Electrical Conductors & Insulators
Conductors
- A conductor is a material that allows charge (usually electrons) to flow through it easily
- Examples of conductors are:
- Silver
- Copper
- Aluminium
- Steel
- Conductors tend to be metals
Different materials have different properties of conductivity
- On the atomic scale, conductors are made up of positively charged metal ions within a sea of delocalised electrons
- Metals are excellent conductors of electricity because:
- Current is the rate of flow of electrons
- So, the more easily electrons are able to flow in a material, the better it is at conducting electricity
The lattice structure of a conductor with positive metal ions and delocalised electrons
Insulators
- An insulator is a material that has no free charges, hence does not allow the flow of charge through them very easily
- Examples of insulators are:
- Rubber
- Plastic
- Glass
- Wood
- Some non-metals, such as wood, allow some charge to pass through them
- Despite not being very good at producing an electrical current, insulators are able to conduct static electricity
- This occurs when an insulator builds up charge on its surface
- When a charged insulator comes into contact with a conductor, the charge can be transferred
