The Direction of Current

The Direction of
Current
The reference is with
respect to the positive and negative
terminals of the voltage source.
The direction of the current depends
on whether we consider the flow of
negative electrons or the motion of
positive charges in the opposite
direction.
The Direction of The circuit works the same way no
matter which direction you consider.
Current
A. Electron flow indicated with dashed
arrow in diagram.
B. Conventional current indicated with
solid arrow.
C. Electron flow as in (A) but with
reversed polarity of voltage source.
D. Conventional I as in (B) but
reversed polarity for V.
 The Direction of
Current
Electron Flow
The direction of electron drift for the
current I is out from the negative side of
the voltage source.
The I flows through the external circuit
with R and returns to the positive side of
V.
Note that this direction from the negative
terminal applies to the external circuit
connected to the output terminals of the
voltage source.
 The Direction of
Current
Conventional Current
A motion of positive charges, in the
opposite direction from electron flow, is
considered conventional current.
This direction is generally used for
analyzing circuits in electrical
engineering.
The reason is based on some traditional
definitions in the science of physics.
 The Direction of
Current
Conventional Current
By the definitions of force and work with
positive values, a positive potential is
considered above a negative potential.
Then conventional current corresponds
to a motion of positive charges “falling
downhill” from a positive to a negative
potential.
The conventional current,
therefore, is in the direction of positive
charges in motion.