PHY025_Physics 2_C 4 Notes, Tutorials and Practical’s

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WS5: Capacitance

1. The p.d. across a capacitor is 3.0 V and the charge on the capacitor is 150 nC.
Determine the charge on the capacitor when the p.d. is:
a 6.0 V

b 9.0 V.

2. A 1000 μF capacitor is charged to a potential difference of 9.0 V.

a Calculate the energy stored by the capacitor.
b Determine the energy stored by the capacitor when the p.d. across it is doubled.
3. For each circuit below, determine the total capacitance of the circuit.

4. A 10 000 μF capacitor is charged to its maximum operating voltage of 32 V.

The charged capacitor is discharged through a filament lamp. The flash of light
from the lamp lasts for 300 ms.
a Calculate the energy stored by the capacitor.

b Determine the average power dissipated in the filament lamp.

5. The diagram shows a 1000 μF capacitor charged to a p.d. of 12 V.

a Calculate the charge on the 1000 μF capacitor.

b The 1000 μF capacitor is connected across an uncharged 500 μF capacitor by closing the
switch S.
The charge initially stored by the 1000 μF capacitor is now shared with the 500 μF capacitor.
i Calculate the total capacitance of the capacitors in parallel.
ii Show that the p.d. across each capacitor is 8.0 V.

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6. A charged capacitor is connected across a resistor of resistance 100 kΩ. The graph below
shows the variation of p.d. V across the capacitor with time t.

Use the graph to determine:

a the initial current in the circuit
b the time constant of the circuit
c the capacitance C of the capacitor. (Hint: use your answer to b.)
7. A 220 μF capacitor is charged to a potential difference of 8.0 V and then discharged through a resistor of
resistance 1.2 MΩ.
a Determine the time constant τ of the circuit.
b Calculate:
i the initial current in the circuit
ii the current in the circuit after a time equal to 2τ
iii the p.d. across the capacitor after a time of 50 s.
8. A 100 μF capacitor is discharged through a resistor of resistance 470 kΩ.
Determine the ‘half-life’ of this circuit. (The half-life of the circuit is the time taken for
the voltage across the capacitor to decrease to 50% of its initial value.)

9. The diagram below shows a charged capacitor of capacitance C. When the switch S is closed, this capacitor is
connected across the uncharged capacitor of capacitance 2C.
Calculate the percentage of energy lost as heat in the resistor and explain why the actual
resistance of the resistor is irrelevant.

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10. The charge stored in the capacitor X of capacitance 5 µF in the circuit given in the figure below is 30 µC.

(a) (i) Complete the table for this circuit.

capacitor capacitance / 𝜇𝐹 charge / 𝜇𝐶 p.d / V energy / 𝜇𝐽
X 5 30
Y 25
Z 10
(ii) Using data from the table find
a. the e.m.f. of the battery
b. the total charge supplied from the battery
c. the total circuit capacitance
d. the total energy stored in all the capacitors.
11. A 3𝜇𝐹 capacitor is connected in series with a 6 𝜇𝐹 capacitor. The combination is then connected in
parallel with a 1 𝜇𝐹 capacitor to a 12 V battery, as in Fig 1.1. Calculate the charge stored by each capacitor.

12. In the circuit shown in Fig.2.1 a 3 𝜇𝐹 capacitor is charged from a 6 V battery by connecting the switch to
terminal X. Then the switch is reconnected to terminal Y to charge a 1 𝜇𝐹 capacitor from the 3 𝜇𝐹 capacitor.
Calculate
a. the charge and energy initially stored in the 3 𝜇𝐹 capacitor,
b. the final charge and energy stored in each capacitor.

13. A 3𝜇𝐹 capacitor charged to an initial p.d. of 12 V is discharged through a resistance of 0.1 ΜΩ. Calculate
a) The initial discharge current,
b) the p.d across the capacitor plates after 0.3 s from the start of discharge.
c) The p.d. across the capacitor plates after 1.0 s from the start.

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14. Which of the following is the same unit as Farad?
𝐀. s B.𝑠 −1 C.−1 𝑠 D. −1 𝑠 −1
15. A student is investigating how the potential difference across a capacitor varies with time as a
capacitor is charging. He uses a 100 μF capacitor, a 5.0 V d.c. supply, a resistor, a voltmeter and a switch.
(a) (i) Draw a diagram of the circuit he should use.

(ii) Suggest why a voltage sensor connected to a data logger might be a suitable instrument for
measuring the potential difference across the capacitor in this investigation.

(b) Calculate the maximum charge stored on the capacitor.

(c) The graph shows how the potential difference across the capacitor varies with time as the capacitor
is charging.

(i) Estimate the average charging current over the first 10 ms.

(ii) Use the graph to estimate the initial rate of increase of potential difference across the capacitor and
hence find the initial charging current.

(iii) Use the value of the initial charging current to find the resistance of the resistor.

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16. Complete the circuit below to show the two capacitors connected in parallel and in series with the
battery. Use the values given to help you complete the table.
Series
Parallel
6.0 V
6.0 V

C1 12µf
C1 12µf

C2 12µf
C2 12µf

Charge on C1
Capacitors in
parallel
Energy stored on C1when fully
charged

Charge on C2
Capacitors in
series
Total Energy stored on C1and C2
when fully charged

17. A student is investigating capacitors. She uses the circuit below to check the capacitance of a
capacitor labelled 2.2 μF which has a tolerance of +/- 30%.
(a) The switch flicks between contacts, X and Y, so that the capacitor
charges and discharges f times per second.

(i) Explain why 400 Hz is a suitable value for f.

(ii) Show that the capacitance C can be given by

𝐼
𝐶 =
𝑓𝑉

where I is the reading on the ammeter and V is the reading on the voltmeter.

(iii) The student records I as 5.4 mA and V as 5.0 V. Calculate the capacitance C.

(iv) Explain whether you think this value is consistent with the tolerance given for this capacitor.

(b) Calculate the energy stored on the capacitor when it is charged to a potential difference of 5.0 V.

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18. A designer needs a circuit that will cause a delay in switching off the interior light in a car after the
door is shut. She uses a circuit with a resistor and a capacitor. She knows that the time constant T is
given by T = RC
where R is the resistance in ohms and C is the capacitance in farads.

With the switch in position X the capacitor is charged to 12 V. When the switch is moved to position Y the
capacitor discharges through the resistor and the potential difference (p.d.) across the resistor falls
steadily from 12 V.

(a) (i) Calculate a theoretical value for the time constant for this circuit.

(ii) What is the significance of the time constant for such a discharge?

(b) She decides to check the theoretical value for the time constant T using a stopwatch, with a precision
of 0.01s.

(i) State why the voltmeter needs to have a high resistance.

(ii) State why a stopwatch is suitable for measuring the time in this context.

(iii) State what she should do to make her value for T as reliable as possible.

(c) For a capacitor discharging through a resistor, the potential difference V across the resistor at time t is
given by 𝑉 = 𝑉0 𝑒 −𝑡/𝑅𝐶

Explain why a graph of ln V against t should be a straight

line.

(d) The designer uses the circuit to obtain the following data.
Plot a graph to show that these data are consistent with
𝑉 = 𝑉0 𝑒 −𝑡/𝑅𝐶
Use the extra column in the table above for your processed data.

(e) (i) Use your graph to obtain another value for the time
constant.

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(ii) Calculate the percentage difference between your value from the graph and the theoretical value from
(a)(i).

(f) (i) Use your graph to find how long it takes for the p.d. to decrease to 5.0 V.

Add to your graph to show how you did this.

(ii) The designer wants the p.d. to decrease to 5 V in about 12 s. Mark with a cross
the value of R she should use.

19. A defibrillator is a machine that is used to correct an

irregular heartbeat or to start the heart of someone who is
in cardiac arrest.
The defibrillator passes a large current through the
heart for a short time.

The machine includes a high voltage supply which is

used to charge a capacitor. Two defibrillations
‘paddles’ are placed on the chest of the patient and the capacitor is
discharged through the patient.

(a) The 150 F capacitor is first connected across the 1200 V supply. Calculate the charge on the capacitor.

(b) Calculate the energy stored in the capacitor.

(c) When the capacitor discharges there is an initial current of 14 A in the chest of the patient.

(i) Show that the electrical resistance of the body tissue between the paddles is 90 ohms
(ii) Calculate the time it will take for three quarters of the charge on the capacitor to discharge through
the patient.

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(iii) Body resistance varies from person to person. If the body resistance was lower, the initial current
would be greater. State how this lower body resistance affects the charge passed through the body from
the defibrillator.

20. A capacitor is made of two thin metal sheets separated by a distance of 1.0mm. It is connected to a
12V battery. Calculate the electric field strength between the plates.
21. How much charge is stored on the plates of a 100F capacitor connected to a 12V battery?
22. (a) What is the capacitance of a capacitor which can store 18mC of charge when the pd across it is
6V?
(b) How much charge will be stored on this capacitor if the voltage is increased to 20 V?
23. A parallel plate capacitor is fully charged by a 20 V battery, acquiring a charge of 1.62 nC. The area
of each plate is 3.5 cm2 and the gap between them is 1.3 mm. What is the capacitance of the capacitor?
24. A student wishes to make a capacitor of 1.0F using parallel plates 1.0mm apart in air. Find the area
of the plate.
25. What is the energy stored on a 100 µF capacitor which has 3mC of charge on it?
26. The dome of a van de Graaff generator has a capacitance of 20 pF. Calculate the energy stored when
the dome is raised to a potential of 100kV.
27. The energy from a 1100F capacitor is used to operate a photographer’s flash bulb. The capacitor
is charged by a 9.0V battery. Calculate:
(d) The energy stored in the capacitor.
(e) The energy delivered by the battery.
(f) Account for the difference in these two energies.
28. A 100F capacitor connected to a 10V battery is used with a 2.0MΩ resistor to automatically shut
off a calculator. The capacitor, initially charged to 10V, discharges through the resistor whenever the
buttons are not being pushed. The calculator will turn off when the capacitor voltage falls to 3.7V. What
time will this take?
29. Calculate the equivalent capacitance of the network shown.

30. What is the time constant for the capacitor in this circuit?

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