Chapter 27
Current and Resistance
Electric Current
Electric current is the rate of flow of
charge through some region of space
The SI unit of current is the ampere (A)
1A= 1C / s
The symbol for electric current is I
Average Electric Current
Assume charges are
moving perpendicular
to a surface of area A
If Q is the amount of
charge that passes
through A in time t,
then the average
current is
Q
I av
t
Instantaneous Electric Current
If the rate at which the charge flows
varies with time, the instantaneous
current, I, can be found
dQ
I
dt
Direction of Current
It is conventional to assign to the current the
same direction as the flow of positive charges
The direction of current flow is opposite the
direction of the flow of electrons
It is common to refer to any moving charge as
a charge carrier
Current and Drift Speed
Charged particles
move through a
conductor of cross-
sectional area A
n is the number of
charge carriers per
unit volume
nA Δx is the total
number of charge
carriers
Current and Drift Speed, cont
The total charge is the number of
carriers times the charge per carrier, q
ΔQ = (nA Δx)q
The drift speed, vd, is the speed at
which the carriers move
vd = Δx / Δt
Rewritten: ΔQ = (nAvd Δt)q
Finally, current, Iav = ΔQ/Δt = nqvdA
Current Density
J is the current density of a conductor
It is defined as the current per unit area
J = I / A = nqvd
J has SI units of A/m2
The current density is in the direction of the
positive charge carriers
Conductivity
A current density J and an electric field
E are established in a conductor
whenever a potential difference is
maintained across the conductor
J=σE
The constant of proportionality, σ, is
called the conductivity of the
conductor
Resistance
In a conductor, the voltage applied across the
ends of the conductor is proportional to the
current through the conductor (Ohm’s Law)
The constant of proportionality is called the
resistance of the conductor
V
R
I
The conductor is called resistor
SI units of resistance are ohms (Ω)
1Ω=1V/A
Resistivity
The inverse of the conductivity is the
resistivity:
ρ = 1 / σ = E/J
Resistance is also related to resistivity:
Rρ
A
Resistivity has SI units of ohm-meters
(Ω . m)
Resistance and Resistivity,
Summary
Every material has a characteristic resistivity
that depends on the properties of the material
The resistance of a material depends on its
geometry and its resistivity
Ohm’s Law, Ohmic Material
Ohm’s Law : The
relationship between
current and voltage is
linear
An ohmic device –
Resistor: The
resistance is constant
over a wide range of
voltages
Nonohmic Material, Graph
Nonohmic materials
are those whose
resistance changes
with voltage or
current
The current-voltage
relationship is
nonlinear
A diode is a
common example of
a nonohmic device
Electrical Power
The power is the rate at
which the energy is
delivered to the resistor
P= I V (in Watts, W)
P= I2 R = V2/R
This energy is transformed
into internal energy (thermal
energy) in the resistor