What common everyday substances are electrically conductive?

Answer 1

The pat answer is probably that a good conductor is a material that has a lot of free electrons in it. These electrons could be thought of as "unbound" to "parent" atoms, and that leaves them free to wander about in the material. When a voltage is applied, the electrons are more than willing to support current flow by moving through the conductor. There is a more sophisticated answer, and that is that the conduction band for a given material is low enough that it overlaps the Fermi energy levels of outer electrons in the atoms of the conductive material. The conduction band has a "threshold" energy, and it varies from material to material. Further, when valence electrons sit at Fermi energy levels higher than that "threshold energy" of the conduction band for that material, they're free to "help out" with conduction. And they will support it. In either model, recall that current flow is not the entry of an electron into one end of a wire and its emergence from the other. It is the entry of an electron into one end of the conductor, the subsequent "moving over" of electrons already in the conductor that are in the conduction band, and the emergence from the other end of an electron.

Answer 2

A superconductor, which has zero electrical resistance. Several materials have been found to have this property; so far, only at cryogenic (i.e., "supercold") temperatures.

At room temperature, the best known conductor of electricity is silver,

followed (in order) by copper, gold, aluminum, calcium, tungsten, other metals, etc.

Answer 3

All metals. Copper is a good, relatively cheap conductor. Aluminum is also good. Gold and silver are very good, but expensive. Iron, nickle, and other metals are also conductors.

Mercury is an liquid metal conductor, and often found in thermostats, especially older ones, acting as a "mercury switch" due to its excellent conductive properties.

Graphite is also a good conductor, and thus pencil lead is a good conductor. Carbon Fiber is also made from graphite and is a good conductor.

Water, milk, and aqueous liquids are good conductors, although VERY PURE water is not supposed to conduct electricity well.

Answer 4

Of course there is. It covers every capacitive touch screen. It's called "ITO" or Indium-Tin Oxide. ITO also makes up the invisible columns and rows that cover the glass plates of an LCD display.

Answer 5

Silver, copper, and gold conduct electricity best.

Answer 6

Anything metal such as tin, copper, lead or foil.

Other everyday objects can be conductors too, paperclips, pins and staples.

Basically, anything metal..

Answer 7

Metals. Water with dissolved ions.

Answer 8

The best electrical conductor is silver.