ELECTRIC CURRENT

The electricity flowing around a circuit is the electric current. Current

flow has a direction. The size of the current flowing around a circuit
has to be controlled if the circuit is to work properly.

These pages are about electricity or

electric current, how it is measured
using ammeters. You will also learn
about how voltage (electromotive
force) causes an electric current.

Electricity

Electric current

Electricity is a type of energy that can build up in one

place or flow from one place to another. When
electricity gathers in one place it is known as static
electricity (the word static means something that
does not move); electricity that moves from one
place to another is called current electricity.

Electric current (I) is a measure of the rate of flow of

electric charges through an electrical conductor. The
amount of electric current flowing through an
electrical conductor is the amount of charge per unit
time.

Current electricity
When electrons move, they carry electrical energy
from one place to another. This is called current
electricity or an electric current. A lightning bolt is
one example of an electric current, although it does
not last very long. Electric currents are also involved
in powering all the electrical appliances that you use,
from washing machines to flashlights and from
telephones to MP3 players. These electric currents
last much longer.

The SI unit for electric current is the ampere (A).

Other smaller units are the milliampere (mA) and the
microampere (A).

Current is the rate of flow of charge.

Current is not used up, what flows into a
component must flow out.
We say current through a component.
Current is measured in amps (amperes), A.
Current is measured with an ammeter,
connected in series.
(To connect in series you must break the circuit
and put the ammeter across the gap, as shown in
the diagram.)
The symbol I is used for current in equations.
Why is the letter I used for current? Early on I
represented intensity of current

Figure 1 connecting an ammeter in series

Questions
Answer the following questions using the information on pages 1 and 2.
1. What do these words mean?
(a) Current (b) Ammeter
2. What are the units for measuring electric current?
3. What apparatus is used to measure current?
4. How is the apparatus connected in the circuit? Why?
5. What is actual current flow?
6. What is conventional current flow?
1

HOW ELECTRICITY MOVES IN A CIRCUIT -

Measuring the current (I)

Actual and Conventional Current Flow

To determine the size of the current flowing through

an electrical component such as a bulb, an ammeter
must be connected in series to the component in the
circuit. The size of the current is a way of measuring
how many electrons are flowing around the circuit.

When scientists first studied electric currents, they

thought that the electric current in a metal conductor
was formed by positive charges flowing from the
positive terminal of an electrical source, through the
circuit, into the negative terminal of the electrical
source.

To measure current
flowing through the bulb,
an ammeter should be
connected in series to it.

INCORRECT CONNECTION

This is an INCORRECT
way to connect the
ammeter in the circuit.
The ammeter does not
measure the current
flowing through the bulb.
It may be damaged by
the large current

Figure 2 CONVENTIONAL CURRENT FLOW

We now know that in fact electric current in a metal

conductor is a flow of electrons, which are negatively
charged, from the negative terminal of an electrical
source, through the circuit, to the positive terminal.

WRONG CONNECTION

CIRCUIT A
Figure 3 ACTUAL CURRENT FLOW = ELECTRON FLOW

However, scientists still use the convention that

current flow from the positive terminal to the
negative one. This flow, from the positive terminal to
the negative terminal, is described as the
conventional current.

The ammeter is
connected the wrong
way, with its positive
terminal connected to
the negative end of the
dry cell. The pointer
moves in the opposite
direction, showing a
wrong reading. The
ammeter may be
damaged too.

Ammeter 1 is measuring the

current flowing through the
bottom branch of the
parallel circuit (0.1A) and
ammeter 2 is measuring the
current flowing through the
top branch (0.1A). Ammeter
3 is measuring the current
coming out of the battery
(0.2A).

The SI unit of potential difference is the volt (V). Thus

potential difference is also known as voltage. Other
commonly used units are millivolt (mV) and kilovolt
(kV).

VOLTAGE V
For electricity to flow there has to be something to
push the electrons along. This is called an
electromotive force (EMF). A battery or power outlet
creates the electromotive force that makes a current
of electrons flow. An electromotive force is better
known as a voltage.

The electromotive force of an electric cell is the

amount of chemical energy converted into electrical
energy when one coulomb of electric charge passes
through the cell.

Coulumb (C) is the SI unit of electric charge.

The potential difference is the difference in electrical
potential across a component in a circuit.

There is a potential
difference between the
two ends of the electric
bulb (points X and Y).

Voltage is a measure of the energy carried by the

charge.
Strictly: voltage is the "energy per unit charge".
The proper name for voltage is potential
difference or p.d. for short, but this term is rarely
used in electronics.
Voltage is supplied by the battery (or power
supply).
Voltage is used up in components, but not in
wires.
We say voltage across a component.
Voltage is measured in volts, V.
Voltage is measured with a voltmeter, connected
in parallel.
The symbol V is used for voltage in equations.

Measuring the electromotive force or

voltage (V)
To measure the electromotive force of an electrical
source or the potential difference (voltage) of an
electrical component, a voltmeter must be connected
in parallel across it.

In the diagram above, electrons from the negative

terminal of the electric cell flow to the bulb through
the connecting wires and deliver a fixed amount of
electrical energy to the bulb, before entering the
positive terminal of the electric cell to be re-supplied
with energy. The electrical energy supplied to the
bulb is converted to heat and light energy.

To measure voltage across

the bulb, a voltmeter should
be connected in parallel to
it.

This is an INCORRECT way to

connect the voltmeter in the
circuit. The voltmeter does
not measure the voltage
across the bulb.

The electrical energy converted into other forms of

energy when one coulomb of electric charge passes
from one point to the other is the potential
difference (p.d.) between the two points.
INCORRECT CONNECTION

The voltmeter is connected

the wrong way round to the
electrical source. The pointer
moves in the opposite
direction, showing a wrong
reading.

Figure 4 connecting a voltmeter in parallel

WRONG CONNECTION

REMEMBER - Voltage is the Cause,

Current is the Effect

SUMMARY - Comparing current and voltage

(electromotive force)
Feature

Voltage attempts to make a current flow, and current

will flow if the circuit is complete. Voltage is
sometimes described as the 'push' or 'force' of the
electricity, it isn't really a force but this may help you
to imagine what is happening. It is possible to have
voltage without current, but current cannot flow
without voltage.

Current

Voltage

Ampere (Amps)

Volts

SI unit

Symbol

Rate of flow of
charge

It is the energy
carried by a charge

A rate

A push or force.

Measured by

Ammeter

Voltmeter

Connected in

Series

Parallel

Current cannot be
used up

Used up by the
components
(change in energy)

Measured in

Definition

Voltage and Current

The switch is closed
making a complete
circuit so current can
flow.

Used up or
not

Voltage but No Current

The switch is open so
the circuit is broken and
current cannot flow

(rate)
Say

Current through

Voltage across

Changing the current

No Voltage and No
Current
Without the cell there is
no source of voltage so
current cannot flow.

There are two ways of changing the current.

1. The voltage can be increased by using more
cells (or by changing the setting of the power
supply). If you use a higher voltage you will
get a higher current flowing in the circuit.
2. The number of components in the circuit can
be changed. For instance, if you add more
bulbs to a series circuit, the current will get
smaller. It is more difficult for electricity to
get through lots of bulbs, so not as much gets
through.

Some very useful websites explaining electricity.

http://www.explainthatstuff.com/electricity.html
http://www.neok12.com/Electricity.htm
http://www.kpsec.freeuk.com/index.htm

Questions
Answer the following questions using the information on pages 3 and 4
1. What do these words mean
a. Electromotive force. b. Potential difference c. Voltage
2. What are the units for measuring voltage?
3. Name the apparatus used to measure voltage and state how it is attached in a circuit.