Electric Resistivity Converter

About This Tool

This Electric Resistivity Converter is a tool for materials science and physics. It converts units of electrical resistivity (also known as specific electrical resistance), which is a fundamental property of a material that quantifies how strongly it resists the flow of electric current. The base unit is the ohm meter (Ω·m).

Unlike resistance, which depends on an object's geometry, resistivity is an intrinsic property of the material itself. It's crucial for selecting materials for electronic components, from conductive wires (low resistivity) to insulating layers (high resistivity).

Tips & Features

• Resistivity vs. Resistance: Resistivity (ρ) is a material property, while resistance (R) is a property of a specific object. They are related by the formula R = ρ(L/A), where L is the length and A is the cross-sectional area of the object.
• The Ohm Meter (Ω·m): The ohm meter is the SI unit for resistivity. Materials like copper have very low resistivity (e.g., 1.68×10⁻⁸ Ω·m), while insulators like glass have very high resistivity.
• Common Units: Because many applications involve small components, units like ohm centimeter (Ω·cm) and microhm centimeter (µΩ·cm) are very common in practice.