Questions tagged [voltage-divider]

A voltage divider is a circuit that produces an output voltage that is proportional to the input voltage. One typical configuration consists of a pair of resistors in series from the input voltage to ground, with the output voltage taken from the junction of the resistors. As an example: two equal-valued resistors will give an output voltage that is 50% of the input voltage.

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When would I use a voltage regulator vs a voltage divider?

When would you use a voltage regulator vs a resistor voltage divider? Are there any uses for which a resistor divider is particularly bad?
Pete's user avatar
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68 votes
5 answers
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How to choose value of resistor in voltage divider?

I understand that the output voltage is determined by the ratio between the two resistor values, and that if the both resistors are same then output voltage will be exactly same for all; but what's ...
Coldblackice's user avatar
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23 votes
3 answers
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Measure Lithium ion battery voltage (thus remaining capacity)

What I am working with: I am running my self-made Arduino board (in the sense that I use the Arduino bootloader and code editor) at 3.3V, and powered from a Lithium ion battery, which is USB-charged ...
boardbite's user avatar
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15 votes
3 answers
19k views

Low current battery monitoring

I want to run a micro-controller from a 1S lipo through a 3V linear regulator. I need to measure the battery voltage however. The problem with using a voltage divider is that it would drain the ...
s3c's user avatar
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6 votes
3 answers
5k views

Is it safe to use a voltage divider for Arduino and DC motor controller?

I have ordered a Dual H-Bridge 12A continuous (30A peak) Polulu motor driver shield for my upcoming (first time ever, a 1.2m long tank made of wood) robot project. I was thinking about how to supply ...
Gizmo's user avatar
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6 votes
2 answers
9k views

Combined ADC scaling and offset with variable input voltage ranges

I am trying to create a circuit which will allow me to scale and offset a voltage (be it AC or DC) to within the range of the Arduino ADC. The voltage could be anything between + and - 250V, but I ...
Majenko's user avatar
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7 votes
4 answers
22k views

Sensing AC high voltage to microcontroller

I'd like to sense if I have AC 220V 50HZ available, and convert it to some logical level. I made such circuit, will it work? I use C1 as a resistor. Any recommendations what can be improved? ...
HardQuestions's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
2k views

3V power rail from 5V

I've mistakenly ordered some 3V PIC18 L F14K22 instead of the 5V 18F14K22. 3V output is fine for the designed circuit but I need to make a 3V power rail from the available 5V rail. Since only a ...
NeonMan's user avatar
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0 votes
3 answers
3k views

Choosing Voltage Divider Resistor For LDR

I have a 2Mohm dark resistance LDR and i'm wondering what would be the best choice for the fixed resistor. If I made it too large then it would be very insensitive and if I made it too small then it ...
Deadshot's user avatar
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9 votes
6 answers
4k views

Why Did My NPN/PNP Voltage Regulator Experiment Explode?

I have been looking at ways to derive low voltage rails from a higher voltage and current supply, which in practical terms is about 53-0-53V from a linear power supply (toroidal, bridge rectifier and ...
Ian Bland's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
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Basic voltage divider issue in my amateur circuit XBee

Once again I need your help in my project. I have a 4,5v powered circuit. I put a voltage divider with 2 resistors in series to reduce my initial voltage of 4.5 V to 3.4 V (to feed an XBee module). ...
Xavi Gómez Canals's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
2k views

Which is the correct voltage reference for a single supply instrumentation amplifier?

I'm working on using the TI INA333 in a single 3v supply configuration. I need to create a "mid supply" (half V+) for the REF pin. I have thought of 3 ways to do this: Voltage divider with ...
nak's user avatar
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26 votes
2 answers
85k views

MOSFET as a voltage controlled resistor

This question might be too localized, but I try. Is it possible to replace a variable resistor by a MOSFET, under conditions shown in the following schematic? If yes, can someone propose a MOSFET ...
sergej's user avatar
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8 votes
3 answers
9k views

Is voltage divider applicable on circuits where there is no ground?

For the circuit below, if the bottom terminal is -Vin and not grounded, is applying voltage divider possible at all? If this is the case, what would the equation be? I never heard of a voltage ...
Xiagua's user avatar
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8 votes
3 answers
6k views

PIC - How to skirt around low maximum ADC input impedance?

Reading a 9V battery on a PIC is nothing new. The most simple and straightforward way is with a voltage divider. I'd like to keep the divider resistances cranked up into the hundreds of kohms so I'm ...
BB ON's user avatar
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3 votes
3 answers
421 views

How to determine resistor value for given voltages

I'm not sure how to solve the following problem (I'm not asking or complete solutions, just for a hint on where to start!). I'm asked to find the values for R1, R2 and R3. I know it is a voltage ...
Pilotf4's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
3k views

Low power battery voltage monitor

I would like to measure the battery usage of my ESP32 device. As my device runs in deep sleep mode 99% of the time, it's important that the battery monitoring circuit does not add too much to the ...
Alex Spurling's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
10k views

Negative Voltage Level Shifting to an ADC

I am currently building a project that uses an AD595 analog devices chip to linearize the output of the Thermocouple sensor to 10mv/deg C. This output is to be connected to the ADC input of a Zigbee ...
Nick G's user avatar
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1 vote
4 answers
8k views

How to measure line voltage (220V) with an arduino?

I'm a Electrical Engineering student and I want to sense and sample the voltage signal coming from a wall socket (110V - 220V). I came up with the following circuit using a voltage divider with high ...
Gabriel Góes Rodrigues's user avatar
0 votes
4 answers
1k views

Powering Arduino from a voltage divider

I'm making a voltmeter for the college senior project, and the problem is that voltage divider should equally split 17V into two 9V(nominal value of the batteries. As of now, an actual voltage is 8.5V ...
Dystopia0range's user avatar
0 votes
3 answers
241 views

Finding Node Voltage

I need to find node voltage at A. This seems like a trivial question, but when I set up the resistive voltage divider equations they are not equal to each other. Am I doing something wrong? My ...
Hector's user avatar
  • 353
18 votes
7 answers
15k views

How make a dual +-12V supply from a 24V SMPS

I'm trying to power a home-made load cell transmitter using a 24V single SMPS. I need to make +12, 0 and -12 Volts that are capable of 50mA. I wish to power multiple channels of opamps and bridges. I ...
Ohbhatt's user avatar
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12 votes
3 answers
15k views

Which one is better as voltage divider: resistive, capacitive , low pass filter,...?

There are different types of voltage attenuators for AC signals ( a short explanation is here). The most well known is a resistive one. Others like capacitive, inductive or low pass filters are ...
Aug's user avatar
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12 votes
4 answers
3k views

Is this clamping voltage divider for a high-impedance input a good, robust design?

I have an AC input as follows: Can range from ±10V to at least ±500V continuously. Runs from roughly 1 Hz to 1 kHz. Needs > 100 kΩ of impedance on it, otherwise its amplitude changes. May ...
JohnSpeeks's user avatar
11 votes
5 answers
23k views

Circuit for a coarse and fine setting potentiometer?

I've tried to find a circuit for a coarse and fine adjustment (two potentiometers) voltage divider, but I don't understand it and/or they don't have a linear response. Problem: I want to have an ...
tgun926's user avatar
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9 votes
4 answers
15k views

Divider and lowpass combined

I am using the following circuit for two purposes: As a voltage divider, to reduce DC sensor output to a range suitable for my ADC. As a lowpass filter, to remove high frequency noise from the signal....
Jeremiah Rose's user avatar
8 votes
8 answers
3k views

How does the electricity "know" the ratio of the resistance in a voltage divider?

I'm having a hard time conceptualizing what/how things are working in a voltage divider setup. I've read a couple other questions/explanations where the answerer has said to "not think about it in ...
Coldblackice's user avatar
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6 votes
1 answer
23k views

How can I rearrange the voltage divider formula for R2?

Can I please have a step by step explanation as to how I can rearrange the voltage divider formula to find R2. I dont understand how I end up with R2 = R1 x Vout/Vin - Vout.
ikram1ali's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
350 views

Can we explain the differential pair in terms of resistances?

It has always been a big challenge for me to find the most general ideas behind great circuit solutions that can be illustrated by simple electrical concepts... and even by non-electrical analogies ...
Circuit fantasist's user avatar
5 votes
5 answers
9k views

What is the voltage drop across the 10 ohm resistor?

What is the voltage drop (V1) across the 10 ohm resistor? Can I use voltage division to get V1? Like V1 = (20 V x 10 Ω) / (10 Ω + 4 Ω) But when I use nodal analysis and mesh analysis I get a different ...
Rakshith Krish's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
4k views

Measuring Battery Voltage from Microcontroller using ADC

I am currently using a PIC16f1826 to try and measure the voltage of the 3.7v battery that is powering said microcontroller. From my understanding, the ADC can measure from 0v up to the reference ...
patrickdamery's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
299 views

What is the purpose of the three part circuit?

I'm studying for my final on introduction to circuits and came across a question about this circuit: The question is: Identify and describe the three parts of the circuit used for a measurement ...
filepino's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
15k views

How to reduce 24V to 0- 2.5V through a pot?

I have a 24V DC supply and I need to give a heater a 0-2.5V variable input. I have a very limited understanding on electronics but I've read here about voltage dividers. I used a 10k pot (and the 2 ...
user18828's user avatar
2 votes
4 answers
2k views

Unstable readings in photoresistor matrix with Arduino, OK with Ohmmeter - what's wrong?

I'm working on a photoresistor array with my arduino, and I'm having a little trouble getting stable readings. I'm driving 7 rows one at a time with Arduino's ...
BuffaloJacked's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
2k views

Questions on Operational Amplifiers

What I've learned so far from Navy school is that operational amplifiers are used as a substitute for transistor amplifiers and they contain three main circuits: the differential amplifier, common ...
NavyColors_Blue's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
12k views

5V 4-pin Noctua A4X10 on Raspberry Pi

I want to connect a NOCTUA NF-A4X10 5V PWM 4-pin fan to a Raspberry Pi 3B. The below is the circuit I'm planning to use. (EDIT: Flyback diode (such as a 1N4001) is not needed since Noctua already ...
Pedro Abrantes's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
341 views

Voltage divider formula

How to find value for both R1 and R2 for Vout=1.23 volts, where Pot=5K, Vin=4.5 - 12 volts? simulate this circuit – Schematic created using CircuitLab In reality, I want to adjust lm2596 buck ...
Hida's user avatar
  • 67
1 vote
2 answers
1k views

Impedance to voltage range

I'm trying to get a voltage in a range from a potentiometer. The potentiometer theorically varies between 22k and 40k (R1 in the shematic) but I'm unsure as I currently don't have it in my hands. I ...
servabat's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
377 views

Read signals made of 8V square waves on an Arduino

I am working on putting together an Arduino board that would read signals sent between two modules in a car. The signals are sent as 8V square waves. An example of a message sent this way would be a ...
Mav2287's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
925 views

voltage divider -- for detecting higher voltage in ADC

I am working on a BLDC sensorless motor. I need to detect BEMF Zero-cross event. My Motor is working on 24 Volt power. Now I need to detect the back E.M.F. As refered in this application note. My ...
user6363's user avatar
  • 201
0 votes
4 answers
2k views

Why does voltage reading increase the greater the resistance load?

I'm new to electronics. So basically I already understand Ohm's law and the math behind why this is the case. What I don't get is the idea behind it. Shouldn't the greater the load resistance be, the ...
user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
1k views

Multiple Staged BJT Amplifier

Here is shown the design of simple multi-staged amplifier. simulate this circuit – Schematic created using CircuitLab I tried to put together all three NPN transistor configurations and this ...
lucenzo97's user avatar
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0 votes
2 answers
489 views

ADC protection best practice

Say you were wanting to measure a signal with a higher voltage than the ADC could handle. Is there some best practice or commonly used circuitry that goes beyond a simple voltage divider to protect ...
zsky3333's user avatar
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0 votes
3 answers
11k views

Multiple voltage dividers

So I have this circuit. I've been trying to figure out Vout. I couldn't find a specific formula for this situation. Can anyone help me figure out the formula? Thank you.
Archy's user avatar
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-1 votes
3 answers
2k views

Calculate resistors value in voltage divider

I have the following voltage divider circuit with a potentiomenter, and I need to find the value of the resistors. simulate this circuit – Schematic created using CircuitLab How can I find the ...
Pototo's user avatar
  • 175
18 votes
5 answers
14k views

Voltage Divider vs. Resistor in Series

What is the difference between having a voltage divider vs just using a resistor in series. So for example, I have an input voltage with 12V, and two resistors in a voltage divider, R1=10k, and R2=...
Amandeep Grewal's user avatar
13 votes
2 answers
15k views

Output impedance of voltage divider?

When connecting a 10S LiPo (42V) to my ADC via a voltage divider, I began wondering how to calculate the output impedance of the divider. simulate this circuit – Schematic created using ...
JimmyB's user avatar
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11 votes
4 answers
5k views

Need to keep re-soldering SMD resistors on PCB

I made a PCB to scale a +-100V signal into a 0v to 3.3V signal that I could read using an ADC on a microcontroller(see link for idea.) I used this solder paste flux to help with the soldering. ...
Ryan W's user avatar
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9 votes
6 answers
5k views

Does the value of a resistor matter when doing voltage division to cut it into a half?

I have a 7.4V (8.4V when fully charged) battery that is connected to an Arduino and I need to monitor the battery. To do so, I need to plug the battery into an analog pin. However, that pin only ...
Manan's user avatar
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8 votes
4 answers
11k views

Do voltage dividers waste battery?

I am attempting to make a battery powered alarm clock with an Arduino, and I would appreciate some help on the circuitry part. I am very inexperienced with electrical engineering. I am using a ...
cr5519's user avatar
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