What happens to the total resistance of a circuit when multiple components are connected in parallel?

What happens to the total resistance of a circuit when multiple components are connected in parallel?

• A. It stays the same
• B. It decreases
• C. It increases
• D. It becomes zero

Answer: (B)

In a parallel circuit, adding more paths for current reduces the overall opposition to flow. The total resistance is found from 1/R_eq = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + ...; as you add more branches, the sum of reciprocals gets larger, so the equivalent resistance R_eq becomes smaller. If all branches have the same resistance, R_eq = R/n, which clearly shows that more parallel paths lower the total resistance. It won’t stay the same, increase, or reach zero (unless a path with zero resistance is present).

In a parallel circuit, adding more paths for current reduces the overall opposition to flow. The total resistance is found from 1/R_eq = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + ...; as you add more branches, the sum of reciprocals gets larger, so the equivalent resistance R_eq becomes smaller. If all branches have the same resistance, R_eq = R/n, which clearly shows that more parallel paths lower the total resistance. It won’t stay the same, increase, or reach zero (unless a path with zero resistance is present).