Current has direction then, why it is said to be a scalar quantity?

Question

Current has direction then, why it is said to be a scalar quantity?

Answer 1

It has polarity only, not direction.

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Answer 2

As defined by the  eqn [i=dq/dt], since, both charge and time in the eqn are scalars, current is a scalar quantity.

The arrows by which we represent current indicate moving charges, they do not require vector addition, and hence, are not vectors. A current arrow is drawn in the direction which positive charges would move.

However, quantity "current density" used to describe the flow of current through a particular surface, is a vector quantity represented by streamlines.

Answer 3

current does not have direction. it flows from high potential to low potential              

irresective of direction.

Answer 4

Electric Current, though it follows the rules of having a magnitude as well as a specific direction, it disobeys the rule of vectorial addition, i.e. either the triangle law, parallelogram law or the polygon rule. Current can be added simply by algebraic addition.

Hence, Electric Current is a scalar quantity.

Answer 5

I believe it's an exception to the definition of a vector in physics. Electrical current is usally not represented as a vector as it flows through a circuit - it would make things far more complicated than they need to be. Since it's not  truely a vector, then it's labeled as a scalar, although the direction of current flow is important.

Both the electric and magnetic fields are represented in vectors, but those are usually independent of the charge carriers in a given system.

Answer 6

DC current is a deprecated case of the vector, since it only has forward and reverse directions.  Thus, there is no means to obtain a quadrature current flow in a DC circuit.

However, AC current does follow the rules of a vector.

It has magnitude (measured in root mean square - rms).

It has direction (measured as a phase angle relative to some arbitrary reference).

And, accordingly, addition of currents follow the standard quadrature addition rules.  Example:

10 @ 0° + 5 @ 30° = 14.3301 + j 2.5 = 14.547 @ 9.8961°

The physical representation of this two branches of a parallel circuit and the total current flowing from the source.  

Answer 7

current does not hav direction. u cannot say it has direction cuz when u bend the wire, current does not stick to its original direction; it goes along the conductor.