It is instructive to draw an analogy between water flow and current. In many localities
it is common practice to install low-flow showerheads in homes as a waterconservation
measure. We quantify the flow of water from these and similar devices
by specifying the amount of water that emerges during a given time interval,
which is often measured in liters per minute. On a grander scale, we can characterize
a river current by describing the rate at which the water flows past a particular
location. For example, the flow over the brink at Niagara Falls is maintained at
rates between 1 400 m3/s and 2 800 m3/s.
Now consider a system of electric charges in motion. Whenever there is a net
flow of charge through some region, a current is said to exist. To define current
more precisely, suppose that the charges are moving perpendicular to a surface of
area A, as shown in Figure 27.1. (This area could be the cross-sectional area of a wire,
for example.) The current is the rate at which charge flows through this surface.
If Q is the amount of charge that passes through this area in a time interval t,
the average current Iav is equal to the charge that passes through A per unit time