Physics 102

Capacitance

NUN Physics Department

 What is Capacitance?
 From the word “capacity,” it
describes how much charge an V=1.5 V
arrangement of conductors
can hold for a given voltage _ +
applied.
 Charges will flow until the right electrons + charges
conductor’s potential is the
same as the + side of the +
battery, and the left
conductor’s potential is the 1.5 V
same as the – side of the “Charging” battery
battery. the capacitor
_
 How much charge is needed to
produce an electric field whose electrons + charges
potential difference is 1.5 V?
 Depends on capacitance: q  CV definition of capacitance

October 10, 2007

• Definition of capacitance
A capacitor is a useful device in electrical circuits that allows us
to store charge and electrical energy in a controllable way. The simplest
to understand consists of two parallel conducting plates of area A
separated by a narrow air gap d. If charge +Q is placed on one plate,
and -Q on the other, the potential difference between them is V, and
then the capacitance is defined as C=Q/V. The SI unit is C/V, which is
called the Farad, named after the famous and creative scientist Michael
Faraday from the early 1800’s.

• Applications
– Radio tuner circuit uses variable capacitor

– Blocks DC voltages in ac circuits

– Act as switches in computer circuits

– Triggers the flash bulb in a camera

– Converts AC to DC in a filter circuit

October 10, 2007

Capacitance Depends on Geometry
 What happens when the two
conductors are moved closer V=1.5 V
together? _ _ +
 They are still connected to the
battery, so the potential + charges
difference cannot change.
 
 But recall that V    E. ds +
1.5 V
 Since the distance between them battery
decreases, the E field has to increases
increase. _
constant
 Charges have to flow to make
that happen, so now these two + charges
conductors can hold more q  CV
charge. I.e. the capacitance
increases. increases
October 10, 2007
Capacitance Depends on Geometry
V=1.5 V
_ +
 What happens if we replace
the small conducting spheres
with large conducting plates?
 The plates can hold a lot more
charge, so the capacitance Circular plates
goes way up. + charges

 Here is a capacitor that you +

can use in an electronic circuit.
 We will discuss several ways in 1.5 V
which capacitors are useful. battery
 But first, let’s look in more _
detail at what capacitance is.
+ charges

October 10, 2007

 Charge Without Battery
1. Say that we charge a parallel plate capacitor to 20 V,
then disconnect the battery. What happens to the
charge and voltage?

A. The charge stays on the plates indefinitely, and the voltage stays
constant at 20 V.
B. The charge leaks out the bottom quickly, and the voltage goes to 0
V.
C. The charge jumps quickly across the air gap, and the voltage goes
to 0 V.
D. The charge stays on the plates, but the voltage drops to 0 V.
E. The charge instantly disappears, but the voltage stays constant at
20 V.

October 10, 2007

 The plates of a capacitor are connected to a battery. What happens to the
charge on the plates if the connecting wires are removed from the
battery? What happens to the charge if the wires are removed from the
battery and connected to each other?
 If the wires to the battery are disconnected, the charge remains on the
plates -- and the voltage across the plates remains the same. If the wires
are connected to each other, current will flow and the capacitor will
discharge. Then there will be no voltage across the capacitor nor any
charge on the plates.
 A pair of capacitors are connected in parallel while an identical pair are
connected in series. Which pair would be more dangerous to handle after
being connected to the same voltage source?
 Each pair will carry the same voltage. The ones in parallel will carry a
greater charge and, therefore, could do more "damage" as they
discharge.

October 10, 2007

 Capacitance for Parallel Plates
separation
 Parallel plates make a great example for d
calculating capacitance, because
 The E field is constant, so easy to calculate.
 The geometry is simple, only the area and E and dA
plate separation are important. area A parallel
 To calculate capacitance, we first need to line of
determine the E field between the plates. integration
We use Gauss’ Law, with one end of our
V V
gaussian surface closed inside one plate,
and the other closed in the region between
the plates (neglect fringing at ends):
  Total charge q
 0  E  dA  q so q   0 EA on inside of plate
 
 Need to find potential difference V  V  V    E  ds
 EA  0 A
 Since E=constant, we have V  Ed , so the capacitance is C  q / V  0 
Ed d

October 10, 2007

 Capacitance for Other
Configurations (Cylindrical)
 Cylindrical capacitor
 The E field falls off as 1/r.
 The geometry is fairly simple, but the V
integration is slightly more difficult.
 To calculate capacitance, we first need to
determine the E field between the plates.
We use Gauss’ Law, with a cylindrical
gaussian surface closed in the region
between the plates (neglect fringing at
ends):
 
 0  E  dA  q So q   0 EA   0 E (2rL) or E  q /(2 0 rL)
 
 Need to find potential difference V  V  V    E  ds
 Since E~1/r, we have q a dr q  b  , so the capacitance is
2 0 L b
V  ln  L
r 2 0 L  a  C  q / V  2 0
ln(b / a )
October 10, 2007
 Capacitance for Other
Configurations (Spherical)
 Spherical capacitor
 The E field falls off as 1/r2.
 The geometry is fairly simple, and the V
integration is similar to the cylindrical case.
 To calculate capacitance, we first need to
determine the E field between the spheres.
We use Gauss’ Law, with a spherical
gaussian surface closed in the region
between the spheres:
 
 0  E  dA  q So q   0 EA   0 E (4r 2 ) or E  q /(4 0 r 2 )

 
 Need to find potential difference V  V  V    E  ds
 Since E~1/r2, we have q a dr q  1 1  , so the capacitance is
V 
4 0 r
b 2
   
4 0  a b  C  q / V  4 0
ab
ba
October 10, 2007
 Capacitance Summary
0 A
 Parallel Plate Capacitor C
d
L
 Cylindrical (nested cylinder) Capacitor C  2 0
ln(b / a )
ab
 Spherical (nested sphere) Capacitor C  4 0
ba

 Capacitance for isolated Sphere C  4 0 R

 Units: length = C2/Nm = F (farad), named after

Michael Faraday. [note:  = 8.85 pF/m]
October 10, 2007
 Units of Capacitance
2. Given these expressions, and 0 = 8.85 x 1012 C2/N∙m2,
what are the units of capacitance?
0 A L ab
C C  2 0 C  4 0 C  4 0 R
d ln(b / a ) ba
A. The units are different in the different expressions.
B. The units are C2/N∙m2.
C. The units are C2/N∙m.
D. The units are C2/N.
E. The units are C/V.

 Units: length = C2/N∙m = F (farad), named after Michael Faraday. [note: 

= 8.85 pF/m]

October 10, 2007

 Capacitors in Parallel
 No difference between

3C

and

V
C C C
n

Capacitors in parallel: Ceq   C j

j 1

October 10, 2007

Parallel Combination of Capacitors
Typical electric circuits have several capacitors in them. How do they
combine for simple arrangements? Let us consider two in parallel.

Q1 Q2
C1 C2 C1
+ + C = Q/V
V - V -

We wish to find one equivalent capacitor to replace C1 and C2.

Let’s call it C.
The important thing to note is that the voltage across each is the
same and equivalent to V. Also note what is the total charge
stored by the capacitors? Q.
Q  Q1  Q 2  C1V  C 2V  (C1  C 2)V
Q
 C1  C 2  C  C1  C 2
V
 Capacitors in Series
 There is a difference between and

C
3C
C

C
 Charge on lower plate of one
and upper plate of next are
equal and opposite. (show by
gaussian surface around the two
plates). n
1 1
Capacitors in series: C   C
 Total charge is q, but voltage on
each is only V/3. j 1
eq j

October 10, 2007

 Capacitors in Series
 To see the series formula, consider the
individual voltages across each capacitor
q q q
V1  , V2  , V3 
C1 C2 C3

 The sum of these voltages is the total

voltage of the battery, V
q q q
V  V1  V2  V3   
C1 C2 C3

 Since V/q = 1/Ceq, we have

V 1 1 1 1
   
q Ceq C1 C2 C3

October 10, 2007

 Series Combination of Capacitors

Q Q Q Q
+ - + - + - C
V
+ C1 C2 + C Q
V V V
V
- - C
V1 V2

What is the equivalent capacitor C?

Voltage across each capacitor does not have to be the same.

The charges on each plate have to be equal and opposite in sign by

charge conservation.
The total voltage across each pair is:
Q Q 1 1 1
V  V1 V 2    Q(  )  Q( )
C1 C 2 C1 C 2 C

So 1 1 1 ; Therefore, C1C 2
  C
C1 C1 C 2 C1  C 2
Sample problem

C1 = 10 F
C1
C3 C2 = 5.0 F
+
V - C2 C3 = 4.0 F

a) Find the equivalent capacitance of the entire combination.

C1 and C2 are in series.
1 1 1 C1C 2
   C12 
C12 C1 C 2 C1  C 2
10  5 50
C12    3.3F
10  5 15
C12 and C3 are in parallel.

Ceq  C12  C 3  3.3  4.0  7.3F

Sample problem (continued)

C1 = 10 F
C1
C3 C2 = 5.0 F
+
V - C2 C3 = 4.0 F

b) If V = 100 volts, what is the charge Q3 on C3?

C = Q/V
Q 3  C 3V  4.0  10 6 100
Q 3  4.0  10 4 Coulombs

c) What is the total energy stored in the circuit?

1 1
U  CeqV 2  1.3  10 6 10 4  3.6  10  2 J
2 2
U  3.6  10 2 J
 Three Capacitors in Series
3. The equivalent capacitance for two
capacitors in series is Ceq  1 1 1  C1.C2
C1  C2 C1  C2

What is the equivalent capacitance for three

capacitors
C1C2C3in series?
Ceq  C1  C2  C3
A. C1  C2  C3 D. Ceq 
C1C2C3
C1C2  C2C3  C1C3
Ceq  C1C2C3
B. C1  C2  C3 E. Ceq 
C1C2  C2C3  C3C1
C1C2  C2C3  C3C1
C 
C. eq C1C2C3
October 10, 2007
 Example Capacitor Circuit
Step 1 Step 2

C1 C2 C12
parallel
V V series V C123

C3 C3

C12  C1  C2 1 1 1 C12C3
  C123 
C123 C12 C3 C12  C3

C1 = 12.0 F, C2 = 5.3 F, C3 = 4.5 F C123 = (12 + 5.3)4.5/(12+5.3+4.5) F = 3.57 F

October 10, 2007

 Another Example
parallel
C4 C6 C1456  C1  C45  C6
C1 C45 C6
C5
V series
CC
C2 C3 C45  4 5
C3 C 4  C5
C3

parallel
C23  C2  C3

October 10, 2007

 Another Example
C 4 C5
C45 
C 4  C5
C1456  C1  C45  C6
C1456
C23  C2  C3
series
V
C C
C123456  1456 23
C23 C1456  C23

Complete solution
 CC 
 C1  4 5  C6 (C2  C3 )
 C 4  C5 
C123456 
CC
C1  4 5  C6  C2  C3
C 4  C5

October 10, 2007

 Series or Parallel
4. In the circuits below, which ones show
capacitors 1 and 2 in series?
C C 3
2

I II
C1
C1
A. I, II, III V V
C3 C2
B. I, III
C. II, IV C1
D. III, IV
III IV
E. None C3 V
C1 C2
C2 C3
V

October 10, 2007

 Capacitors Store Energy
V=1.5 V
 When charges flow from the battery, energy _ +
stored in the battery is lost. Where does it go?
 We learned last time that an arrangement of
charge is associated with potential energy. One
way to look at it is that the charge arrangement
stores the energy.
+ charges
 Recall the definition of electric potential V = U/q
 For a distribution of charge on a capacitor, a
+
small element dq will store potential energy dU
= V dq 1.5 V
 Thus, the energy stored by charging a capacitor battery
from charge 0 to q is _
1 q q2 1
U   q dq   2 CV 2
C 0 2C + charges

October 10, 2007

 Capacitors Store Energy
 Another way to think about the stored energy is to
consider it to be stored in the electric field itself.
 The total energy in a parallel plate capacitor is
 A
U  12 CV 2  0 V 2
2d
 The volume of space filled by the electric field in the
capacitor is vol = Ad, so the energy density is
2
U  A V 
u  0 V 2  12  0  
vol 2dAd d 
 
 But V    E  ds  Ed for a parallel plate capacitor,
so
u  12  0 E 2 Energy stored in electric field

October 10, 2007

How much energy is stored in the Earth’s atmospheric
electric field?
(Order of magnitude estimate)
atmosphere E  100 Vm  10 2
20 km
h 1
U   0 E 2  Volume
Earth 2
R
Volume  4R 2 h
Volume  4 (6 106 ) 2 (2 104 )  8.6 1018 m 3
1
R = 6x106 m U  (10 11 )(10 2 )(8.6  1018 )
2
U  4.3 1011 J
This energy is renewed daily by the sun. Is this a lot? World consumes
about 1018 J/day.
The total solar influx is 200 Watts/m2 This is 1/2000 of
Usun  200  3.14(6 106 )  2 1016 J s  2 10 21 J day the solar flux.

U Usun  2 10 10

Only an infinitesimal fraction gets converted to electricity.
 What Changes?
5. A parallel plate capacitor is connected to a battery of
voltage V. If the plate separation is decreased, which of
the following increase?
I. Capacitance of capacitor
A. II, III and IV.
B. I, IV, V and VI. II. Voltage across capacitor
C. I, II and III. III. Charge on capacitor
D. All except II. IV. Energy stored on capacitor
E. All increase.
V. Electric field magnitude
0 A between plates
C
q  CV d VI. Energy density of E field

U  12 CV 2 u  12  0 E 2

October 10, 2007

 Dielectrics
 You may have wondered why we write 0 Dielectric Dielectric
Material Constant Strength
(permittivity of free space), with a little zero  (kV/mm)
subscript. It turns out that other materials
Air 1.00054 3
(water, paper, plastic, even air) have different
Polystyrene 2.6 24
permittivities  = 0. The  is called the
Paper 3.5 16
dielectric constant, and is a unitless number.
For air,  = 1.00054 (so  for air is for our Transformer Oil 4.5
purposes the same as for “free space.”) Pyrex 4.7 14

 In all of our equations where you see 0, you Ruby Mica 5.4

can substitute 0 when considering some Porcelain 6.5

other materials (called dielectrics). Silicon 12

 The nice thing about this is that we can Germanium 16

increase the capacitance of a parallel plate Ethanol 25

capacitor by filling the space with a dielectric: Water (20º C) 80.4

Water (50º C) 78.5
 0 A
C   C Titania Ceramic 130
d
Strontium 310 8
Titanate October 10, 2007
 What Happens When You Insert a
Dielectric?
 With battery attached, V=const, so  With battery disconnected, q=const,
more charge flows to the capacitor so voltage (for given q) drops.

q  CV q
V
C

q  CV q
V 
C

October 10, 2007

 What Does the Dielectric Do?
 A dielectric material is made of molecules.
 Polar dielectrics already have a dipole moment (like
the water molecule).
 Non-polar dielectrics are not naturally polar, but
actually stretch in an electric field, to become polar.
 The molecules of the dielectric align with the applied
electric field in a manner to oppose the electric field.
 This reduces the electric field, so that the net electric
field is less than it was for a given charge on the
plates.
 This lowers the potential (case b of the previous
slide).
 If the plates are attached to a battery (case a of the
previous slide), more charge has to flow onto the
plates.
October 10, 2007
 What Changes?
6. Two identical parallel plate capacitors are connected in
series to a battery as shown below. If a dielectric is
inserted in the lower capacitor, which of the following
increase for that capacitor?

A. I and III. I. Capacitance of capacitor

B. I, II and IV. II. Voltage across capacitor
C. I, II and III.
III. Charge on capacitor
D. All except II.
E. All increase. IV. Energy stored on capacitor C
V

 0 A q2 1  C
q  CV C U  2 CV 2
d 2C

October 10, 2007

 A Closer Look
 Insert dielectric
 Capacitance goes up by 
qq’
 Charge increases
C V
 Charge on upper plate comes from upper V
capacitor, so its charge also increases.
 Since q’ = CV1 increases on upper
C
q’
capacitor, V1 must increase on upper  C V
capacitor.
 Since total V = V1 + V2 = constant, V2 must
decrease.

October 10, 2007

 Dielectrics and Gauss’ Law
 Gauss’ Law holds without modification, but
notice that the charge enclosed by our
gaussian surface is less, because it includes
the induced charge q’ on the dielectric.
 For a given charge q on the plate, the charge
enclosed is q – q’, which means that the
electric field must be smaller. The effect is to
weaken the field.
 When attached to a battery, of course, more
charge will flow onto the plates until the
electric field is again E0.

October 10, 2007

 Summary
 Capacitance says how much charge is on an q  CV
arrangement of conductors for a given potential.
 Capacitance depends only on geometry
 Parallel Plate Capacitor
Cylindrical Capacitor  A L ab

C  0 C  2 0 C  4 0 C  4 0 R
 Spherical Capacitor d ln(b / a ) ba
 Isolated Sphere
 Units, F (farad) = C2/Nm or C/V (note 0 = 8.85 pF/m)
 Capacitors in parallel in series
n
n 1 1
Ceq   C j
C
 
j 1 C j
j 1 eq

 Energy and energy density stored by capacitor

U  12 CV 2 u  12  0 E 2

 Dielectric constant increases capacitance due to induced,

opposing field. C   C  is a unitless number.
October 10, 2007