I used a top pan balance in my experiment, to find out the mass of the copper wire. The top pan balance measures the mass of the copper wire by measuring the force of which the copper wire is applying to the pan on the balance. This force is then converted to an electrical display to enable people to read the mass. The reason, to which I used a top pan balance and not another piece of equipment to measure the mass of the wire, is because of the high accuracy that the top pan balance has. The top pan balance is so accurate that even temperature can affect the readings.
To measure the length of the copper wire, I used a metre ruler. A meter ruler consist of a long piece of plastic, wood or metal which has an indent every 10cm and 1mm. The ruler was placed to the side of the copper wire, and at the point of where the copper wire ended, is the length of the wire. I used a meter ruler instead of an alternative piece of equipment because I feel a meter ruler is an appropriate and accurate way of measuring a piece of copper wire.
I used a micrometre to measure the diameter of the copper wire. A micrometre works by the piece of copper wire being places between the anvil and spindle. To tighten the wire, you use the ratchet knob. This enables the wire to not be crushed by the individual tightening the wire in between the anvil and spindle. One the wire is clammed firmly; the scale is read to see what the diameter of the wire is. The reason to which why I used a micrometre is because the diameter is very small, and the micrometre is appropriate to this as it has a very small and accurate scale. I would be unable to use a ruler to measure the diameter of the copper wire because the diameter is far too small.
The digital voltage meter was used to measure the voltage across of the copper wire. A voltage meter measures the voltage indirectly by measuring the current that is passing through the wire. This is done by placing a crocodile clip on either end of the...