Abstract
This chapter reviews the potentiometer and Wheatstone bridge. These two instruments are basically intended for high precision laboratory measurements of voltage and resistance. The potentiometer, developed by Kohlrausch in Germany, is a device for comparing an unknown with a standard voltage. The Wheatstone bridge, developed by Sir Charles Wheatstone in Britain, is a device for comparing an unknown with a standard resistance. Each device is capable of an accuracy of six significant figures if properly constructed and used. One of the most useful commercial forms of the potentiometer is the self-balancing recording instrument. In this device, the meter is replaced by a very sensitive electronic amplifier, whose output drives a small electric motor, and this slides the moving point along the wire. The potentiometer—particularly in the form of a recording instrument—is widely used for thermocouple thermometry. The Wheatstone bridge is widely used for resistance thermometry.
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