Let us now define electric current and also know about conductors and insulators.
Electric Current is the rate of flow of electrons in a conductor. The SI Unit of electric current is the Ampere.
Conductors: these materials allow the free flow of electrons from one particle to another. Conductors allow for charge transfer through the free movement of electrons. The flow of electrons inside the conducting material or conductor generates an electric current. The force that is required to drive the current flow through the conductor is known as voltage.
Examples of conductors: Human body, aqueous solutions of salts and metals like iron, silver and gold.
Silver is the best conductor of electricity.
Insulators: Insulators are materials that restrict the free flow of electrons from one particle to another. The particles of the insulator do not allow the free flow of electrons; subsequently, the charge is seldom distributed evenly across the surface of an insulator.
Examples of Insulators: Plastic, Wood and Glass
Some of the prerequisites for the electric current to flow in a conductor are discussed here. The circuit includes an energy source (a battery, for instance) that produces voltage. Without voltage, electrons move randomly and are undirected; hence current cannot flow. Voltage creates pressure on the electrons, which channelises them to flow in a single direction.
The motion of free electrons is normally haphazard. If a force acts on electrons to make them move in a particular direction, then up to some extent random motion of the electrons will be eliminated. An overall movement in one direction is achieved. The force that acts on the electrons to make them move in a certain direction is known as electromotive force, and its quantity is known as voltage and is measured in volts.
Read More: Electromotive Force
The magnitude of electric current is measured in coulombs per second. The SI unit of electric current is Ampere and is denoted by the letter A. Ampere is defined as one coulomb of charge moving past a point in one second. If there are 6.241 x 1018 electrons flowing through our frame in one second, then the electrical current flowing through it is ''One Ampere.''
The unit Ampere is widely used within electrical and electronic technology along with the multipliers like milliamp (0.001A), microamp (0.000001A), and so forth.
There is a lot of confusion around conventional current flow and electron flow. In this section, let us understand their differences.
The conventional current flow is from the positive to the negative terminal and indicates the direction in which positive charges would flow.
The electron flow is from negative to positive terminal. Electrons are negatively charged and are therefore attracted to the positive terminal as unlike charges attract.
After defining electric current, let us learn various effects of electric current. When a current flows through a conductor, there are a number of signs which tell if a current is flowing or not. Following are the most prominent signs:
When our clothes are crumpled, we use the iron box to make our clothes crisp and neat. Iron box works on the principle of heating effect of current. There are many such devices that work on the heating effect.
When an electric current flows through a conductor, heat is generated in the conductor.
The heating effect is given by the following equation
The heating effect depends on the following factor:
If the current is small then the amount of heat generated is likely to be very small and may not be noticed. However, if the current is larger then it is possible that a noticeable amount of heat is generated.
Read More: Heating Effect of Electric Current
Another prominent effect that is noticeable when an electric current flows through the conductor is the build-up of the magnetic field. We can observe this when we place a compass close to a wire carrying a reasonably large direct current, and the compass needle deflects. The magnetic field generated by a current is put to good use in a number of areas. By winding a wire into a coil, the effect can be increased, and an electromagnet can be made.
Read More: Magnetic Effect of Electric Current
When an electric current passes through a solution, the solution ionizes and breaks down into ions. This is because a chemical reaction takes place when an electric current passes through the solution. Depending on the nature of the solution and the electrodes used, the following effects can be observed in the solution:
Electroplating and electrolysis are the applications of the chemical effect of electric current.
Read More: Electroplating and Electrolysis
Because they offer low resistivity for the flow of electrons.
Resistance is the reciprocal of conductance.
The resistance of pure metals increases with the increase in temperature, and the resistance of semiconductors decreases with an increase in temperature.
mho/metre or Siemens/metre.
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