In physics a conserved current is a current, that satisfies the continuity equation . The continuity equation represents a conservation law, hence the name.
Indeed, integrating the continuity equation over a volume, large enough to have no net currents through its surface, leads to the conservation law
where is the conserved quantity.
In gauge theories the gauge fields couple to conserved currents. For example, the electromagnetic field couples to the conserved electric current.
Read more about Conserved Current: Conserved Quantities and Symmetries, Conserved Currents in Electromagnetism
Famous quotes containing the word current:
“It is a quite remarkable fact that the great religions of the most civilized peoples are more deeply fraught with sadness than the simpler beliefs of earlier societies. This certainly does not mean that the current of pessimism is eventually to submerge the other, but it proves that it does not lose ground and that it does not seem destined to disappear.”
—Emile Durkheim (1858–1917)