Capacitors

Capacitors
• Electrical component that
temporarily stores electrical
charge.
• Effects
• Stores energy for short time
• Time delay in circuit
• Example use:
• In laptops, if the main battery
runs out a capacitor stores just
enough energy to safely shut
down the computer.
Capacitors
• Made of two conducting plates separated by a dielectric.
• Dielectric – thin insulating layer
How do they work?
How do they work? - Charging
• Potential difference connected
across the plates
• Electrons flow off one plate and
onto the other
• Plate with excess electrons
becomes negatively charged and
vis-versa.
How do they work? - Discharging
• Potential difference removed
• Electrons flow off one plate
negative plate and onto the
other positive
• Plates are neutral
Capacitance
https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/capacitor-lab
• Ability to store charge per unit potential difference.
• Symbol: C
• Unit: farad (F)
• Depends on: area of plates, distance between plates and electrical
properties of dielectric.

• Q=VC Q = Charge, V = Potential difference

Parallel-plate Capacitors
• Capacitance depends on: area of plates, distance between plates and
electrical properties of dielectric - Permittivity.
• Permittivity – resistance of material to an electrical field passing
through. Unit: Fm-1
• Dielectric constant, εr – relative permittivity for a material. Given as a
multiple of Permittivity of free space, εo. (you will see it as εrεo)
• εo=8.854x10-12 Fm-1
• If permittivity is high a larger charge can be stored on the plates for a
given PD.
Parallel-plate Capacitors
• 

Charge density (Q/A) proportional to electric field (V/d)

Permittivity
• Resistance of material to an electrical field passing through.
• Unit: Fm-1
• Ability of material to store an electrical field, which opposes the field
it is in.
No resultant field

Polarised molecules have their own field that

opposes field of parallel plates.
Connected to power supply
- Fixed V and d (electric field)
•  Without dielectric/low dielectric constant
• For a given V/d only a small number of charges are required to create the
field. Therefore low stored Q and C.
• High Dielectric constant
• For given V/d, field is strongly opposed by dielectric so a high number of
charges is required to create field. Therefore high stored Q and C.

Constant =
Charged but disconnected
- fixed d
•  Add/increase dielectric
constant of a charged +
disconnected capacitor.
• Number of charges
constant but field is
opposed, therefore field
(V/d) is weaker.
• V decreases.
Energy Stored
Potential difference = Work / Charge
V=E/Q

E=VΔQ
Each ΔQ required different amount
of V to be stored, so use average
from Q=0 to Q, giving V/2.

E= ½ C V2 = ½ Q2/C