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Current density is a measure of the density of electrical current. It is defined as a vector whose magnitude is the electric current per cross-sectional area. In SI unit, the current density is measured in amperes per square meter.

Electrical current is a coarse, average quantity that tells what is happening in an entire wire. If we want to describe the distribution of the charge flow, we use the concept of the current density:

where

is the current density vector (SI unit amperes per square metre)

is the particle density in count per volume (SI unit m^-3)

is the individual particles' charge (SI unit coulombs)

is the charge density (SI unit coulombs per cubic metre)

is the particles' average drift velocity (SI unit meters per second)

The current flowing through a surface S can be calculated by the following relation:

– where the current is in fact the integral of the dot product of the current density vector and the differential surface element , i.e. the net flux of the current density vector field flowing through the surface S.

The current density is an important parameter in Ampère's law (one of Maxwell's equations), which show the direct link between current density and magnetic field strength.

Current density is an important consideration in the design of electrical and electronic systems. Most electrical conductors have a finite, positive resistance, making them dissipate power in the form of heat. The current density must be kept sufficiently low to prevent the conductor from melting or burning up, or the insulating material failing. In superconductors excessive current density may generate a strong enough magnetic field to cause spontaneous loss of the superconductive property.

From the divergence theorem,

since charge is conserved,

Since this is valid for any volume,

.

which is also called the continuity equation.^[1]

1. ^ Griffiths, D.J., Introduction to Electrodynamics, page 213, Prentice-Hall International, 1999.

• [1] - A short explanation of the current density