ELI5
What is electricity exactly and how is it caused? I hear multiple things like it’s the movement of electrons, but that doesn’t make sense to me cause electrons are always moving. Isn’t it wave energy that travels by means of electrons?
I also don’t understand Voltage visually. I understand it’s the amount of joules in a Coulomb, but what would the difference be on a small level? What would be the difference physically and visually at 1volt to 1000volts on the atomic level?
In: Physics
Lots of posts that definitely don’t break it down into layman’s terms. For your bit on understanding voltage; Electricity is comparable closely to fluid dynamics. If you know how water pipes work you can get a sense for electricity.
Voltage is “potential”, it’s like Pressure
Current/Amperage is “flow volume”, like flow volume or the width of a river
Basically with electricity, molecules have these electrons that wanna go from a high-“pressure” area to a low-“pressure” area. From a place with a lot of free electrons and charge, to a neutral one.
The pressure, or potential, or tendency for electrons to flow is called Voltage. The amount of electrons available to flow at any given time, or the amount backing the “pressure” is called current.
Latest Answers