Section Four Flashcards
Show the schematic for a polarized vs non-polarized capacitor
polarized
–| (–
Non-polarized
–||–
What does capacitance mean?
More capacitance, more charge stored
Measured in Farads (F)
What is uF
Micro Farads
.000001
What are capacitors made of?
two metal plates and dieletric insulated material
dieletric keeps dc current from flowing between the sheets
The closer the plates are the higher the capacitance
What is it called when a little bit of current leaves a capacitor when it shouldn’t
Leakage current
What is the resistance of a capacitor called?
ESR - Equivalent series Resistance
What is the difference between what the capcitor says it can store vs what it might actually be called?
Tolerance
What does a ceramic capacitor look like in a small circuit?
Little brown blocks with a silver border, this is called SMD
THT is the long legged one
These have lower ESR and lower Leaking
How can you tell the cathode on an electrolitic capacitor?
Gray bar with little rectangles on it
It’s smaller
What happens when a capacitor explodes?
It creates a short circuit and the capacitor will bloat
What are capacitors primarily used for
Quick release of energy
How does electric flow work via a capacitor on a switch
Electricity flows from pos to neg, it get’s stuck in the capacitor, making where it was going (the metal sheet) pos charged, so when you open the switch, the pos charge leaves that and goes to the neg side
How do you calculate the amount of charge a capacitor can hold
Charge (q) = C*V
capacitance * voltage
What does a farad literally measure?
1 farad is the capacitacity to store one unit of energy (coulombs) per every volt
