One of the most useful tools a scientist can have! A digital multimeter can quickly help you discover where the trouble is in your electrical circuits and eliminate the hassle of guesswork. When you have the right tool for the job, it makes your work a lot easier (think of trying to hammer nails with your shoe).

We'll show you how to get the most out of this versatile tool that we're sure you're going to use all the way through college. This project is for advanced students.

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Exercises

1. If you measure 2.65 volts from your battery pack, do you need new batteries or will they work?
2. How do you think you would measure the resistance of an LED?
3. Reset your meter for a quick practical test: Remove the wires from your DMM and set the dial at OFF. Wave your hand wildly and show how you can use the meter (you can add probes and turn it on now) to test the voltage on your LED in a simple circuit doing the steps from the experiment.

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