Lesson 4.

Capacitors

General Physics 2
1/2
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Camera flashes are
being attached to a
camera to produce a
sudden burst of light
in case the camera
requires more light for
a good image to be
produced. 2
Inside these flashes
are capacitors. These
capacitors operate
through an
indispensable
electronic concept
called the
capacitance.
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Many other equipment in our daily lives, such as
televisions, radios, power conditioning units, and
microphones employ this mechanism, too.

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In this lesson, we will look closely on the nature
and characteristics of capacitors and discover
how they enable the storage of electrical
energy.

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How does a capacitor make the
storage of electrical energy
possible?

6
 Learning Competencies
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

● Deduce the effects of simple capacitors (e.g.

parallel, spherical, cylindrical) on the
capacitance, charge, and potential difference
when the size, potential difference, or charge is
changed (STEM_GP12EMIIId-23).

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 Learning Competencies
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

● Solve problems involving capacitors in contexts

such as, but not limited to, charged plates,
electroscopes, batteries, camera flashlamps,
Geiger counters, and coaxial cables
(STEM_GP12EMIIId-24).

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 Learning Objectives
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

● Explain the concept of capacitance.

● Determine the capacitance present in a given

capacitor.

● Calculate values of unknown variables in problems

that relate to parallel-plate, cylindrical, and
spherical capacitors.
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 Capacitor

A capacitor is a material which is made of two conductors

separated by either vacuum or an insulator, and where
electrical energy may be stored.

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Capacitor

The capacitor is charged with electrons that move

between two charged conductors.

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 Capacitor

The conducting plate that is positively charged with +Q has

greater potential than the negatively-charged plate.

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Capacitor

The amount of charge that a particular conductor can

store is referred to as capacitance.

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 Capacitor

Capacitors come in many forms, shapes, and sizes, the

most typical of which is a configuration of parallel plates.

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 Capacitor

In circuit diagrams, a capacitor is signified by the following

symbols:

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What is a capacitor and how
does a capacitor work?

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 Capacitance Calculations

● Any point in a capacitor’s two conductors contain the

same electric potential.

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 Capacitance Calculations

● Any point in a capacitor’s two conductors contain the

same electric potential.
● In a capacitor, the charge q and the voltage ΔV are
directly proportional to each other and are
mathematically expressed through the equation below.

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 Capacitance Calculations

● Capacitance is the amount of charge necessary to put

forth a particular voltage between two conducting
plates.

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 Capacitance Calculations

● Capacitance is the amount of charge necessary to put

forth a particular voltage between two conducting
plates.
● Hence, as the value of the capacitance becomes larger,
a greater charge is also needed.

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 Capacitance Calculations

● The capacitance is determined according to the shape

of the capacitor.

● Gauss’s law will prove to be considerably useful in

determining the appropriate symmetry applicable for
each geometry.

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 Capacitance Calculations

Parallel-Plate Capacitors
By Gauss’s law, the electric field E can be calculated as

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 Capacitance Calculations

Parallel-Plate Capacitors
The potential difference can be calculated as

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 Capacitance Calculations

Parallel-Plate Capacitors
The capacitor where a positive charge q is enclosed in a
Gaussian surface on one of the plates is

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 Capacitance Calculations

Parallel-Plate Capacitors
What is the relationship between A and d?

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 Capacitance Calculations

Parallel-Plate Capacitors
What is the relationship between C and A?

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 Capacitance Calculations

Parallel-Plate Capacitors
What is the relationship between C and d?

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 Capacitance Calculations

Cylindrical Capacitors
For cylindrical
symmetries, a coaxial
charge distribution is
present.

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 Capacitance Calculations

Cylindrical Capacitors
The capacitance is
expressed as
capacitance per unit
length.

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 Capacitance Calculations

Spherical Capacitors
The electric potential at
any given point between
the two shells is

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 Capacitance Calculations

Spherical Capacitors
The potential difference between A and B can be derived as

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 Capacitance Calculations

Spherical Capacitors
The capacitance can then be calculated as

How do you arrive at this equation?

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How do we determine the
capacitance of parallel-plate,
cylindrical, and spherical
capacitors?

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Capacitance

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Capacitance

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Remember

Never confuse capacitance and

coulombs. Capacitance is expressed in
farads (F) and is symbolized by the
italicized capital letter C. C, on the
contrary, is an abbreviation for
coulombs and is not italicized.

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Remember

All the equations provided are only

applicable for calculating the
capacitance of capacitors in a vacuum,
i.e., when conductors are separated by
vacuum or empty space.

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 Let’s Practice!

Calculate the capacitance of two parallel plates of a

capacitor with a separation distance of 1.5 mm and
with an area of 2.0 ✕ 108 m2.

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 Let’s Practice!

Calculate the capacitance of two parallel plates of a

capacitor with a separation distance of 1.5 mm and
with an area of 2.0 ✕ 108 m2.

The capacitance of the parallel-plate capacitor is 1.18 F.

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Try It!

Calculate the capacitance of two

parallel plates of a capacitor with a
separation distance of 5.0 mm and with
an area of 4.5 ✕ 108 m2.

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 Let’s Practice!

Solve the potential difference of a battery connected

to a capacitor that consists of two parallel plates
with an area of 2.0 cm2 and a separation distance of
2.0 mm. Suppose that the charge present on the two
plates is equal to 4.0 picocoulombs.

41
 Let’s Practice!

Solve the potential difference of a battery connected

to a capacitor that consists of two parallel plates
with an area of 2.0 cm2 and a separation distance of
2.0 mm. Suppose that the charge present on the two
plates is equal to 4.0 picocoulombs.

The potential difference of the battery attached to the

parallel-plate capacitor is equal to 4.52 V.
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Try It!

Calculate the potential difference of a

battery connected to a capacitor
consisting of two parallel plates with an
area of 1.75 cm2 and a separation
distance of 4.33 mm. Suppose that the
charge present on the two plates is
equal to 2.67 picocoulombs.

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 Let’s Practice!

A cylindrical capacitor with a length of 82.2 mm has

two concentric rings with an outer radius of 10 cm
and an inner radius of 5 cm. What is its capacitance?

The capacitance of a cylindrical capacitor is 6.59 ✕ 10-12 F.

44
 Let’s Practice!

A spherical-shaped capacitor has a charge equivalent

to 3.30 nanocoulombs when connected to a battery
that has a voltage of 220 V. Suppose the two shells of
the spherical capacitor are 4 centimeters apart, what
are the capacitance and the radius of the inner
sphere?

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 Let’s Practice!

A spherical-shaped capacitor has a charge equivalent

to 3.30 nanocoulombs when connected to a battery
that has a voltage of 220 V. Suppose the two shells of
the spherical capacitor are 4 centimeters apart, what
are the capacitance and the radius of the inner
sphere?

The capacitance of the spherical conductor is 1.5 ✕ 10-11

F and the the radius of the inner sphere is 0.0.06 m.
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Try It!

A spherical-shaped capacitor has a

charge equivalent to 4.45 nanocoulombs
when connected to a battery that has a
voltage of 220 V. Suppose the two shells
of the spherical capacitor are 5.34
centimeters apart, what are the
capacitance and the radius of the inner
sphere?
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 Let’s Sum It Up!

● A capacitor is a material which is made of two

conductors separated by either vacuum or an
insulator, and where electrical energy may be
stored.

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 Let’s Sum It Up!

● The capacity to store energy is made possible by

charging the capacitor with electrons that move
to and fro two conductors whose charges are
positive and negative, respectively, and are both
of equal magnitude.

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 Let’s Sum It Up!

● The amount of charge that a particular conductor

can store is what is referred to as capacitance.
Capacitance is expressed through the SI unit
called farad (F), which is also equivalent to 1
coulomb per volt.

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 Let’s Sum It Up!

● Gauss’s law may be used to determine which

symmetry is most applicable to solve the
capacitance in a system. The three major
geometries of capacitors include: parallel-plate,
cylindrical, and spherical symmetries.

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 Key Formulas

Concept Formula Description

Use this formula to

Capacitance
solve capacitance
(General Equation)
where when the magnitude of
● C is capacitance; the charge and
● q is the magnitude potential difference are
of the charge, and given.
● ΔV is the potential
difference between
the conductors.

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 Key Formulas

Concept Formula Description

Use this formula to

Capacitance of
solve the capacitance
Parallel-Plate
where of parallel-plate
Capacitors
● C is the capacitance in the capacitors.
parallel-plate capacitor;
● 𝜀0 is the permittivity of free
space, with a constant value
of 8.85 ✕ 10–12 F/m, and
● ΔV is the potential difference
between the conductors.

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 Key Formulas

Concept Formula Description

Use this formula to

Capacitance of
solve the
Parallel-Plate
where capacitance of
Capacitors
● C is the capacitance in the cylindrical cylindrical
capacitor; capacitors.
● 𝜀0 is the permittivity of free space, with
a constant value of 8.85 ✕ 10–12 F/m;
● L is the length of the cylindrical
capacitor;
● rb is the radius of the outer cylinder,
and
● ra is the radius of the inner cylinder.
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Photo Credit

● Slide 3: Flash - Speedlight - SLR Flash - Studio picture 2011 by Bill Ebbesen is licensed under CC BY-
SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

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Bibliography

Hewitt, Paul G. 2010. Conceptual Physics (11th ed). New York: Pearson Education.

Holt, R., Serway, R., & Faugn, J. (2006). Physics. Holt McDougald. Austin, TX.

Macalalad, E. P. and Vergara, R. L. 2011. Exploring the Realms of Science: Physics. Valenzuela City: JO-ES
Publishing House, Inc.

Vincent P. Coletta. Physics Fundamentals. Physics Curriculum & Instruction, Inc.: 2010.

Walker, J., Halliday, D., & Resnick, R. (2011). Fundamentals of physics. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

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