What Is an Electric Conductor?
An electric conductor is, in essence, a medium through which an electric current will easily flow. This includes materials such as metals, ionic solutions, and ionized gas. When discussing electrical circuit systems, the term electrical conductors refers specifically to the component that carries an electric current from its source to its load. Here’s an introduction to electric conductors and how they operate in a circuit system.
The Basics of an Electric Conductor
In an electric conductor, electric current is able to flow freely. In this case, the outer electrons of the conductor atom are loosely bound and are therefore easily shared and free to move through the material. When an electric charge is applied, these electron charges will move, repelling each other and allowing the current to flow down the line. Metals are considered to be very good electrical conductors, which is why electrical wires are composed of this material. The best metallic conductor is actually silver, but because of its expense, copper is most often used in electrical systems. Other metals such as aluminum are also conductors, but they’re not considered to be as effective as copper and sometimes their use presents other complications.
The Effect of Temperature on an Electric Conductor
Although metals have a low resistance to electric current flow, that electrical conductivity can be affected by other factors, such as temperature. In fact, temperature plays a significant role in the level of conductivity able to run through a circuit, so much so that resistance is considered temperature dependent. In the case of metals, electric resistance actually rises with an increase in temperature, although other materials are affected in different ways.
Electric Conductor vs. Insulator
In contrast to electric conductors, an insulator is a material that inhibits the flow of electrons. In other words, insulators don’t allow electrons to flow very easily from one atom to another, boosting a high level of resistance. This is because insulator atoms are tightly bound and therefore not free to move around. Common examples of insulators are non-metallic solids such as glass, plastic, wood, and rubber. In electrical systems, insulators are used as protection against the voltage running through the conductor. This is why wires are typically coated with a plastic or rubber-like material.
The importance of the electric conductor in modern electrical systems cannot be overstated. Without these conductors, currents would be much more difficult to transport from the power plant, to the circuit box, to the outlets in your home.