03-01 Introduction to AC, Alternating Current

Characteristics

Alternating, rapidly changes polarity

220V-240V:
240V, 50Hz (Western Australia, Brunei,)
230V, 50Hz (Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, UK, Australia except WA, NZ, EU)
220V, 50Hz (China, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Eastern Europe)
100V-120V:
120V, 60Hz (USA, Canada, Mexico)
110V, 60Hz (Taiwan, Carribean islands, North Korea)
100V, 50Hz (Japan, east & north of Tokyo) & 60Hz (Japan, west & south of Nagoya)

Waveform

Example Circuits, DC vs AC

Advanced Topics

For topics such as RMS, single-phase vs three-phase, etc. see 03-05 Advanced AC Topics.

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