CAPACITORS
CONTENT
- Definition of a Capacitor
- Energy Stored in a Capacitor
- Arrangement of Capacitors
- Solved Questions
Definition of a Capacitor
A capacitor can be defined as a device which can store electrical energy. It consist essentially of two metal plate separated by an insulator. The insulator is called dielectric material. When the capacitor is connected to a pd source, opposite charges are gradually built up on each of the plates.
Capacitor
The ratio of the charge Q stored on the capacitor to the potential difference between the plates is called the capacitance of the capacitor. The unit of capacitance is called farad.
\(C = \frac{Q}{V}\) ——–(i)
Q is the charge and V is the pd between the plate.
The most common type of capacitor is the parallel plate capacitor. The capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor depends on the following factors:
(i) Area of overlap of the plates: the capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor is directly proportional to the area of overlap of the plates.
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