How Does Current Flow In A Circuit
This was the convention chosen during the discovery of electricity.
How does current flow in a circuit. Alternating current ac and direct. Conventional current assumes that current flows out of the positive terminal through the circuit and into the negative terminal of the source. In terms of circuit analysis we normally consider the direction of electric current from positive to negative. Electrical current exists in two types.
Current is the rate at which something flows. Electric current is the rate at which electric charge flows past a point on the electric circuit. All descriptions of electronic circuits use conventional current so if you see an arrow depicting current flow in a circuit diagram you know it is showing the direction of conventional current flow. Water current is the rate at which water flows past a point on the water circuit.
Electron flow is what actually happens and electrons flow out of the negative terminal through the circuit and into the positive terminal of the source. Conventional current is the flow of a positive charge from positive to negative and is the reverse of real electron flow. Electrical current is measured in amperage or amps. It is by convention that current flows from the.
Hence it does not make a difference. As such current is analogous to the number of gallons of water flowing into along and out of a slide per unit of time. Mathematically negative charge flowing in one direction is equivalent to positive charges flowing in the opposite direction. The term current refers to the simple flow of electrons in a circuit or electrical system.
The amount of current can be calculated by the ohm s law.