So if current isn't the flow of electrons then what is it?

Question

I remember in high school it was said that current is the flow of electrons. (Note the textbooks then were very old)

But it seems that the above statement is incorrect and it is found that current flows in the oppsite direction of the electrons.

So what is current exactly? Is voltage now the flow of electrons is it is the force that pushes?

the above should say

So what is current exactly? Is voltage now the flow of electrons since it is the force that pushes?

Oh by the way thanks for everyone who answers. 10 points for the best answer though.

Answer 1

Here's a really good, rather simple explanation. I recommend viewing the website rather than any summary I would give to you.

http://amasci.com/amateur/elecdir.html

Answer 2

Current is the flow of electrons. For a given surface Current=charge that passes that surface per time.

It is better to think of the voltage as the "speed" of the electrons while current is the "amount" of electrons.

Currunt is how MUCH charge is moving and voltage is how HARD that charge is being pushed.

Before physicists discoverd that electrons were responsible for electricity they defined charge as moving from a positive to a negative. We now know that the negative (electrons) move towards the positive, however, the equations still work despite the difference.

Answer 3

Voltage (EMF .. Electro-Motive Force), is the 'Pressure' that moves the electrons around a circuit.
Current is 'Amperes' (Amps) and Amps are a measure of the current, therefore, Amps are 'Current' flow.
Because electrons carry a negative charge, they flow towards a positive pole we see that the typical requirements for electrons to flow are :-
a)….A power source to give a difference of charge between two poles.
b)….Conductors connected to the power source to form a loop or 'Circuit'.
An electron is an extremely tiny particle. In a single second, a vast number of electrons will pass by any point in a circuit.
The quantity of electron flow or the 'Quantity of Electricity' (Symbol 'Q'), is measured in units called 'Coulombs'.
1 Coulomb represents 6.24 x 10^18 electrons. (6.24 million, million, million ).
1 Coulomb is defined as : -
'The Quantity of Electricity conveyed in One Second by a Current of One Ampere'
The RATE at which electricity flows (the CURRENT), Symbol 'I', is measured in AMPERES', Symbol 'A' ( Amp ).
'A current of 1 amp flows in a conductor when 1 coulomb passes a given point in 1 second'

Answer 4

Current is the flow of charged particles, normally electrons. However, the *direction* of current flow is by convention taken to be the direction of positive charge flow. If the charged particles moving happen to be positively charged, they will be moving in the same direction as the current flow; if they are negatively charged, in the opposite direction. The idea of current is an abstraction that allows us to ignore in most applications the exact nature of the charges that are moving, which is a good thing.

For instance, the laws describing how a current flow generates a magnetic field don't have to concern themselves with the question of whether the current is derived from positive charges travelling in one direction or negative charges travelling in the opposite direction - the end result is the same.