Chapter 26A - Capacitance

Maximum Charge on a Conductor

A battery establishes a difference of potential that can
pump electrons e- from a ground (earth) to a conductor

Battery Conductor
Earth - - - - - -
-
e- e --
-
- -
---

There is a limit to the amount of charge that a

conductor can hold without leaking to the air.
There is a certain capacity for holding charge.
Capacitor

Capacitors are devices

that are charged by
current. When
discharging, it acts like a
battery that induces
current in a circuit. The
charging and discharging
processes are essential in
today’s electronics
Capacitor
Capacitors in circuits are illustrated by the following
figures:

Vertical lines (straight or curved) represent the conductors,

and the horizontal lines represent wires connected to
either conductor. One common way to charge a capacitor
is to connect these two wires to opposite terminals of a
battery.
 1. Structure - two conductors
separated by an insulator (or a
Capacitor vacuum) form a capacitor
2. Charging - when electrons
are transferred from one
conductor to the other, this is
called charging a capacitor.
3. Equal and opposite charges
- two conductors have charges
with equal magnitude and
opposite sign
4. Net charge - the net charge
on the capacitor as a whole
remains zero
 Capacitance
The capacitance C of a conductor is defined as the ratio of
the charge Q on the conductor to the potential V
produced.
Capacitance is a measure of the ability of a capacitor to
store energy

Battery Conductor
Earth - - - - - -
-
e- e- - - Q, V - -
---
Q
Capacitance: C = ; Units : Coulombs per volt
V
 Capacitance in Farads
One farad (F) is the capacitance C of a conductor that
holds one coulomb of charge for each volt of potential.
Q coulomb (C)
C= ; farad (F) =
V volt (V)

Example: When 40 C of charge are placed on a con-

ductor, the potential is 8 V. What is the capacitance?

Q 40  C
C= = C = 5 F
V 8V
Capacitors in Vacuum

- A simple capacitor
consist of two parallel
conducting plates each
with area A and
separated by a
distance d
- The separation
distance is relatively
small in comparison
with their dimensions
Capacitors in Vacuum

- The electric field is

localized in the region
between the plates when
they are charged.
- The charges on the
plates are uniformly
distributed over their
opposing surfaces. The
electric field between the
plates is uniform.
- This configurations is a
parallel-plate capacitor
 Capacitance and Shapes
The charge density on a surface is significantly
affected by the curvature. The density of charge
is greatest where the curvature is greatest.

+ + + + ++ kQm + + + + ++
+ ++
+
+ + + + + ++ Em = 2 + + + + + +
r

Leakage (called corona discharge) often occurs

at sharp points where curvature r is greatest.
 Parallel Plate Capacitance
+Q Area A For these two
parallel plates:
-Q d Q V
C= and E =
V d

You will recall from Gauss’ law that E is also:

 Q Q is charge on either
E= =
0 0 A plate. A is area of plate.

V Q Q A
E= = And C = = 0
d 0 A V d
Capacitance
 Example 3. The plates of a parallel
plate capacitor have an area of 0.4 m2
and are 3 mm apart in air. What is the
capacitance?
Q A
C = = 0 A
V d
0.4 m2
-12 C2
(8.85 x 10 Nm 2
)(0.4 m 2 )
C=
(0.003 m)
d 3 mm
C = 1.18 nF
 Applications of Capacitors
A microphone converts sound waves into an
electrical signal (varying voltage) by changing d.

Changing d Changing
A ++
C = 0 ++ Area
d -- ++
- + A
--
Q --
d V= Variable
Microphone C
Capacitor

The tuner in a radio is a variable capacitor. The changing

area A alters capacitance until desired signal is obtained.
Capacitance of Spherical Conductor
At surface of sphere:
Capacitance, C
kQ kQ r
E= 2 ; V=
r r +Q
1
Recall: k= E and V at surface.
4 0
kQ Q Q
And: V = = Capacitance: C =
r 4 0 r V
Q Q
C= = C = 4 0 r
V Q 4 0 r
 Example 1: What is the capacitance of
a metal sphere of radius 8 cm?
Capacitance, C Capacitance: C = 4r
r
+Q
C = 4 (8.85 x 10-12 C Nm2 )(0.08 m)

r = 0.08 m C = 8.90 x 10-12 F

Note: The capacitance depends only on physical para-

meters (the radius r) and is not determined by either
charge or potential. This is true for all capacitors.
Example 1 (Cont.): What charge Q is
needed to give a potential of 400 V?
Capacitance, C C = 8.90 x 10-12 F
r Q
+Q C = ; Q = CV
V
r = 0.08 m Q = (8.90 pF)(400 V)

Total Charge on Conductor: Q = 3.56 nC

Note: The farad (F) and the coulomb (C) are

extremely large units for static electricity. The SI
prefixes micro , nano n, and pico p are often used.
Dielectrics
In general, capacitors have a dielectric, a non-
conducting material, between the conducting plates.
The usual capacitor has long strips of metal foil or
plates, separated by plastic sheets.
Dielectrics
- Dielectrics resolve issue of making sure there is no
contact between two large metal sheets with
relatively small separation distance
- A maximum possible potential difference between
the capacitor plates can be achieved using
dielectrics. This phenomenon is called dielectric
breakdown
- The capacitance given the same dimensions is
greater when there is a dielectric material between
the plates than just vacuum.
 Dielectric Strength
The dielectric strength of a material is that
electric intensity Em for which the material
becomes a conductor. (Charge leakage.)
Em varies considerably with
r
physical and environmental
Q
conditions such as pressure,
humidity, and surfaces. Dielectric

For air: Em = 3 x 106 N/C for spherical surfaces

and as low as 0.8 x 106 N/C for sharp points.
Example 2: What is the maximum charge
that can be placed on a spherical surface
one meter in diameter? (R = 0.50 m)
2
Maximum Q kQ Em r
Em = 2 ; Q=
r r k
Air
Q (3 x 106 N C)(0.50 m) 2
Em = 3 x 106 N/C Q= 9 Nm 2
9 x 10 C2

Maximum charge in air: Qm = 83.3 C

This illustrates the large size of the coulomb as a

unit of charge in electrostatic applications.
 Advantages of Dielectrics

• Smaller plate separation without contact.

• Increases capacitance of a capacitor.
• Higher voltages can be used without
breakdown.
• Often it allows for greater mechanical strength.