Impedance is a measure of the opposition to the flow of alternating current (AC) in an electrical circuit. It is a complex quantity that has both magnitude and phase. The magnitude of the impedance is measured in ohms, and the phase is measured in degrees. Impedance is important because it can be used to determine the power factor of a circuit, which is a measure of how efficiently the circuit is using power. Impedance can also be used to design circuits that have specific characteristics, such as resonant circuits and filter circuits.
The impedance of a circuit can be found using a variety of methods, including the following:
