Conventional Current

Conventional Current

In an electric circuit, arrow heads are used to indicate the direction of flow of current. By convention, this flow in the circuit should be from the positive terminal of the battery to the negative terminal. This current is called the conventional current or simply current and is in the direction in which a positive test charge would move. In typical circuits the charges that flow are actually electrons, from the negative terminal of the battery to the positive. As a result, the flow of electrons and the direction of conventional current points in opposite direction as shown in Figure 2.3. Mathematically, a transfer of positive charge is the same as a transfer of negative charge in the opposite direction.