Equation 18-20 tells us that by combining resistors in parallel, we create a circuit with a smaller equivalent resistance than any of the individual resistors. For the special case of two identical resistors \(R\) in parallel, the equivalent resistance is given by
\(\frac{1}{R_{\mathrm{equiv}}} = \frac{1}{R} + \frac{1}{R} = \frac{2}{R}\) so \(R_{\mathrm{equiv}} = \frac{R}{2}\)
The equivalent resistance of two identical resistors in parallel is onehalf that of each individual resistor.