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Quick questions on The potential divider explained: O-Level Electronics Analogue Electronics

2short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.

What is choosing resistors for a wanted output?
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To get a particular output voltage, choose the ratio of the resistors. For half the supply, make the two resistors equal. For a quarter of the supply across R2R_2, make R1R_1 three times R2R_2. The actual resistance values are usually chosen in the kilohm range so the divider draws only a small current and wastes little power.
What is using a sensor in the divider?
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Replace one resistor with a sensor whose resistance changes, and the output voltage now varies with the quantity the sensor measures:

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