Capacitors 1 Action Capacitors are electrical components used to store charge.

Their construction is simply two equal area conducting plates, with an insultor(dielectric) sandwiched in between.

When the switch is turned to the left, there is an instantaneous flow of current. By the action of the battery electrons move in a clockwise sense. They are taken from the lower plate and deposited on the upper one. In a very short time all motion ceases. The p.d. across the plates is now the same as that across the battery, but in the opposite direction. With the positive of the battery connected to the positive of the capacitor, no p.d. exists. So no current flows. In this state the capacitor is said to be 'fully charged'. Charges on upper and lower plates are of opposite type and equal in quantity. Capacitance Capacitance is the measure of a capacitor to store charge. The larger the capacitor the more charge can be stored per volt of p.d. across the plates.

where, C is the capacitance in Farads (F) Q is the charge in Coulombs (C) V is the p.d. between the plates The unit of capacitance is called the Farad. By definition, a capacitor has a capacitance of 1 Farad when 1 Coulomb of charge is stored with a p.d. of 1 volt across the plates. Hence the units of Farads are Coulombs per volt (CV-1) One Farad is too large a unit for ordinary circuits. Instead smaller derivative units are used, eg microfarads (F) and picofarads (pF). The Parallel Plate Capacitor The capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor can easily be derived from first principles

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Starting with our basic equation for capacitance, (i The charge Q is equal to the charge density multiplied by the area A . Substituting for Q in the first equation (i , (ii Results from Gauss's Theorem* give electric field strength E in terms of charge density and permittivity : * an advanced theory not dealt with here

Rearranging to make the subject, Now substituting for in equation (ii (iii For the uniform field inside a capacitor,

hence, Substituting for V into equation (iii

Note: the expression for electric field strength E from Gauss's law is for an infinite plate area A . This result is therefore an approximation. Relative Permitivity

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The definition of relative permittivity is the ratio of the capacitance of a capacitor with a dielectric to that of a capacitor without (ie free space).

By looking at capacitance we can obtain an expression linking relative permittivity r , the permittivity of free space o and the permittivity of the dielectric being used.

We find r by dividing the first equation by the second :

Note: because r is a ratio of permittivities, it has no units Dielectrics To understand the action of dielectric materials it is important to appreciate what is happpening on the molecular level. When an electric field is applied to a dielectric the positioning of the components of atoms/molecules is changed.

Positive atomic nuclei are moved to their limit a short distance and point towards the negative plate. Electron clouds around atoms become mis-shapen with the bulk of their charge pointing towards the positive plate. In this way atoms/molecules become polarized, with opposite charges tending to be concentrated at either end. The result is that the surfaces of the dielectric facing the capacitor's plates become charged. A positive plate opposes the negative face of the dielectric, while a negative plate opposes the dielectric's positive face. A dielectric between the plates of a capacitor modifies capacitance in two particular circumstances: An isolated charged capacitor

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The negative charge on the top surface of the dielectric combines with the positive charge on the top plate to lessen the overall potential in the area. (The area is less positive.) The positive charge on the bottom surface of the dielectric combines with the negative charge on the bottom plate to increase the potential there. (The area is less negative.) The result is that there is less potential difference (V) across the capacitor. Since Q = CV , Q is unchanged and V decreases, then C increases. A capacitor in-circuit with a battery

The p.d. V across the plates is maintained by the battery. The surface charges on the dielectric cause more electrons to be drawn from the positive plate and be deposited on the negative plate. So the overall charge Q on the plates is increased. Since V is constant and Q = CV then C increases. For different reasons, the effect of introducing a dielectric substance between the plates of a capacitor has the effect of increasing the capacitance. Below is a table of common relative permittivities. Note how the relative permittivity for water is much higher than the rest. This is because water(along with many other liquids), has polar molecules . These are polarized. That is they have + and - ends. without any field being applied. Polar molecules in liquids readily align themselves to an electric field. In this way more surface charges are produced and the effect is greater. material rel. permittivity (r)
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vacuum air ebonite glass mica paper polythene polystyrene rubber water

1.0 1.00058986 (STP) 3 5 7 3.85 2.25 2.4 - 2.7 7 80.1 (room temp.)

Capacitors 2 Energy stored in a capacitor The energy stored in a capacitor is in the form of electrical potential energy. This is has two components: work done in adding electrons to the negative plate work done in removing electrons from the positive plate Consider a partially charged capacitor, with a p.d. of V volts across it and charge Q on it plates.

Now during charging, consider a small charge Q moving from one plate to another. If Q is very small then the increase in p.d. is also very small. So V may be considered approximately the same. Hence the work done W , is given by : Recalling the equation for capacitance C and rearranging to make V the subject :

Substituting for V in our original equation.

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The total work done is the area under the curve for 0 to Qo, where Qo is the maximum charge stored.

Integrating between the limits gives the result :

In the general case, we can write Q = Qo . Recalling the capacitor equation again and making Q the subject :

Substituting for Q into the equation for W :

Now substituting for CV = VC = Q ,

Summarizing,

Capacitors in parallel Capacitors in parallel have the same p.d. across them.

Writing Q = CV for each capacitor and adding :

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Putting QT as the total charge, Hence, Factorizing, But Therefore, Capacitors in series The battery removes charge Q- from plate 'a' and deposits it on plate 'f'. Plate 'a' is therefore left with a charge Q+on its plates. Each charged plate then induces an opposite charge in its opposing plate. The central capacitor C2 has a positive charge on plate 'c' because electrons are removed from it to make plate 'b' negative. Plate 'd' is made negative by induction with 'c'.

Making the p.d. V the subject for each capacitor and adding:

Summing the p.d. around the circuit, the supply p.d. is V is given by: Hence

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Recalling that,

By similarity, it follows that :

Charging & discharging a capacitor through a resistor When the switch is closed charge from the capacitor flows through the resistor. The resistance R has the effect of limiting this flow. For a fully charged capacitor of capacitance C let the p.d. be Vo and the charge Qo .

Consider the p.d. around the circuit at a time t seconds from the start of the discharge. Since there is no net p.d. in the circuit, by Kirchoff's 2nd law (relating to p.d. in a circuit) : Quoting the capacitor equation, with V the subject,

Substituting for V in our initial equation, (i The current I is defined as the rate of charge of charge with time,

Remember the Ohm's Law equation, Now, substituting for V and I into equation (i ,

Separating the differential operators dQ and dt ,

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Since Q = Qo when t = 0 and Q = Q when t = t , integrating between these limits :

Hence,

Therefore,

and,

Changing into exponential form :

Rearranging into a more familiar form,

Substituting for Q = VC and Qo = VoC , cancelling the C's

So both the charge and the p.d. decrease at an exponetial rate.

When the elapsed time t = CR the charge remaining is approx. 37% of the original amount.

The p.d. across the resistor VR and the current I through it are given by:
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Note the minus signs in these equations. This is a consequence of Kirchoff's 2nd law. Remember how the p.d. across the resistor and the capacitor are related. If VR is taken to the other side of the equation it becomes negative. Hence one p.d. is the negative of the other. The second equation (I) is obtained from the first by substituting VR = IR and rearranging. The curve of Q vs t for charging is :

unfortunately lack of space precludes this derivation.

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