Question

How can Electricity travel at the speed of light?

If electricity is the flow of electrons, how come it can flow at the speed of light? Shouldn't how fast it moves be limited to a speed lower than the speed of light because it has mass?

Answer 1

Electricity can appear to travel at the speed of light because it is not the flow of the actual electrons. Instead, it is the flow of energy or information carried by the electric field. While the energy or information carried by electricity can travel close to the speed of light, the individual electrons themselves do not.

Step-by-step explanation:

Electricity can appear to travel at the speed of light because it is not the flow of the actual electrons. Instead, it is the flow of energy or information carried by the electric field. This electric field can propagate through a conductor nearly at the speed of light in a vacuum. The electrons that make up the current actually move much slower, typically drifting at speeds on the order of 10-4 m/s. So while the energy or information carried by electricity can travel close to the speed of light, the individual electrons themselves do not.