What error did Benjamin Franklin make regarding charge flow?

What error did Benjamin Franklin make regarding charge flow?

• A. He misread resistance
• B. He thought charge flows opposite to electrons
• C. He assumed electricity travels instantaneously
• D. He was mistaken about the direction of actual charge flow

Answer: (D)

The key idea is the difference between current direction and the actual movement of charge carriers. Franklin defined current as the flow of positive charge from high potential to low potential, which was a reasonable assumption before the existence of electrons. But in most conductors, the moving charges are electrons, which carry negative charge and travel from the negative terminal toward the positive terminal. That means the real flow of charge is opposite to Franklin’s assumed direction. So, his error was thinking the direction of charge flow matched the direction of current, not recognizing that the actual carriers move in the opposite way. The conventional current direction is just a established convention used in circuit analysis, even though the actual charge movement in metals goes the other way.

The key idea is the difference between current direction and the actual movement of charge carriers. Franklin defined current as the flow of positive charge from high potential to low potential, which was a reasonable assumption before the existence of electrons. But in most conductors, the moving charges are electrons, which carry negative charge and travel from the negative terminal toward the positive terminal. That means the real flow of charge is opposite to Franklin’s assumed direction. So, his error was thinking the direction of charge flow matched the direction of current, not recognizing that the actual carriers move in the opposite way. The conventional current direction is just a established convention used in circuit analysis, even though the actual charge movement in metals goes the other way.