Capacitors

Capacitors
 A capacitor is a device for storing electric charge.
 It can be any device which can store charges.
 Basically, capacitors consists of two metal plates
separated by an insulator. The insulator is called
dielectric. (e.g. polystyrene, oil or air)
 Circuit symbol:

Dielectric
_
 Functions of Dielectrics

 It solves the mechanical problem of

maintaining two large metal plates at a very
small separation without actual contact.
 Using a dielectric increases the maximum
possible potential difference between the
capacitor plates.
 With the dielectric present, the p.d. for a
given charge Q is reduced by a factor εr and
hence the capacitance of the capacitor is
increased.
 Examples of Capacitors
 Paper, plastic, ceramic
and mica capacitors

 Electrolytic capacitors

 Air capacitors
Relative permittivity of some dielectrics

Dielectric Relative permittivity

Vacuum 1
Air 1.0006
Polythene 2.3
Waxed paper 2.7
Mica 5.4
Glycerin 43
Pure water 80
Strontium titanate 310
 Action of Dielectric (1)
 A molecule can be regarded as a collection of atomic
nuclei, positively charged, and surrounded by a cloud
of negative electrons.
- - - -
- + - net -ve - + - net +ve
- - charge - - charge
no field
no net charge Field
• When the molecule is in an electric field, the nuclei are
urged in the direction of the field, and the electrons in
the opposite direction.
• The molecule is said to be polarized.
 Action of Dielectric (2)
 When a dielectric is in a charged capacitor, charges
appear as shown below.
 These charges are of opposite sign to the charges on
the plates.
• The charges reduce the electric
field strength E between the plates.
• The potential difference between
the plates is also reduced as E = V/d.
• From C = Q/V, it follows that C is
increased.
 Formation of a Capacitor
 Capacitors are formed
all of the time in
everyday situations:
 when a charged
thunderstorm cloud
induces an opposite
charge in the ground
below,
 when you put your hand
near the monitor screen
of this computer.
 Charged Capacitor
 A capacitor is said to be charged when
there are more electrons on one conductor
plate than on the other.

When a capacitor is
charged, energy is
stored in the
dielectric material in
the form of an
electrostatic field.
 Time Constant ()
  = CR
 The time constant is used to measure how
long it takes to charge a capacitor through a
resistor.
 The time constant may also be defined as the
time taken for the charge to decay to 1/e times
its initial value.
 The greater the value of CR, the more slowly
the charge is stored.
 Half-life
 The half-life is the time taken for the charge in a
capacitor to decay to half of its initial value.
 T = CR ln 2
1/2
 Charging of capacitors

 When a capacitor is connected across a battery,

electrons flow from the negative terminal of the battery
to a plate of the capacitor connected to it. At the same
rate, electrons flow from the other plate of the capacitor
to the positive terminal of the battery. This gives a flow
of current as the capacitor is being charged.
 As charges accumulate on the plates of the capacitor,
electric potential built across the plates. This hinders
further accumulation of charges and makes the charge
up current decreasing. When the potential difference
across the plates equals that of the battery, the current
becomes zero.
 Charging a capacitor

R
t

Computer simulation 1
Charging a capacitor

I I decreases
exponentially with t.

R
t
 Discharging of Capacitors (Q)

t Computer simulation 1
 Discharging of Capacitors (I)

t
 Capacitance of Metal Plates

 Consider a metal plate A which +V

has a charge +Q as shown.
 If the plate is isolated, A will
then have some potential V +Q -q +q
relative to earth and its
capacitance C = Q/V. A B

• Now suppose that another metal B is brought

near to A.
• Induced charges –q and +q are then obtained
on B. This lowers the potential V to a value V’.
• So C’ = Q/V’ > C.
Capacitance of an isolated conducting sphere

 Capacitance = Q/V
Q  For an isolated conducting
+
+ + sphere,
+ +
1 Q
V  
+ 4 a
+
+ • ∴ C = Q/V = 4pea
- - - - - - - -
 Parallel Plate Capacitor

 Suppose two parallel plates of a capacitor

each have a charge numerically equal to Q.
area A
+Q Electric field
strength
d
 Q
E 
–Q  A
• As C = Q/V
where Q = eEA and V = Ed

 C = eA/d
• C depends on the geometry of the conductors.
 Geometrical properties of capacitor
 Parallel plate capacitor capacitance depends on
area and plate separation. For large C, we need
area A large and separation d small.

A
C
d
 LARGER PLATE AREA INCREASES
CAPACITANCE.

 THINNER DIELECTRIC INCREASES

CAPACITANCE
 Markings of capacitor

 Consider a ‘6.3V 1500mF’

capacitor shown in the
following figure. Note that:
 (1) Maximum voltage
across the capacitor should
not exceed 6.3 V, otherwise
(leakage or) breakdown may
occur.
 (2) Capacitance of 1500mF
means the capacitor holds
1500mC of charge for every 1 V
of voltage across it.