In a circuit how does the electric field of battery stay confined to the wire unlike the field of a dipole?

Question

I thought that the electic field created by the terminals of a battery would spread out around the surounding region but that doesn't exactly happen-why?

Answer 1

The creation of an electric field requires a potential difference.  If there is no wire connecting the battery terminals, there is an electric "dipole" field around those terminals because of the voltage difference between them.  However, if you connect a conductor between those terminals, the potential difference disappears (an ideal conductor cannot support a potential difference) and so does the field.  More realistically, the current in the wire reduces the battery voltage difference to a low level, so a field still remains, but it is very weak.

Actually, the electric field is not "confined" to the wire--there is no electric field in the wire.