What does this voltage arrow symbol mean?

On the few occasions I do something like that, I draw the arrow so that it points in the direction of increasing electric potential.

Bill

-- Ferme le Bush

Hmmm, I tend to use conventional current flow so that would end up as Eli states. I.e the tail would be at a higher potential in the case of any impedance or resistance.

So it seems to be arbitrary, then? That doesn't make sense, because how else would you be able to interpret a circuit diagram if there wasn't a standard notation?

Thanks,

- Eli

You can not conclude a poll on 2 response and declare it 50%-50%; neither you can on 3 responses. For what is worth I vote for Arrowhead=positive. If the arrow is across a passive element then it points opposite to current flow, if it is across a generator it points in the same direction as the current that the generator would circulate if unopposed by other generators.

MG

MG:

In every book about electrotechnics I have seen so far and I've studied some (mostly German, French but sometimes English). The so called "technical direction of current flow" is shown by the arrow. As opposed to the real electron flow. This has historical reasons, because at at the early age of electricity it was unknown that electrons were responsible for the current and that these have a negative charge, so that they are attracted by positive charges. To make sense, voltage that occurs on a resistor is in phase to the current which causes it, so the voltage arrow is drawn the same way than the current arrow. (generators = opposite direction). The arrow symbols are also for electric fields where the arrow point to the lower potential. So + -------> - But this is only a convention, I guess that chemists sometimes represent it the other way, since they think in terms of Ions and electrons. But it's indeed only a convention.