Current Quiz

PDF page 939: Electric current is defined to be the rate at which charge flows. A large current, such as that used to start a truck engine, moves a large amount of charge in a small time, whereas a small current, such as that used to operate a hand-held calculator, moves a small amount of charge over a long period of time. In equation form, electric current is defined to be

PDF page 939: where is the amount of charge passing through a given area in time . (As in previous chapters, initial time is .) (See Figure 20.2.) The SI unit for current is the ampere (A), named for often taken to be zero, in which case the French physicist André-Marie Ampère (1775–1836). Since , we see that an ampere is one coulomb per second: 20.2 Not only are fuses and circuit breakers rated in amperes (or amps), so are many electrical appliances.

PDF page 939: where is the amount of charge passing through a given area in time . (As in previous chapters, initial time is .) (See Figure 20.2.) The SI unit for current is the ampere (A), named for often taken to be zero, in which case the French physicist André-Marie Ampère (1775–1836). Since , we see that an ampere is one coulomb per second: 20.2 Not only are fuses and circuit breakers rated in amperes (or amps), so are many electrical appliances.

PDF page 939: where is the amount of charge passing through a given area in time . (As in previous chapters, initial time is .) (See Figure 20.2.) The SI unit for current is the ampere (A), named for often taken to be zero, in which case the French physicist André-Marie Ampère (1775–1836). Since , we see that an ampere is one coulomb per second: 20.2 Not only are fuses and circuit breakers rated in amperes (or amps), so are many electrical appliances.

PDF page 941: terminals of a battery. (b) In this schematic, the battery is represented by the two parallel red lines, conducting wires are shown as straight lines, and the zigzag represents the load. The schematic represents a wide variety of similar circuits. Note that the direction of current flow in Figure 20.3 is from positive to negative. The direction of conventional current is the direction that positive charge would flow. Depending on the situation, positive charges, negative charges, or both may move. In metal wires, for example, current is carried by electrons—that is, negative charges move. In ionic solutions, such as salt water, both positive and negative charges move. This is also true in nerve cells. A Van de Graaff generator used for nuclear research can produce a current of pure positive charges, such as protons.

PDF page 941: terminals of a battery. (b) In this schematic, the battery is represented by the two parallel red lines, conducting wires are shown as straight lines, and the zigzag represents the load. The schematic represents a wide variety of similar circuits. Note that the direction of current flow in Figure 20.3 is from positive to negative. The direction of conventional current is the direction that positive charge would flow. Depending on the situation, positive charges, negative charges, or both may move. In metal wires, for example, current is carried by electrons—that is, negative charges move. In ionic solutions, such as salt water, both positive and negative charges move. This is also true in nerve cells. A Van de Graaff generator used for nuclear research can produce a current of pure positive charges, such as protons.

PDF page 941: is taken to be in the direction that positive charge would flow can be traced back to American politician and scientist Benjamin Franklin in the 1700s. He named the type of charge associated with electrons negative, long before they were known to carry current in so many situations. Franklin, in fact, was totally unaware of the small-scale structure of electricity. It is important to realize that there is an electric field in conductors responsible for producing the current, as illustrated in Figure 20.4. Unlike static electricity, where a conductor in equilibrium cannot have an electric field in it, conductors carrying a current have an electric field and are not in static equilibrium. An electric field is needed to supply energy to move the charges.

PDF page 941: is taken to be in the direction that positive charge would flow can be traced back to American politician and scientist Benjamin Franklin in the 1700s. He named the type of charge associated with electrons negative, long before they were known to carry current in so many situations. Franklin, in fact, was totally unaware of the small-scale structure of electricity. It is important to realize that there is an electric field in conductors responsible for producing the current, as illustrated in Figure 20.4. Unlike static electricity, where a conductor in equilibrium cannot have an electric field in it, conductors carrying a current have an electric field and are not in static equilibrium. An electric field is needed to supply energy to move the charges.

PDF page 941: is taken to be in the direction that positive charge would flow can be traced back to American politician and scientist Benjamin Franklin in the 1700s. He named the type of charge associated with electrons negative, long before they were known to carry current in so many situations. Franklin, in fact, was totally unaware of the small-scale structure of electricity. It is important to realize that there is an electric field in conductors responsible for producing the current, as illustrated in Figure 20.4. Unlike static electricity, where a conductor in equilibrium cannot have an electric field in it, conductors carrying a current have an electric field and are not in static equilibrium. An electric field is needed to supply energy to move the charges.

PDF page 943: distances without noticeable delays. Lights come on as soon as a switch is flicked. Most electrical signals carried by currents travel at speeds on the order of , a significant fraction of the speed of light. Interestingly, the individual charges that make up the current move much more slowly on average, typically drifting at speeds on the order of . How do we reconcile these two speeds, and what does it tell us about standard conductors? The high speed of electrical signals results from the fact that the force between charges acts rapidly at a distance. Thus, when a free charge is forced into a wire, as in Figure 20.5, the incoming charge pushes other charges ahead of it, which in turn push on charges farther down the line. The density of charge in a system cannot easily be increased, and so the signal is passed on rapidly. The resulting electrical shock wave moves through the system at nearly the speed of light. To be precise, this rapidly moving signal or shock wave is a rapidly propagating change in electric field.

PDF page 943: shown. The average velocity of the free charges is called the drift velocity, , and it is in the direction opposite to the electric field for electrons. The collisions normally transfer energy to the conductor, requiring a constant supply of energy to maintain a steady current.

PDF page 943: between like charges makes it difficult to increase the number of charges in a volume. Thus, as one charge enters, another leaves almost immediately, carrying the signal rapidly forward. Good conductors have large numbers of free charges in them. In metals, the free charges are free electrons. Figure 20.6 shows how free electrons move through an ordinary conductor. The distance that an individual electron can move between collisions with atoms or other electrons is quite small. The electron paths thus appear nearly random, like the motion of atoms in a gas. But there is an electric field in the conductor that causes the electrons to drift in the direction shown (opposite to the field, since they are negative). The drift velocity is the average velocity of the free charges. Drift velocity is quite small, since there are so many free charges. If we have an estimate of the density of free electrons in a conductor, we can calculate the drift velocity for a given current. The larger the density, the lower the velocity required for a given current.