Mondo Knows Facts

Silver is the best electrical conductor

Of all metals, silver carries current with the least resistance at room temperature Silver has the highest electrical conductivity of any element, slightly ahead of copper. Its outer electron is loosely held and moves easily through the lattice. Copper still wins in wiring because it conducts almost as well and costs far less. It sits in Mondo's science collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

NIST

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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Tags: physics, electricity, metals

Silver is the best electrical conductor: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?
Of all metals, silver carries current with the least resistance at room temperature. The figure is taken from NIST, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a science fact?
Yes. It sits on the Science shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?
The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.