Battery knowledge · Units and electrical basics

Ohm

The SI unit of electrical resistance: one volt per ampere. Cell internal resistance is about a milliohm for a large automotive cell and tens of milliohms for a small cylindrical one. [1]

Abbreviation
Ω
Unit
Ω

Example

Voltage under load

5 A through 20 mΩ gives 0.1 V ohmic drop.

Chosen OCV curve; no chemistry calibration, hysteresis or voltage cutoff.

Explore the graph

Discharge current creates an ohmic drop below open-circuit voltage.

Illustrative OCV and loaded voltage
Illustrative OCV and loaded voltageSOC (%) versus Voltage (V). Open circuit; Under load. Interpretation follows the graphs.1.802.42253.05503.67754.3100SOC (%)Voltage (V)
Open circuitUnder load (dashed)

5 A through 20 mΩ gives 0.1 V ohmic drop.

V_terminal = OCV − I_discharge R

Illustrative model. Chosen OCV curve; no chemistry calibration, hysteresis or voltage cutoff.

Use in Lemonergy

Lemonergy Studio blocks

Relate current and voltage

Conserving components solve constitutive relations and node balance.

Blocks to use

  1. Controlled voltage source

    Supplies voltage

    Inputs & settings
    • voltageV
  2. Resistor

    Relates current and voltage

    Inputs & settings
    • resistanceOhm
  3. Electrical reference

    Sets zero potential

    Inputs & settings
    • Connect p to reference net

This overview identifies the components to use. Follow the example in Lemonergy for their connections and settings.

  1. Inspect source and resistor in the RC example.
  2. Compare branch current with resistor voltage.

Example. A 1 V drop across 2 Ω implies 0.5 A.

Observe. Topology sets individual element voltages.

The RC example includes a capacitor: transient current varies and source voltage is not always resistor voltage.

Open the electrical circuit →

References & further reading

Technical references

  1. The International System of Units (SI), 9th edition

    Bureau International des Poids et Mesures · 2026

    Technical reference · Definitions of SI units and coherent derived units; 2026 revision.