Donate SIGN UP

Width + density of wire

Avatar Image
nessi | 20:19 Wed 28th Jun 2006 | Science
4 Answers
one more thing. Will resistance increase or decrease when the wire has a larger cross-section or higher density
Gravatar

Answers

1 to 4 of 4rss feed

Best Answer

No best answer has yet been selected by nessi. Once a best answer has been selected, it will be shown here.

For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.
The larger the cross section the lower the resistance - think of the current like water flowing through a pipe.

As for density I'm not sure but gold, with a relatively high density, is one of the best conductors.
Resistance decreases with increasing density. There are more metal atoms per unit volume, and thus more free electrons.
Short, fat, cold wire has the least resistance. Heating disturbs the atoms in a conductor and disrupts electron current flow increasing resistance.

>shape

It is not so much the density but the number of electrons in the outermost shell (valance ring) that determine conductance. Best conductors all have one loosely held valance electron; in order: Silver, Copper, Gold, Aluminum.
Question Author
Thanks

1 to 4 of 4rss feed

Do you know the answer?

Width + density of wire

Answer Question >>

Related Questions

Sorry, we can't find any related questions. Try using the search bar at the top of the page to search for some keywords, or choose a topic and submit your own question.