Damilola Akintumile

• Conductors are the workhorses of the electrical world. They are materials that readily allow the flow of electricity (electric current) or heat through them. This ability arises from their unique atomic structure.
• Conductors


  Materials that can allow charges to flow in one or more directions
• Any object that has been made of conducting material allows the charge to move across the object's entire surface. Electron movement allows this distribution of charge.

  
• If a conductor that is charged touches any other object, it can transport its charge on it. It happens effortlessly when the second object is also composed of a conductive material. In conductors, the transfer of charge happens via the electron's free movement.

  
• Valence electrons


  Loosely bound electrons in the outermost shell of atoms in conductors

  
• Conductor functionality


  1. Electric field applied

  2. Force exerts on loosely bound electrons

  3. Electrons move in a specific direction

  4. Electric current created

  
• Conductors


  • High conductivity
  • Low electrical resistance
  • Good thermal conductors
  • Metallic bond
• A conductor always allows the movement of electrons and ions through them.

  
• The electric field inside a conductor is zero allowing electrons to flow within them.

  
• The charge density inside a conductor is zero.
• Only on the surface of the conductor do free charges exist.
• All points of a conductor are at the same potential.
• Types of conductors


  • Metals
  • Non-metals
  • Ionic conductors
• Metals


  • Silver
  • Copper
  • Gold
  • Aluminum
• The more free electrons present in a metal, the greater its conductivity.
• Graphite is an excellent non-metal conductor of electricity.
• Ionic conductors


  Conductors in their solution form
• Applications of conductors


  • Electrical wiring
  • Electronic circuits
  • Heat sinks
  • Electromagnets
  • Car radiators
  • Steam/press irons
  • Copper cables
  • Baking tools
  • Spark plugs
• The plastic covering that surrounds an electrical conductor is known as an insulator. It prevents us from getting an electric shock.
• Insulators are substances that hinder the flow of electrical or thermal currents. They do not allow electrons to flow freely from one molecule to another.

  
• Insulators


  Materials with tightly bound electrons in their outer shells, restricting electron movement and making it difficult for electric current to flow

  
• Insulators


  • High resistivity
  • Dielectric strength
  • Low thermal conductivity
• Insulators


  • Rubber
  • Paper
  • Plastics
  • Glass
• Types of insulators


  • Dielectric materials
  • Gases
  • Vacuums
• Applications of insulators


  • Electrical wiring
  • Cables
  • Capacitors
  • Circuit boards
  • Transformers
• Most non-metals are poor conductors and therefore good insulators. They do not have free electrons available to conduct electricity.
• Difference between conductors and insulators

  • Conductors permit free electron movement, insulators do not
  • Conductors can pass electricity, insulators cannot
  • Conductors have high conductivity, insulators have low conductivity
  • Conductors have free electrons, insulators have tightly bound electrons
  • Common conductors are metals, common insulators are non-metals

  
• Conductors


  Possess low conductivity, able to conduct electricity due to the presence of free electrons

  
• Insulators


  Able to insulate electricity due to the presence of tightly bound electrons in the atoms
• Common conductors


  • Silver, copper, iron, aluminum
• Common insulators


  • Glass, plastic, rubber, pure water, ceramic, asphalt
• Atoms in conductors


  Cannot hold onto their electrons tightly
• Atoms of insulators


  Tightly bound, cannot transfer electrical energy

  
• Electric field in conductors


  Present on its surface, zero on the inside
• Conductors allow charges to flow freely all over its atomic structure while insulators hold that charge within its atomic structure

  
• Objects with the same charges repel each other, ones with unlike charges will be attracted towards each other
• Conductors and insulators are equally important materials that we come across and use in our daily lives
• Sometimes, they're also used together so as to maintain the perfect balance—for instance, a metal frying pan with a plastic handle
• Semiconductors


  Materials which have a conductivity between conductors (generally metals) and non-conductors or insulators (such as ceramics)

  
• Semiconductors


  • Gallium arsenide, germanium, silicon