Meaning – The term physical circuit, refers to a circuit established without multiplexing.
In electronics, a circuit is a path between two or more points along which an electrical current can be carried.
In telecommunications, a circuit is a discrete (specific) path between two or more points along which signals can be carried. Unless otherwise qualified, a circuit is a physical path, consisting of one or more wires (or wireless paths) and possibly intermediate switching points.
A virtual circuit, sometimes called a logical circuit, is a path between two or more points that seems like a fixed physical path, but actually is one path out of many possible physical paths that can be arranged.
Example of usage – “Originally, telecommunication circuits transmitted analog information. Radio stations used them as studio transmitter links (STLs) or as remote pickup units (RPU) for sound reproduction, sometimes as a backup to other means. Later lines were digital, used in pair-gain applications, such as carrier systems, or in enterprise data networks.”
