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Chapter 3

Capacitors store electrical charge and create an electric field. Capacitance is a capacitor's ability to store energy and is measured in Farads. When a voltage is applied to a capacitor, current flows as the capacitor charges until it reaches the applied voltage. The factors that affect a capacitor's capacitance are plate area, distance between plates, and the dielectric material. Capacitors can be connected in series or parallel.

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254 views31 pages

Chapter 3

Capacitors store electrical charge and create an electric field. Capacitance is a capacitor's ability to store energy and is measured in Farads. When a voltage is applied to a capacitor, current flows as the capacitor charges until it reaches the applied voltage. The factors that affect a capacitor's capacitance are plate area, distance between plates, and the dielectric material. Capacitors can be connected in series or parallel.

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che syakir
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© © All Rights Reserved
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CHAPTER 3:

CAPACITOR &
CAPACITANCE
 Capacitor is an electrical device that can store electrical charge →
creating electric field → stores energy.
 Capacitance = ability of capacitor stores energy.
 When a sinusoidal signal is applied to a capacitor, it reacts and produces
an opposition to current, depends on the frequency of the applied signal.
 Opposition to current = Capacitance Reactance
The Unit of Capacitance
 The unit of capacitance is farad (F).
 1 farad capacitor can store 1 coulomb of electrical charge if 1 volt is applied
across the capacitor plates.
 Most capacitors have capacitance values in microfarads (μF) and picofarads (pF).
Capacitance, C (farads) = charge, Q
(coulombs)
voltage, V (volts)
Types of Capacitor
 Capacitors are classified according to type of dielectric material and
whether they are polarized or non-polarized.
 Fixed capacitor = capacitor whose value is fixed and cannot be varied.
 Common types of fixed capacitors: Mica Capacitor, Ceramic Capacitor,
Plastic Film Capacitor, Electrolytic Capacitor, Paper Capacitor, Tantalum
Capacitor, Semiconductor Capacitor.
 Variable capacitor = capacitor whose value can be varied.
 Common types of variables capacitors: Trimmer Variable Capacitor, Tuning
Variable Capacitor, Coaxial Variable Capacitor.
Capacitor Basic Construction
 Capacitor is an electrical device that stores electrical charge.
 Constructed of two parallel plates separated by an insulating material
called dielectric.
 Connecting leads are attached to the parallel plates.
Series Connection
 When capacitors are connected in series, the total capacitance is less than
the smallest capacitance value because the effective plate separation
increases.
Parallel Connection
 When capacitors are connected in parallel, the total capacitance is the
sum of the individual capacitances because the effective plate area
increases.
Series-Parallel Connection

CT = C1 series (C2 // C3)


CT = C1 series (C2 + C3)
1/CT = 1/C1 + 1/ (C2+C3)
The Rate of Change
 Current is the rate of flow of charge (electrons).
 Instantaneous current, i = instantaneous rate of change of charge, q with
respect to time, t.
 i = dq/ dt
 q = CV
 The instantaneous capacitor current is equal to the capacitance times the
instantaneous rate of change of the voltage across the capacitor.
 The faster the voltage across a capacitor changes, the greater the
current.
Definition of Terms
 Electric flux = flux of the electric field. Electric flux α number of electric
field lines going through a virtual surface.
 Electric flux density = flux per unit area.
 Electric field strength is determining by the voltage across the plates and
distances between the plates.
 Dielectric = insulating material between the plates of capacitor.
 Absolute permittivity = ability of capacitor to store energy.
Volts V
E = ----------- = ----- [V/m]
meter d
The Factors Affecting
Capacitance
 Plate area
 ↑ plate area ↑capacitance, ↓plate area ↓capacitance.
 Distance between plates
 ↑plate spacing ↓capacitance, ↓plate spacing ↑ greater
capacitance.
 Dielectric material
 ↑permittivity of the dielectric ↑capacitance, ↓ permittivity
of the dielectric ↓ capacitance.
The Process of Charging in a
Capacitor

 When a capacitor is connected across a dc voltage source (a), it will


charge to a value equal to the voltage applied.
 If the charged capacitor is then connected across a load (b), the capacitor
will then discharge through the load.
 When a capacitor is connected across a dc voltage source (VS ) current will
flow and C will charge up to a value equal to VS.
 When the charge switch is 1st closed, there is no VC at that instant and
therefore a potential difference exists between the battery and capacitor.
 This causes current to flow and begin charging the capacitor.
 Once the capacitor begins to charge, VC does not instantaneous rise to
max value.
 Once the capacitor begins to charge, VC does not instantaneous rise to
max value.
 It takes certain amount of time before VC is equal to VS .
 When C is fully charged, no potential difference exists between the VS and
C.
 No more I flows in the circuit as C to charge to VS is dependent on the
circuit’s R and C value.
 If R is ↑, C takes a longer time to charge to a max value.
 Charge & discharge of capacitor
Charging a capacitor
 Initial stage
 VC = 0 V, iO = I = V/R
 As time goes by
 VC ↑, VR ↓
 Final stage
 VC = V, VR = 0 V, i = 0 A

Charging a capacitor
 VC = V ( 1- e-t/τ )
 VR = V e-t/τ
 i = I e-t/τ
 τ = RC
Problem 1:
A 20μF capacitor is connected in series with a 50kΩ
resistor and the circuit is connected to a 20 V, d.c.
supply. Determine:
(a) the initial value of the current flowing,
(b) the time constant of the circuit,
(c) the value of the current one second after connection,
(d) the value of the capacitor voltage two seconds after
connection, and
(e) the time after connection when the resistor voltage is
15 V.
V = 20 V, C = 20μF = 20 x 10-6 F, R = 50kΩ = 50 x 103 Ω

(a) The initial value of current flowing is


I = V/R = 20 / (50 x 103 ) = 0.4 mA

(b) Time constant


τ = RC = (50 x 103 ) (20 x 10-6 ) = 1 s

(c) Current
i = I e-t/τ
= (0.4 x 103 ) e-1/1
= (0.4 x 103 ) (0.368)
= 0.147 mA
(d) Capacitor voltage
VC = V ( 1- e-t/τ ) = 20 (1- e-2/1 )
= 20 (1-0.135) = 20 x 0.865
= 17.3 V

(e) Resistor voltage


VR = V e-t/τ
15 = 20 e-t/τ
15/20 = e-t/τ
et = 20/15 = 4/3
t = ln 4/3 = ln 1.3333
= 0.288 s
Problem 2 :

A circuit consists of a resistor connected


in series with a 0.5μF capacitor and has a
time constant of 12 ms. Determine
(a)the value of the resistor,
(b) the capacitor voltage, 7ms after
connecting to a 10 V supply.

C = 0.5μF = (0.5 x 10-6 ) F, τ = 12 ms


(a) τ = RC
R=τ/C
= (12 x 10-3 ) / (0.5 x 10-6 )
= 24 x 103 = 24 kΩ

(b) VC = V ( 1- e-t/τ )
= 10 (1- e-7/ 12 x 10-3 )
= 10 (1-e-0.583 )
= 10 (1-0.558)
= 4.42 V
Discharging a capacitor
 VC = VR = V e-t/τ
 i = I e-t/τ

Problem 3 :
A capacitor is charged to 100 V and then discharged through a 50kΩ
resistor. If the time constant of the circuit is 0.8s. Determine (a) the value
of the capacitor, (b) the time for the capacitor voltage to fall to 20 V, (c)
the current flowing when the capacitor has been discharging for 0.5s, and
(d) the voltage drop across the resistor when the capacitor had been
discharging for one second.
V = 100V, τ = 0.8s, R = 50kΩ = 50 x103 Ω

(a) τ = RC
C = τ/R
= 0.8 / (50 x103 )
= 16μF

(b) VC = V e-t/τ
20 = 100 e-t/0.8
1/5 = e-t/0.8
et/0.8 = 5
t/0.8 = ln 5
t = 0.8 ln 5
= 1.29 s
(c) i = I e-t/τ where the initial current flowing,
I = V/R
= 100 / 50 x 103
= 2 mA
i = I e-t/τ
= 2m e-0.5/0.8
= 2m e-0.625
= 2m x 0.535
= 1.07 mA

(d) VC = VR = V e-t/τ
= 100 e-1/0.8
= 100 e -1.25

= 100 x 0.287
= 28.7 V
Problem 4 :
A 0.1μF capacitor is charged to 200 V before being connected across a 4kΩ
resistor. Determine (a) the initial discharge current, (b) the time constant
of the circuit and

(a) Initial discharging current


I = V/R
= 200 / 4 x 103
= 0.05 A
(b) Time constant,
τ = CR
= (0.1 x 10-6 ) x (4 x 103 )
= 0.4 ms
 Time constant (τ) – time needed for either a voltage or current to rise to
63.2% of the maximum or fall to 36.8% of the initial value
 τ = RC
 Energy stored in a capacitor, W = ½ CV2
 W = energy stored, (J)
 C = capacitance, (F)
 V = voltage, (V)

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