short circuit will happen when there is nearly no resistance in a wire, and when a high current almost infinite flowing through the wire, causing high temperature.
But connected in series, an ammeter, at least the section it composes in the whole circuit, also has low resistance. So wouldn't a high/ infinite current also occur producing short circuit?
Best Answer
An ammeter measures current; to measure the current directly it must flow through the ammeter. The typical ammeter is designed to do this by being added into your circuit in series, at the point you need to know the current.
In order not to disturb the circuit, this is designed with a low resistance so that the voltage drop is minimal. The same current flows through each portion of a series branch of a circuit.
OTOH, the typical voltmeter is connected in parallel, and has a high impedance; in a parallel connection the voltages are the same for each of the parallel branches, and the high impedance means that minimal current will flow through this additional branch, leaving the rest of the circuit unaffected.
So what happens if the ammeter setting is hooked up in parallel? With a very low resistance in the ammeter, all of the available current will flow through the ammeter, possibly damaging it. And if it is not damaged, it won't give a typical reading for the circuit being tested, because the circuit has been altered.
What happens if the voltmeter setting is hooked up in series? Then the high impedance of the voltmeter will result in a significant voltage drop in that part of the circuit. Once again, the value being shown is not typical of the actual circuit.