TheveninSpannungsäquivalent

TheveninSpannungsäquivalent, often simply called the Thevenin Equivalent, is a concept in electrical engineering used to simplify complex linear electrical circuits. It allows any two-terminal linear circuit to be represented by an equivalent circuit consisting of a single voltage source in series with a single resistor. This simplification is particularly useful when analyzing the behavior of a specific part of a larger circuit or when repeatedly analyzing a circuit with different loads connected to it.

The voltage source in the Thevenin Equivalent is known as the Thevenin voltage ($V_{th}$) and represents the open-circuit voltage across the terminals of the original circuit. The series resistor is called the Thevenin resistance ($R_{th}$) and represents the equivalent resistance seen from the terminals when all independent sources in the original circuit are deactivated (voltage sources are short-circuited, and current sources are open-circuited).

To find the Thevenin voltage, one measures or calculates the voltage across the two terminals of the circuit when no load is connected. To determine the Thevenin resistance, one can deactivate the independent sources and then calculate the equivalent resistance between the terminals, or, if the circuit contains only independent sources, calculate the ratio of the open-circuit voltage to the short-circuit current at the terminals. The Thevenin Equivalent circuit significantly simplifies calculations for circuit analysis, especially for analyzing the behavior of a load connected to the complex circuit.