CURRENT ELECTRICITY

INTRODUCTION
Flow of charges is said to be current. Charges in motion constitute an electric current.
Such currents occur naturally in many situations
Lightning is one such phenomenon in which charges flow from the clouds to
the earth through the atmosphere, but the flow of charges in lightning is not
steady.
In day to day life we can observe many devices where charges flow in a steady
manner,
Example : A torch , cell-driven clock etc.,
ELECTRIC CURRENT / CURRENT ELECTRICITY
Flow of charges nothing but electrons.Normally it happens in conductor.
Free electrons present in the outer core of atom tends to produce current
Current is classified into two based on the movement of electrons
1. Conventional current (Higher potential to lower potential i.e.,+ve to -ve)

2. Electron current (lower potential to higher potential i.e.,-ve to +ve

Let us consider the flow of charges i.e.,+ve and -ve are flowing in a small area.
while +ve charges (q+) moves in forward direction and -ve charges (q -) move in
backward direction at time t.
net amount of charge q = (q+) – (q-)
Current is defined as the net charge q flowing across the area in the time interval
t , steadily (forward if q is positive, backward if q is negative)
q
I=
t
Currents are not always steady, therefore the current at time t across the cross-
section of the conductor is defined as the value of the ratio of Q to t in the
limit of t tending to zero,

Unit of current is Ampere of Coloumb/Second (CS -1).Instrument used to

measure current is Ammeter.
One electron = 1.6 X 10-19 C (Coloumb )
One Coloumb = 1 / 1.6 x 10-19 = 6.25 x 1018 electrons
ELECTRIC CURRENT IN CONDUCTORS
Refer all in one
OHM’S LAW
Ohm’s law is one of the most popular and important laws that helps us define the
relationship between voltage, current and resistance. The law was first established by a
German physicist named Georg Simon Ohm, and was the most important theory to describe
the quantitative characteristics of the physics of electricity.
Ohm’s law states that the current through a conductor between two points is directly
proportional to the voltage (potential difference) across the two points.

V∝I

V = RI Where R is a proportionality constant called Resistance

SI unit of R is Ohm (Ω).
R depends on the material and also dimensions of the conductor
The dependence of R on the dimensions of the conductor can easily be
determined as follows.

Consider a conductor in the form of a slab of length l and cross sectional area
A. place one more slab of dimension closer to the first i.e., side by side , now the
length of the combination is 2l. The current flowing through the combination
is the same as that flowing through either of the slabs. If V is the potential
difference across the ends of the first slab, then V is also the potential
difference across the ends of the second slab since the second slab is identical
to the first and the same current I flows through both. The potential difference
across the ends of the combination is clearly sum of the potential difference
across the two individual slabs and hence equals 2V. The current through the
combination is I and the resistance of the combination RC

We know that R = V /I

For the above condition R = RC , V = 2V

Now R=RC = 2V /I = 2R

Therefore length increases , resistance increases

Therefore R directly proportional to length (R α l)

Imagine the same slab of length l. Divide the slab into two by cutting it lengthwise ,
hence the slab can be considered as a combination of two identical slabs of length l
and the cross sectional area of each as A/2

For a given voltage V across the slab, if I is the current through the entire slab.The
current flowing through each of the two half-slabs is I/2 and the potential difference
across the ends of the half-slabs is V, i.e., the same as across the full slab. The resistance
of each of the half-slabs is

We know that R = V /I

For the above condition R = R1 , V = V, I = I/2

Now R=R1 = V / (I/2) = 2V / I = 2R

Therefore area decreases , resistance increases.The resistance R is inversely

proportional to the cross-sectional area,
R α 1/A
Therefore Rα l/A
l
Now R = ρ
A
The constant of proportionality ρ is called resistivity , depends on the material
of the conductor but not on its dimensions.

R = ρ , when length -= 1m and Area= 1 m2

Now Ohm’s law becomes

V=IR
l
=Iρ A

We know that Current density J =I/A

Now V =J ρ l

if E is the magnitude of uniform electric field in the conductor of length is l, then the
potential difference V across its ends is E l.

El=Jρl
E=Jρ
J=E/ρ
J=σE
Where σ = 1/ρ is termed as conductivity

DRIFT OF ELECTRONS AND THE ORIGIN OF RESISTANCE

In a conductor , electrons move in random direction and collide with each other.After the
collision , the electron regains its speed speed but in random directions. Hence the average
velocity of all electrons will be zero since their directions are random.

Let an external current is applied to the conductor and the electric field is generated.The
electons inside the conductor move in the opposite direction of the electric field and creates an
electric force.

E = F/q
F =Eq

Electrons will be accelerated in the electric field due to this force.According to Newton’s
second law we know that Force (F) = mass (m) x Acceleration (a)

a = F / m = Eq / m = -Ee/m

where q=-e , negatively charged electrons are moving in the electric field

Consider again the i th electron at a given time t. This electron would have had its last collision some time
before t, and let t i be the time elapsed after its last collision. If vi was its velocity immediately after the
last collision, then its velocity Vi at time t is

The average velocity of the electrons at time t is the average of all the Vi ’s. The average of vi ’s is zero,
since immediately after any collision, the direction of the velocity of an electron is completely random

−eE
(Vi)average = m (ti)average

The collisions of the electrons do not occur at regular intervals but at random times. Let us
denote by τ, the average time between successive collisions instead of ti . At a given time,
some of the electrons would have spent time more than τ and some less than τ. The average
value of ti then is τ (known as relaxation time). Thus, averaging of Vi over the N-electrons at
any given time t gives the average velocity vd

−eE
(Vi ) average = vd = m τ

The electrons move with an average velocity ,which is independent of time, although electrons are
accelerated. This is the phenomenon of drift and the velocity vd i is called the drift velocity. Because of the
drift, there will be net transport of charges across any area perpendicular to E
Consider a planar area A, located inside the conductor.The displacement of electron at
infinitesimal amount of time ∆t within the area is vd ∆t (distance = velocity x time)

If n is the number of free electrons per unit volume in the metal, then there are n ∆t |vd |A
such electrons.
Since each electron carries a charge –e, the total charge transported across this area A to the
right in time ∆t is –ne A|vd|∆t.

The direction of electron (-e) is opposite to the direction of Electric field E .

The amount of charge crossing the area A in time ∆t is I ∆t, where I is the magnitude of the
current. Hence,

I Δt =-n (-e) A vd Δt

I Δt = n e A vd Δt

Substitute the value of vd in the above equation ,

−eE
I Δt = n e A ( m τ) Δt

−eE
I = n e A ( m τ)

−eE
I/A = n e ( m τ) ( I/A = n e vd , J = n e vd)

E
J = - n e2 ( m τ) , ( J= 1/σ , where σ is conductivity)

2
−τ n e
J = σ E where σ = m

Conductivity σ = 1/ Resistivity (R)

MOBILITY
When the strength of Electric field is increased, drift velocity increases
E α vd
E µ= vd
µ = vd / E

Mobility µ defined as the magnitude of the drift velocity per unit electric field. The SI unit of
mobility is m2 /Vs And mobility is always positive

Substitute vd in mobility equation

eEτ
m
µ=
E

eτ
µ= m

where τ is the average collision time for electrons

LIMITATIONS OF OHM’S LAW

REFER All in One