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by JeremyStein
6048 days ago
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> What is the pure copper supposed to help? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-end_audio_cables James Randi will give a million dollars to anyone who can tell the difference. > electrons would be coming from a long ways I know it was a joke, but electrons don't really move with alternating current. |
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Well, ok, but if you're not going to let me be funny then we better at least clarify for future readers: Electrons are actually moving quite rapidly regardless of the type of current, it's just that they get scattered around a bit and don't make much average progress (called drift). We get a lot of charge moving per time (current) because there are a tremendous number of them moving, not because their average speed is great.
In direct current, the drift velocity (or drift speed) stays in the same direction. In alternating current, it switches direction with the frequency of the applied voltage.
Typical values of drift speed are, if I recall correctly, of the order of millimeters/hour.
[edit-- thanks for the link]