Electricity

Protons

**Positive** electric charge

Electrons

**Negative** electric charge

Neutrons

**No** electrical charge

electrically neutral atom

number of protons = number of electrons (neither attract nor repel)

static charge

an unbalanced negative **or** positive electric charge on an object

Electic force

A force between **charged** objects which can still happen even when they are not touching

Coulomb's Law

Electric force and electric charge are *directly* related and electric force and distance are *inversely* related

electric insulator

A material in which electric charges **cannot** easily move (**higher** the resistance the better it is)

electric conductor

A material in which electric charges **can** easily move (**lower** the resistance the better it is)

Conduction

the transfer of electric charge by a simple *touch* when electric charges flow from one conductor to another

Induction

the transfer of electric charge by __scrambling__ electrons in *conducting* materials. A **charged** object scrambles the *electrons* in **two** *conducting* materials it is brought near by repelling the *electrons* in the conductors so that **more** *electrons* are on the __far object__. When the conductors are separated, the charges are trapped and can't return to where they were before

Friction

charge by __rubbing__. One object scrapes **electrons** off of another object, and both become charged in the process.

polarized

when **electrons** concentrate at *one* end of an object

electric discharge

the process of an *unbalanced* electric charge becoming balanced (lightning is a large electric discharge of static electricity

grounding

providing a path for electric charges to flow safely into the ground

electric current

The movement of electrically charged particles (electrons)

electric circuit

A closed, complete path in which an electric current can travel

Coulomb

How scientists count the number of *electrons* (electric charge)

Ampere

SI unit of electric __current__

1 amp \=

1 coulomb of charge flows the wire per second

Resistance

a measure of how difficult it is for *electrons* to flow through a material

Ohm

A unit of electric __resistance__

Ohm's Law

the relationship among current, voltage and resistance in a circuit

Ohm's Law Eqation

V\=I•R, R\=V÷I, I\=V÷R (V\=voltage, I\=current, R\=resistance)

Voltage and Current

**directly** related

Resistance and Current

**inversely** related

Voltage

the amount of energy the source uses to move *electrons* through an electric circuit

The 3 parts of an electric circuit

1. Source of electric *energy*
2. Electrical *devices* that transform electrical energy
3. *Conductors* such as wires that connect everything

appliances

convert electrical energy to other forms of energy

Series circuits

A circuit that has only **one** path for the electric current to follow.

Parallel circuits

An electric circuit with **two or more** paths through which energy can flow

Fuse Box

A piece of metal that melts to break the circuit when there is too much *thermal* energy

circut breaker

a switch that opens the circuit if the *current* is too high

GFCI

Senses if not all of the *current* is flowing and opens the circuit

short circuit

Any complete circuit with **no** resistance (it's connected to a battery, but not to any light sources or appliances)

Electric shock

occurs when electric *current* flows through your body (0.01 A causes a shock but 0.1 A can kill you)