Electrical conductivity is the ability of different types of matter to conduct an electric current. The electrical conductivity of a material is defined as the ratio of the current per unit cross-sectional area to the electric field producing the current. Electrical conductivity is an intrinsic property of a substance, dependent on the temperature and chemical composition, but not on the amount or shape. The unit of electrical conductivity in the International System of Units (SI) system is the siemens per meter, where the siemens is the reciprocal of the ohm, the unit of electrical resistance, represented by the Greek capital letter omega. An older name for the siemens is the mho, which, of course, is ohm spelled backwards (which was written as an inverted Greek omega). Electrical conductivity is due to the presence of electrons or ions able to move through the material of interest.

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