capacitors

Question 1

What is a capacitor

Answer 1

A capacitor is an electrical component that stores charge on two separated metallic plates

Question 2

What is a dielectric

Answer 2

An insulator placed between the two gaps to prevent the charge from travelling across

Question 3

what happens when a capacitor is connected to a power source

Answer 3

1. positive and negative charges build up on OPPOSITE plates
2. The dielecric (insulating material) stpos charge moving between the two plates so a potential difference is created
3. This creates a uiniform electric field between the plates

Question 4

what is capacitance

Answer 4

amount of charge per unit volume
units - farad

Question 5

combined capacitance in parallel and series

Answer 5

capacitance in parallel
Ctotal = C1 + C2
capacitance in series
1/Ctotal = 1/C1 + 1/C2

Question 6

How can you determine the energy stored by a capacitor from a graph?

Answer 6

Area under the potential difference against charge graph (the work done)
A pd against charge graph always a straight line through the origin for a capacitor