A voltmeter is an instrument used for measuring electric potential difference between two points in
an electric circuit. It is connected in parallel. It usually has a high resistance so that it takes negligible
current from the circuit.
Analog voltmeters move a pointer across a scale in proportion to the voltage measured and can be
built from a galvanometer and series resistor. Meters using amplifiers can measure tiny voltages of
microvolts or less. Digital voltmeters give a numerical display of voltage by use of an analog-to-
digital converter.
Voltmeters are made in a wide range of styles, some separately powered (e.g. by battery), and
others powered by the measured voltage source itself. Instruments permanently mounted in a panel
are used to monitor generators or other fixed apparatus. Portable instruments, usually equipped to
also measure current and resistance in the form of a multimeter are standard test instruments used
in electrical and electronics work. Any measurement that can be converted to a voltage can be
displayed on a meter that is suitably calibrated; for example, pressure, temperature, flow or level in a
chemical process plant.
General-purpose analog voltmeters may have an accuracy of a few percent of full scale and are
used with voltages from a fraction of a volt to several thousand volts. Digital meters can be made
with high accuracy, typically better than 1%. Specially calibrated test instruments have higher
accuracies, with laboratory instruments capable of measuring to accuracies of a few parts per
million. Part of the problem of making an accurate voltmeter is that of calibration to check its
accuracy. In laboratories, the Weston cell is used as a standard voltage for precision work. Precision
voltage references are available based on electronic circuits.
Schematic symbol[edit]
Voltmeter symbol
In circuit diagrams, a voltmeter is represented by the letter V in a circle, with two emerging lines
representing the two points of measurement.
Analog voltmeter[edit]
A moving coil galvanometer of the d'Arsonval type.
The red wire carries the current to be measured.
The restoring spring is shown in green.
N and S are the north and south poles of the magnet.
A moving coil galvanometer can be used as a voltmeter by inserting a resistor in series with the
instrument. The galvanometer has a coil of fine wire suspended in a strong magnetic field. When an
electric current is applied, the interaction of the magnetic field of the coil and of the stationary
magnet creates a torque, tending to make the coil rotate. The torque is proportional to the current
through the coil. The coil rotates, compressing a spring that opposes the rotation. The deflection of
the coil is thus proportional to the current, which in turn is proportional to the applied voltage, which
is indicated by a pointer on a scale.
One of the design objectives of the instrument is to disturb the circuit as little as possible and so the
instrument should draw a minimum of current to operate. This is achieved by using a sensitive
galvanometer in series with a high resistance, and then the entire instrument is connected in parallel
with the circuit examined.
The sensitivity of such a meter can be expressed as "ohms per volt", the number of ohms resistance
in the meter circuit divided by the full scale measured value. For example, a meter with a sensitivity
of 1000 ohms per volt would draw 1 milliampere at full scale voltage; if the full scale was 200 volts,
the resistance at the instrument's terminals would be 200000 ohms and at full scale, the meter would
draw 1 milliampere from the circuit under test. For multi-range instruments, the input resistance
varies as the instrument is switched to different ranges.
Moving-coil instruments with a permanent-magnet field respond only to direct current. Measurement
of AC voltage requires a rectifier in the circuit so that the coil deflects in only one direction. Some
moving-coil instruments are also made with the zero position in the middle of the scale instead of at
one end; these are useful if the voltage reverses its polarity.
Voltmeters operating on the electrostatic principle use the mutual repulsion between two charged
plates to deflect a pointer attached to a spring. Meters of this type draw negligible current but are
sensitive to voltages over about 100 volts and work with either alternating or direct current.
