What defines a short circuit?

A short circuit is defined as a fault condition where the electrical current bypasses the normal load pathway, creating an unintended low-resistance circuit. This situation typically happens when the conductive path is inadvertently connected, allowing current to flow through a path that is not designed to carry that level of current. This leads to a significant increase in current flow, often causing damage to components, overheating, or even electrical fires if not quickly interrupted by protective devices like fuses or circuit breakers.

The other scenarios described do not encompass the characteristics of a short circuit. A normal load operation refers to the regular functioning of a circuit, which is entirely different from the fault condition of a short circuit. An overload is when a circuit is subjected to more current than it can safely handle, but it still follows the normal path through loads; this differs from the direct short circuit condition. A gradual increase in current would indicate a monitoring or gradual stress on the system, not an abrupt fault where current is bypassing the intended load. Therefore, identifying a short circuit as a fault where current bypasses the normal load accurately captures the essence of its definition.