is . Asymptotic slopes: low-pass dB/decade above , high-pass dB/decade below it, band-pass dB/decade on its two skirts.

Where this was asked: 2018 (8), 2020 (5), 2022 (7), 2023 (3), 2024 (1), 2025 (4), 2026 (6). See the 34 previous-year questions on AC, power & resonance. This shows what was asked, not what will be asked.