Power factor measures the proportion of power used relative to what two components?

Power factor measures the proportion of real power that is used in a circuit relative to the apparent power in that circuit, which directly relates to voltage and current. Real power is the power that actually performs work, while apparent power is a combination of both real power and reactive power, represented in the form of voltage and current.

In an electrical system, voltage represents the electric potential, while current is the flow of electric charge. The relationship between these two components determines how efficiently the electrical power is being used. A high power factor indicates that most of the power supplied by the source is being used effectively, whereas a low power factor indicates that a significant portion of the power is wasted or not used for useful work. This relationship highlights the critical roles of voltage and current in understanding power factor.

The other options do not accurately reflect the components involved in calculating power factor, as they either omit one of the crucial elements or include ones that are not relevant to this measurement.