ELECTRICITY

ELECTRICITY
Electricity,oneofthebasicforms
of
energy.
Electricity is associated with electric charge, a
property of certain elementary particles such as
electrons and protons, two of the basic particles that
make up the atoms of all ordinary matter. Electric
charges can be stationary, as in static electricity, or
moving, as in an electric current.

ELECTRICITY
Electricalactivitytakes place constantly everywhere
in the universe. Electrical forces hold molecules
together. The nervous systems of animals work by
means of weak electric signals transmitted between
neurons (nerve cells). Electricity is generated,
transmitted, and converted into heat, light, motion,
and other forms of energy through natural
processes, as well as by devices built by people.

ELECTRICITY
Electricityisanextremely versatile form of energy.
It can be generated in many ways and from many
different sources. It can be sent almost
instantaneously over long distances. Electricity can
also be converted efficiently into other forms of
energy, and it can be stored. Because of this
versatility, electricity plays a part in nearly every
aspect of modern technology. Electricity provides
light, heat, and mechanical power. It makes
telephones, computers, televisions, and countless

ELECTRIC
Electricityconsistsof charges carried by electrons,
CHARGE
protons, and other particles.
Electric charge comes in
two forms: positive and negative. Electrons and
protons both carry exactly the same amount of
electric charge, but the positive charge of the proton
is exactly opposite the negative charge of the
electron. If an object has more protons than electrons,
it is said to be positively charged; if it has more
electrons than protons, it is said to be negatively
charged. If an object contains as many protons as

ELECTRIC
CHARGE
two forms: static electricity

Electricityoccursin
and
electric current. Static electricity consists of electric
charges that stay in one place. An electric current is a
flow of electric charges between objects or locations.

STATIC
ELECTRICITY

Staticelectricitycan be produced by rubbing together

two objects made of different materials. Electrons
move from the surface of one object to the surface of
the other if the second material holds onto its
electrons more strongly than the first does. The object
that gains electrons becomes negatively charged,
since it now has more electrons than protons. The
object that gives up electrons becomes positively
charged.

STATIC
ELECTRICITY
For example, if a nylon comb is run through clean, dry
hair, some of the electrons on the hair are transferred
to the comb. The comb becomes negatively charged
and the hair becomes positively charged. The
following materials are named in decreasing order of
their ability to hold electrons: rubber, silk, glass,
flannel, and fur (or hair). If any two of these materials
are rubbed together, the material earlier in the list
becomes negative, and the material later in the list

ELECTRIC
movement
of charge.
CURRENT

Anelectriccurrentis a
When two
objects with different charges touch and redistribute their
charges, an electric current flows from one object to the
other until the charge is distributed according to the
capacitances of the objects. If two objects are connected
by a material that lets charge flow easily, such as a
copper wire, then an electric current flows from one object
to the other through the wire. Electric current can be
demonstrated by connecting a small light bulb to an
electric battery by two copper wires. When the

ELECTRIC
CURRENT
one direction only, such

Currentthatflowsin
as the
current in a battery-powered flashlight, is called direct
current. Current that flows back and forth, reversing
direction again and again, is called alternating current.
Direct current, which is used in most battery-powered
devices, is easier to understand than alternating
current. Most of the following discussion focuses on
direct current. Alternating current, which is used in
most devices that are plugged in to electrical outlets

COLUMBS LAW
Objectswithopposite charges attract each other, and objects
with similar charges repel each other. Coulombs law,
formulated by French physicist Charles Augustin de Coulomb
during the late 18th century, quantifies the strength of the
attraction or repulsion. This law states that the force between
two charged objects is directly proportional to the product of
their charges and inversely proportional to the square of the
distance between them. The greater the charges on the
objects, the larger the force between them; the greater the
distance between the objects, the lesser the force between

CONDUCTORS
Conductorsarematerials that allow an electric current
to flow through them easily. Most metals are good
conductors.
Substancesthatdonot allow electric current to flow
through them are called insulators, nonconductors, or
dielectrics. Rubber, glass, and air are common
insulators. Electricians wear rubber gloves so that
electric current will not pass from electrical equipment
to their bodies. However, if an object contains a

CONDUCTORS
For example, if you shuffle across a wool rug and then
hold your finger very close to, but not in contact with,
a metal doorknob or radiator, current will arc through
the air from your finger to the doorknob or radiator,
even though air is an insulator. In the dark, the
passage of the current through the air is visible as a
tiny spark.

MEASURING ELECTRIC
CURRENTS
Electriccurrentismeasured in units called amperes
(amp). If 1 coulomb of charge flows past each point of
a wire every second, the wire is carrying a current of 1
amp. If 2 coulombs flow past each point in a second,
the current is 2 amp.

VOLTAGE
Whenthetwoterminals of a battery are connected by
a conductor, an electric current flows through the
conductor. One terminal continuously sends electrons
into the conductor, while the other continuously
receives electrons from it. The current flow is caused
by the voltage, or potential difference, between the
terminals. The more willing the terminals are to give
up and receive electrons, the higher the voltage.
Voltage is measured in units called volts. Another
name for a voltage produced by a source of electric

RESISTANCE
Aconductorallowsan electric current to flow through
it, but it does not permit the current to flow with
perfect freedom. Collisions between the electrons and
the atoms of the conductor interfere with the flow of
electrons. This phenomenon is known as resistance.
Resistance is measured in units called ohms. The
symbol for ohms is the Greek letter omega, .

RESISTANCE
Agoodconductorisone that has low resistance. A
good insulator has a very high resistance. At
commonly encountered temperatures, silver is the
best conductor and copper is the second best. Electric
wires are usually made of copper, which is less
expensive than silver.

RESISTANCE
Usually,thehigherthe temperature of a wire, the
greater its resistance. The resistance of some materials
drops to zero at very low temperatures. This
phenomenon is known as superconductivity.

OHMS LAW

Therelationshipbetween current, voltage, and resistance is

given by Ohms law. This law states that the amount of current
passing through a conductor is directly proportional to the
voltage across the conductor and inversely proportional to the
resistance of the conductor. Ohms law can be expressed as an
equation, V = IR, where V is the difference in volts between two
locations (called the potential difference), I is the amount of
current in amperes that is flowing between these two points,
and R is the resistance in ohms of the conductor between the
two locations of interest. V = IR can also be written R = V/I and
I = V/R. If any two of the quantities are known, the third can be
calculated. For example, if a potential difference of 110 volts

OHMS LAW
Undernormalconditions, resistance is constant in conductors
made of metal. If the voltage is raised to 220 in the example
above, then R is still 11. The current I will be doubled, however,
since I = V/R = 220/11 = 20 amp.

ELECTRIC CIRCUIT
Anelectriccircuitis an arrangement of electric current
sources and conducting paths through which a current can
continuously flow. In a simple circuit consisting of a small
light bulb, a battery, and two pieces of wire, the electric
current flows from the negative terminal of the battery,
through one piece of connecting wire, through the bulb
filament (also a type of wire), through the other piece of
connecting wire, and back to the positive terminal of the

ELECTRIC CIRCUIT
Aswitchcanbeplaced in one of the connecting wires.
A flashlight is an example of such a circuit. When the
switch is open, the connection is broken, electric
current cannot flow through the circuit, and the bulb
does not light. When the switch is closed, current flows
and the bulb lights.

ELECTRIC CIRCUIT
Thebulbfilamentmay burn out if too much electric
current flows through it. To prevent this from
happening, a fuse (circuit breaker) may be placed in
the circuit. When too much current flows through the
fuse, a wire in the fuse heats up and melts, thereby
breaking the circuit and stopping the flow of current.
The wire in the fuse is designed to melt before the

ELECTRIC CIRCUIT
Thepartofanelectric circuit other than the source of
electric current is called the load. The load includes all
appliances placed in the circuit, such as lights, radios,
fans, buzzers, and toasters. It also includes the
connecting wires, as well as switches, fuses, and other
devices. The load forms a continuous conducting path
between the terminals of the current source.

ELECTRIC CIRCUIT
Therearetwobasicways in which the parts of a circuit
are arranged. One arrangement is called a series
circuit, and the other is called a parallel circuit.

SERIES CIRCUIT
Ifvariousobjectsare arranged to form a single conducting path
between the terminals of a source of electric current, the
objects are said to be connected in series. The electron current
first passes from the negative terminal of the source into the
first object, then flows through the other objects one after
another, and finally returns to the positive terminal of the
source. The current is the same throughout the circuit. In the

SERIES CIRCUIT
Whenobjectsareconnected in series, the electric current flows
through them against the resistance of the first object, then
against the resistance of the next object, and so on. Therefore
the total resistance to the current is equal to the sum of the
individual resistances. If three objects with resistances R1, R2,
and R3 are connected in series, their total resistance is R1 + R2
+ R3.

PARALLEL CIRCUIT
Ifvariousobjectsare connected to form separate paths
between the terminals of a source of electric current, they are
said to be connected in parallel. Each separate path is called a
branch of the circuit. Current from the source splits up and
enters the various branches. After flowing through the separate
branches, the current merges again before reentering the
current. source.

PARALLEL CIRCUIT
Thetotalresistanceof objects connected in parallel is less than
that of any of the individual resistances. This is because a
parallel circuit offers more than one branch (path) for the
electric current, whereas a series circuit has only one path for
all the current.
Theelectriccurrentthrough a parallel circuit is distributed
among the branches according to the resistances of the
branches. If each branch has the same resistance, then the
current in each will be equal. If the branches have different
resistances, the current in each branch can be determined from

PARALLEL CIRCUIT
Thetotalresistanceof objects connected in parallel is less than
that of any of the individual resistances. This is because a
parallel circuit offers more than one branch (path) for the
electric current, whereas a series circuit has only one path for
all the current.
Theelectriccurrentthrough a parallel circuit is distributed
among the branches according to the resistances of the
branches. If each branch has the same resistance, then the
current in each will be equal. If the branches have different
resistances, the current in each branch can be determined from