Electrical principles - Terminology
Current
Current is the movement or flow of electrons along a conductor.
The diagram shows an example of current flow around a circuit.
When a battery is connected to a lamp with copper wires, the lamp illuminates. This is because as current flows through the filament of the globe (which has resistance), the filament becomes hot. The heating of the filament radiates light.
The unit of measurement of current is the ampere (or amp).
Quantity |
Symbol | Unit |
Abbreviation |
Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
current |
I |
ampere |
A |
flow of electrons |
If 10A is marked next to a circuit then 10 amps of current are flowing through the circuit.
