Table of Contents
- Electric Resistivity
- Summary
- What’s Next?
In the previous segment, we learnt about the Resistance of a conductor. In this segment, we will understand electric resistivity.
What is Electric resistivity?
- Resistivity is a factor in resistance that takes into account the nature of the material. It is a measure of how strongly a material opposes the flow of electric current.
- The resistance of a conductor is directly proportional to its length (l) and inversely proportional to its cross-sectional area (A). It also depends on the resistivity of the material (ρ).
?
? = ρ .
?
- If the material has low resistivity, its resistance will be lower. And if it has more resistivity, its resistance will be higher.
- Metals and alloys are good conductors of electricity since they have low resistivity.
- Non-metals like rubber and glass are bad conductors of electricity because of their high resistivity.
ρ?????????? < ρ?????? < ρ???−??????
- The following table gives an idea about the resistivity of different materials at 20°C.
