video thumbnail 26:29
Watch electricity hit a fork in the road at half a billion frames per second

2023-12-06

[public] 1.01M views, 87.8K likes, dislikes audio only

channel thumbAlphaPhoenix
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In this video, I measure a wave of electricity traveling down a wire, and answer the question - how does electricity know where to go? How does "electricity" "decide" where electrons should be moving in wires, and how long does that process take? Spoiler alert - very fast!

I've been very excited about this project for a while - it was a lot of work to figure out a reliable way to make these measurements, but I've learned SO much by actually watching waves travel down wires, and I hope you do too!

There will be a Q&A about this video posted in a few weeks on the second channel, and if you head over there right now, you'll see two direct follow ups to this video with experimental details, and a section about "impedance matching" that was cut from this script.

https://www.youtube.com/@AlphaPhoenix2

Special thanks to my top Patreon supporters!

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https://www.patreon.com/AlphaPhoenix

Media Credits:

Slomoguys clip used with permission. Thanks Gav! /youtube/video/nsJGJHkJolI

I Dunno by grapes is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...) http://ccmixter.org/files/grapes/16626

Arcadia - Wonders by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100326 Artist: http://incompetech.com/

0:00 a hypothetical question

3:30 Measurement difficulties

7:44 Individual oscilloscope traces

10:23 Electricity moves through Y circuit

12:54 The single wire experiment – how electrons move

17:32 Electrons hitting a dead end

20:23 Revisiting the Y circuit

22:16 The water channel model


a hypothetical question
/youtube/video/2AXv49dDQJw?t=0
Measurement difficulties
/youtube/video/2AXv49dDQJw?t=210
Individual oscilloscope traces
/youtube/video/2AXv49dDQJw?t=464
Electricity moves through Y circuit
/youtube/video/2AXv49dDQJw?t=623
The single wire experiment – how electrons move
/youtube/video/2AXv49dDQJw?t=774
Electrons hitting a dead end
/youtube/video/2AXv49dDQJw?t=1052
Revisiting the Y circuit
/youtube/video/2AXv49dDQJw?t=1223
The water channel model
/youtube/video/2AXv49dDQJw?t=1336
AlphaPhoenix I'm Brian Haidet - PhD in Materials Science, but I'd also describe myself as artist, maker, and Hawaiian shirt enthusiast. On this channel, You'll find my side projects and favorite physics demos - I hope you enjoy!
/youtube/channel/UCCWeRTgd79JL0ilH0ZywSJA
An intuitive approach for understanding electricity 657,939 views
/youtube/video/X_crwFuPht4
Support AlphaPhoenix on Patreon! patreon.com
https://www.patreon.com/AlphaPhoenix
AlphaPhoenix2 Just started 2nd channel for FAQs (and miscellaneous stuff)
youtube.com/channel/UC3GrRPAydgBn42lab2izBlg