Origin of Electricity

Engr. Joey Telin

ATOM – is the smallest part
which an element can be reduced
to yet still keeping its chemical
properties. It is the building block
of mater.
The Electron
The electron is a subatomic particle, symbol e− or β−, whose electric
charge is negative one elementary charge.

Electrons play an essential role in numerous physical phenomena, such

as electricity, magnetism, chemistry and thermal conductivity, and they
also participate
in gravitational, electromagnetic and weak interactions. Since an
electron has charge, it has a surrounding electric field, and if that
electron is moving relative to an observer, it will generate a magnetic
field.
Valence Electrons (4)
- The electrons found in the outermost orbit of an atom. Characteristic
of materials depend upon their valence electrons.
An atom with a closed shell of valence electrons (corresponding
to an electron configuration s2p6) tends to be chemically inert. Atoms
with one or two more valence electrons than are needed for a "closed"
shell are highly reactive due to the following reasons:

1) It requires relatively low energy (compared to the lattice enthalpy) to

remove the extra valence electrons to form a positive ion.
2) Because of their tendency either to gain the missing valence
electrons (thereby forming a negative ion), or to share valence
electrons (thereby forming a covalent bond).
The Flow of Electron
Electricity is a term used to describe the energy produced
(usually to perform work) when electrons are caused to directional (not
randomly) flow from atom to atom. In fact, the day-to-day products
that we all benefit from, rely on the movement of electrons. This
movement of electrons between atoms is called electrical current. We
will look at how electrical current is produced and measured in the
following pages.
The Direction of the Flow of Electrons
When electricity was discovered, scientists at that time were not
aware of electrons. They thought that positive ions were responsible for
current. Therefore, they decided that the direction of current would be from
positive to negative. We still respect this convention even today.
After a century, J. J. Thomson discovered electrons. It was soon
understood that electrons were responsible for current in most conductors.
Changing the convention seemed to be a bad idea. Hence, we continued to
use the same convention.
TL;DR: By convention, current is assumed to travel from positive to
negative direction. The electrons travel from negative to positive. The
direction of current is not the same as direction of flow of electrons; they are
opposite.
 Electric current is the flow of electric charge; electron current is the
flow of electrons (which carry negative electric charge).
Put simply, a flow of positive charge in a given direction is electrically
equivalent to a flow of negative charge in the opposite direction.
The convention is that the direction of electric current is the direction
of positive charge flow.
And so, a flow of negative charge, e.g., a flow of electrons, is in the
opposite direction of the electric current.
Had the charge convention been such that the electron charge is
positive while the proton charge is negative, then the direction of electron
flow and electric current would be the same.
Classification of Materials
According to the number of Valence Electrons
Conductor – materials having less than four valence electrons.
(Ex Copper, Silver, Iron)

Semiconductor – materials having exactly four valence electrons.

(Ex Silicon, Germanium, Carbon)

Insulator – materials having more than four valence electrons.

(Ex Sulfur, Selenium)
Element Electron Protons Neutrons Valence

Copper 29 29 34 1

Aluminum 13 13 14 3

Germanium 32 32 41 4

Phosphorus 15 15 16 5
Electric Charge
- A substance is said to be charge if the number of electrons in it is not
the same as the number of protons in it.

Base unit = Coulomb

also the base unit for current and voltage
Symbol = Q
Abbreviation = C
1Q of Charge = 6.25𝑥 1018 electrons
Name after French Physicist CHARLES A. COULOMB(1736-1860).
Potential Difference
Potential Difference
- is the work done in moving a unit of positive electric charge from one
point to another either by attraction or repulsion.

If you connect the two ends of the same wire to opposite ends of the
same battery, current will flow through it due to the potential
difference between the two ends of the battery.
Volts (V)
-is the unit of potential difference. One Volt is equal to the one joule
of work done per coulomb of charge.
-Named after the inventor of the first battery ALESSANDRO C. VOLTA
(1754 – 1827)
Problem Solving
1. Calculate the voltage required to accelerate an electron to kinetic
energy of 8𝑥10−15 joules.
2. To move a charge particle through an electric potential difference of
0.001 volt requires 2 𝜇J of work. What is the magnitude of the charge?
3. A proton is accelerated from rest through an electric potential of 400
kV. What will be its final speed?
Electric Current
When a potential difference between two charges forces a third charge
to move, the charge in motion is called an Electric Current.
Ampere (A)
- Unit of charge flow equal to one coulomb of charge past given point
in one second.
- Named after the French Physicist and Mathematician ANDRE M.
AMPERE (1775 – 1836).
Problem Solving
1. A car battery supplies a current of 50 A to the starter motor. How
much charges passes through the starter in half a minute?
2. How much current is flowing when 29.3 Coulombs of charge pass a
point in 7.84 seconds?
3. If the steady current 2.5 A flows in a wire for 5 minutes, find the
charged passed in any point in the circuit.
Resistance
- Opposition to the flow of Electric Current.
Resistance is a characteristic of all materials. Some materials (e.g. air)
have a high resistance. Other materials (e.g. gold) have a very small
resistance.
Electrical resistance is similar to friction, in that it is a resistance
to movement. Electrons drift slowly through a conductor when a
voltage is put across the ends. The metal’s atoms interfere with the
motion of the electrons, causing resistance.
Factors that affects the Resistance of Conductors:
1. Nature of material
2. Physical attributes
3. Temperature of material
Ohm (Ω)
- A practical unit of resistance
- Named after the German Physicist GEORGE S. OHM (1787 – 1854).
Resistivity
Electrical resistivity (also known as specific electrical resistance,
or volume resistivity) is a fundamental property of a material that
quantifies how strongly that material opposes the flow of electric
current. A low resistivity indicates a material that readily allows the flow
of electric current. Resistivity is commonly represented by the Greek
letter ρ(rho). The SI unit of electrical resistivity is the ohm-metre (Ω⋅m).
Cross-sectional Area
Circular Mil (CM) – the area of a circle having a diameter of 1 mil. This
unit for circular area is normally used in conductors having circular
cross-sections.

1 mil = 0.001 inch

1 inch = 1000 mils
1MCM = 1000 CM

A = 𝑑2
Problem
1. How many circular mils does a round copper rod of 0.25 inch
diameter has?
2. What is the size in square millimeters is the cable of 250 MCM size?
3. A copper rod of 10 m long has a diameter of one-inch. If the
resistivity of copper is 10.371 ohms circular-mil per foot, what is its
resistance?
4. Determine the resistance of a bus bar made of copper if the length
is 10 meters long and the cross-section is 4 cm by 4 cm. The
resistivity is 1.724 𝜇Ω-cm.
Seatwork
1. What is the resistance of a copper wire 0.5 mm in diameter and 20
m long?
2. A standard copper wire is 0.064 inches in diameter. What is the
resistance of 500 ft of this wire at 200 𝐶?
3. What is the resistance of a copper bus length 10 ft and cross section
0.5 in by 6 in?
4. A length of wire has a resistance of 6 ohms. The resistance of wire
of the same material three times as long and twice the X-sectional
area will be___.
Conductors (undergoing a drawing process)
Conductors passed through drawing gauges increases its length at the
expense of a reduction in cross-sectional area. In most cases, the waste
during the drawing process is assumed negligible, keeping the volume
of the conducting material constant.
Problem Solving
1. A one-meter rod of 2-cm diameter is drawn until its resistance is
100 times the initial resistance. What is its length afterward?
2. A resistance of 5ohms is further drawn such that its length becomes
doubled. What will be its new resistance?
3. A copper wire of diameter 1 cm had a resistance of 0.15 ohm. It was
drawn under pressure so that its diameter was reduced to 0.5 cm.
What is the new resistance of the wire?
Temperature Effect on Resistance
Experiments have shown that the resistance of practically all wires
generally used in electrical systems varies directly as the temperature.
Thus, resistance increases as the temperature is raised and vice versa.
Problem Solving
1. The resistance of the tertiary winding of a power transformer is
0.125 ohms and 250 𝐶 and the temperature coefficient of resistance
at 250 𝐶 is 0.00393. What is the resistance at 650 𝐶?
2. The copper field winding of an electric machine has a resistance of
46 ohms at a temperature of 220 𝐶. What will be its resistance at a
temperature 0f 750 𝐶.
3. The value of 𝛼50 of a conductor is 1/230 𝑝𝑒𝑟 0 𝐶. The value of 𝛼0 is
_____ 𝑝𝑒𝑟 0 𝐶.
Resistor
- Is a component/material that opposes the flow of current.
Carbon Composition Resistor – this resistor is made from fine carbon or
graphite mixed with a powered insulating material as a binder and
joined to the two ends are two metal caps with tinned leads for
soldering to connections to the circuit. Its wattage ratings are available
from 1/10 watt to 2 watts.