Current

Current is a flow of electrical charge carriers, usually electrons or electron-deficient atoms. The common symbol for current is the uppercase letter I. The standard unit is the ampere, symbolized by A. One ampere of current represents one coulomb of electrical charge  moving past a specific point in one second. 

Physicists consider current to flow from relatively positive points to relatively negative points; this is called conventional current or Franklin current. Electrons, the most common charge carriers, are negatively charged. They flow from relatively negative points to relatively positive points.       

Electric current can be either direct or alternating. Direct current (DC) flows in the same direction at all points in time, although the instantaneous magnitude of the current might vary. In an alternating current (AC), the flow of charge carriers reverses direction periodically. 

An example of pure DC is the current produced by an electrochemical cell. The output of a power-supply rectifier, prior to filtering, is an example of pulsating DC. 

An electric current always produces a magnetic field. The stronger the current, the more intense the magnetic field. A pulsating DC, or an AC, characteristically produces an electromagnetic field. This is the principle by which wireless signal propagation occurs.