In a parallel circuit, the total current equals the sum of the currents through all branches.

In a parallel circuit, the total current equals the sum of the currents through all branches.

• A. Voltage across branches
• B. Current through the source
• C. Sum of currents through all branches
• D. Power dissipated in the branches

Answer: (C)

In a parallel circuit, currents split at the junction where the branches diverge, but charge is conserved. The current coming from the source is distributed into the branches, and the currents in those branches add together to equal that source current. That additive behavior is why the total current is the sum of the branch currents. The reason this is the best description is that it directly expresses how current flows in parallel: each branch carries its own current, and those branch currents combine to form the total from the source. The voltage across each branch is the same, but that alone doesn’t describe how the currents relate. The power dissipated in the branches isn’t about summing currents, and while the current through the source matches the total in a simple circuit, the explicit statement about summing branch currents best captures the relationship.

In a parallel circuit, currents split at the junction where the branches diverge, but charge is conserved. The current coming from the source is distributed into the branches, and the currents in those branches add together to equal that source current. That additive behavior is why the total current is the sum of the branch currents.

The reason this is the best description is that it directly expresses how current flows in parallel: each branch carries its own current, and those branch currents combine to form the total from the source. The voltage across each branch is the same, but that alone doesn’t describe how the currents relate. The power dissipated in the branches isn’t about summing currents, and while the current through the source matches the total in a simple circuit, the explicit statement about summing branch currents best captures the relationship.