# What is wavelength of electric field generated in a wire? [closed]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speed_of_electricity

_The speed at which energy or signals travel down a cable is actually the speed of the electromagnetic wave, not the movement of electrons. Electromagnetic wave propagation is fast and depends on the dielectric constant of the material. In a vacuum the wave travels at the speed of light and almost that fast in air.

and

Since the velocity of propagation is very high — about 300,000 kilometers per second — the wave of an alternating or oscillating current, even of high frequency, is of considerable length. At 60 cycles per second, the wavelength is 5,000 kilometers, and even at 100,000 hertz, the wavelength is 3 kilometers. This is a very large distance compared to those typically used in field measurement and application._

It gives wavelength of EM wave in wire. How did they find it?

Also, why do you all say, it has nothing like that. That there is no such wavelength. Is Wikipedia wrong here then?

Edit 2 : I got that what wiki said was something different. They simply used $v = \lambda \nu$

Now, I wonder that electric field is caused by virtual photons. What is their frequency and wavelength in wire?

## closed as unclear what you're asking by John Rennie, user36790, John Duffield, Kyle Kanos, GertNov 26 '15 at 20:15

Please clarify your specific problem or add additional details to highlight exactly what you need. As it's currently written, it’s hard to tell exactly what you're asking. See the How to Ask page for help clarifying this question. If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.

• The carriers are rather slow: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drift_velocity – Timeless Nov 26 '15 at 15:54
• Current has no velocity like this, it's only the number of carriers per unit time (I=dQ/dt). – Timeless Nov 26 '15 at 17:05
• Yes, if the cables were empty and you would have to fill them up with electrons. But they are already full of electrons, and applying an electric field, all free electrons start to move. It's like the water tap at home, you don't have to wait for the water to come all way from a water reservoir, it's already in the water pipe. – Timeless Nov 26 '15 at 17:21
• Re your last edit, when you connect the battery a signal that is basically a step function propagates along the wire at around $0.1c$ to $c$ depending on the type of wire. A step signal isn't a plane wave and doesn't have a frequency or wavelength. – John Rennie Nov 27 '15 at 10:23
• You have to read the Wikipedia quote more carefully. It's saying they assign wavelength to the sinusoidal AC current of 60 Hz, not to any "electromagnetic wave". This wavelength is not the wavelength of any actual oscillation. – ACuriousMind Apr 22 '16 at 11:58