Electricity, the most convenient form of energy for transformation into other forms with
minimum loss, is a part of modern life. Without electricity, most of the present day activities
would come to a halt. The time of discovery of electricity is not exactly known but in today’s
human life, its applications are innumerable. From a small phenomenon like the glowing of
a bulb to huge engineering applications, we hardly find a place where electricity is not used.
The study of electricity as a branch of physics involves the study of charges, which are
either stored in bodies or in motion through bodies. In some of the applications of electricity,
we need to store electric charge in devices like capacitors, wherein the charges are at rest. The
branch of electricity which deals with the phenomena related to or applications regarding
charges at rest is known as ‘static electricity’. In some applications of electricity, we study the
motion of charges from one place to another within a body or from one body to another
through a material that allows the motion of charges through it and the effects such charge
movement can produce. This branch of electricity is known as ‘current electricity’. In the
present chapter, we deal with the basics of current electricity. Before proceeding further let
us have a brief review of some points related to static electricity, these points would help us
understand current electricity in a better way
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