In electromagnetism and electronics, inductance is the property of a conductor by which a change

in current flowing through it induces (creates) a voltage (electromotive force) in both the conductor
itself (self-inductance)[1] and in any nearby conductors (mutual inductance).[1]
These effects are derived from two fundamental observations of physics: First, that a steady current
creates a steady magnetic field (Oersted's law),[2] and second, that a time-varying magnetic field
induces voltage in nearby conductors (Faraday's law of induction).[3]According to Lenz's law,[4] a
changing electric current through a circuit that contains inductance induces a proportional voltage,
which opposes the change in current (self-inductance). The varying field in this circuit may also
induce an e.m.f. in neighbouring circuits (mutual inductance).
The term 'inductance' was coined by Oliver Heaviside in February 1886.[5] It is customary to use the
symbol L for inductance, in honour of the physicist Heinrich Lenz.[6][7] In the SI system the
measurement unit for inductance is the henry (symbol: H), named in honor of the scientist who
discovered inductance independently of, but not before, Faraday, Joseph Henry.[8]

Capacitors
Capacitance is typified by a parallel plate
arrangement and is defined in terms of charge
storage:

where

Q = magnitude ofcharge stored on

each plate.

V = voltageapplied to the plates.

Charge on Series Capacitors

Since charge cannot be added or taken away from the conductor between
series capacitors, the net charge there remains zero. As can be seen from the
diagram, that constrains the charge on the two capacitors to be the same in a
DC situation. This charge Q is the charge you get by calculating the
equivalent capacitance of the series combination and multiplying it by the
applied voltage V.

You store less charge on series capacitors than you

would on either one of them alone with the same
voltage!
Does it ever make sense to put capacitors in series? You get less capacitance and less
charge storage than with either alone. It is sometimes done in electronics practice
because capacitors have maximum working voltages, and with two "600 volt
maximum" capacitors in series, you can increase the working voltage to 1200 volts.
Parallel Plate Capacitor
Show

The capacitance of flat, parallel metallic plates of area A and separation d is given by
the expression above where:
= permittivity of space and

k = relative permittivity of the dielectric material between the

plates.

k=1 for free space, k>1 for all media, approximately =1 for air.

The Farad, F, is the SI unit for capacitance, and from the definition of capacitance is
seen to be equal to a Coulomb/Volt.
Any of the active parameters in the expression below can be calculated by clicking on
it. Default values will be provided for any parameters left unspecified, but all
parameters can be changed. After editing data, you must click on the desired
parameter to calculate; values will not automatically be forced to be consistent

Capacitance is the ability of a body to store an electrical charge. Any object that can be electrically
charged exhibits capacitance. A common form of energy storage device is a parallel-plate capacitor.
In a parallel plate capacitor, capacitance is directly proportional to the surface area of the conductor
plates and inversely proportional to the separation distance between the plates. If the charges on the
plates are +q and q respectively, and V gives the voltage between the plates, then the
capacitance C is given by

which gives the voltage/current relationship

The capacitance is a function only of the geometry (including their distance) of the
conductors and the permittivity of the dielectric. For many dielectrics, the permittivity, and
thus the capacitance is independent of the potential difference between the conductors and
the total charge on them.
The SI unit of capacitance is the farad (symbol: F), named after the English
physicist Michael Faraday. A 1 farad capacitor, when charged with 1 coulomb of electrical
charge, has a potential difference of 1 volt between its plates.[1] Historically, a farad was
regarded as an inconveniently large unit, both electrically and physically. Its subdivisions
were invariably used, namely the microfarad, nanofarad and picofarad. More recently,
technology has advanced such that capacitors of 1 farad and greater can be constructed in
a structure little larger than a coin battery (so-called 'supercapacitors'). Such capacitors are
principally used for energy storage replacing more traditional batteries.

The energy (measured in joules) stored in a capacitor is equal to the work done to charge it.
Consider a capacitor of capacitance C, holding a charge +q on one plate and q on the
other. Moving a small element of charge dq from one plate to the other against the potential
difference V = q/C requires the work dW:

where W is the work measured in joules, q is the charge measured in coulombs and C is
the capacitance, measured in farads.
The energy stored in a capacitor is found by integrating this equation. Starting with an
uncharged capacitance (q = 0) and moving charge from one plate to the other until the
plates have charge +Q and Q requires the work W:

Nearly everyone is familiar with the static charge

generated by friction a phenomena formally
known as triboelectricity. Walking across a
carpeted floor, combing one's hair on a dry day, or
pulling transparent tape off a roll all result in the
separation of small amounts of positive and
negative charge. The earliest known written
account of charging by friction goes back as far as
the Sixth Century BCE when the Greek
scientist Thales of Miletus (635543 BCE) noted
that amber rubbed with animal fur acquired the
ability to pick up small bits of material. For roughly
the next 2300 years, wherever electricity was
studied, somebody had to take two different

materials and rub them together to create

separated islands of positive and negative charge.
Fast forward to Eighteenth Century Europe, an era
known as the Enlightenment, a time and place
characterized by the expansion of culture and the
acquisition of knowledge. Among the empowered
and educated classes of the Enlightenment,
science was a fashionable pursuit and lectures on
scientific subjects were well attended. Those given
by electricians were among the most popular. (The
word electrician originally referred to a person
knowledgeable in the nature of static electricity.)
Electricity was a hot topic in the Eighteenth Century
and much exploration was being done with
electrostatic machines that generated charge by
friction.
While friction is an easy and inexpensive means to
separate charge for use in electric experiments, the
amounts of charge available are quite small. If
electricity was going to be anything other than an
irritating side effect of walking across a carpet,

some means for increasing the amount of charge

available for experiments had to be found.
The first device for storing charge was discovered
in the winter of 174546 by two electricians working
independently: Ewald von Kleist (17151759), dean
of the cathedral at Kammin, Prussia (now Kamie,
Poland), and Pieter van Musschenbroek (1692
1761), professor of mathematics and physics at the
University of Leyden in Holland (now spelled
Leiden). The device built by von Kleist consisted of
a medicine bottle partly filled with water and sealed
with a cork. A nail was pushed through the cork
and into the water. Holding the bottle in one hand,
the nail was then brought in contact with the
terminal of an electrostatic machine allowed to
acquire some charge. When von Kleist reached for
the nail to remove it from the stopper while still
holding the bottle the separated charges were able
to reunite by flowing through his body. Van
Musschenbroek's device and experiences with it
were almost the same as von Kleist's, but with

three major exceptions. First, a visiting

student Andreas Cunus (17121788) made the
shocking discovery not van Musschenbroek
himself; second, he made many improvements to
the device (most importantly, removing the water
and wrapping the inside and outside of the jar with
metallic foil); and third, he wrote his colleagues to
tell them all about it.
As I see that this sheet is not completely
filled, I would like to tell you about a new but
terrible experiment, which I advise you never
to try yourself, nor would I, who experienced
it and survived by the grace of God, do it
again for all the kingdom of France. I was
engaged in displaying the powers of
electricity. An iron tube AB was suspended
from blue-silk lines; a globe, rapidly spun
and rubbed, was located near A, and
communicated its electrical power to AB.
From a point near the other end B a brass
wire hung, in my right hand I held the globe
D, partly filled with water, into which the
wire dipped, with my left hand E I tried to
draw the snapping sparks that jump from the

iron tube to the finger, thereupon my right

hand F was struck with such force that my
hole body quivered just like someone hit by
lightning. Generally the blow does not break
the glass, no matter how thin it is, nor does
it knock the hand away; but the arm and
entire body are affected so terribly I can't
describe it. I thought I was done for. But here
are some peculiarities. When the globe D is
made of English glass there is no effect, or
almost none; German glass must be used,
Dutch doesn't work either; D does not have
to be a globe, a drinking glass will do; nor
does it matter if it is large or small, thick or
thin, tall or short, or of any particular shape;
but it must be made of German or Bohemian
glass. The globe D that almost killed me was
of very thin white glass, five inches in
diameter.
Most
other
note-worthy
phenomena I here omit. Suffice it that the
man should stand directly on the ground;
that the same one who holds the globe
should draw the spark; the efect is small if
two men participate, one grasping the globe
and the other pulling the sparks. If the globe
D rests on metal lying on a wooden table,
and someone touches the metal with one

hand and elicits sparks with the other, he

also will be struck with an immense force.
I've found out so much about electricity that
I've reached the point where I understand
nothing and can explain nothing. Well, I've
filled this sheet up pretty well.
Pieter van Musschenbroek, 1746
Never say "never try" something especially
something "terrible" because then everyone will
want to try it. Soon scientists across the Continent
(and Benjamin Franklin in America) were
constructing their own new and improved electric
charge storage devices.
Raw notes
Refinement of design: filled with water, ink,
vinegar, melted butter, wine or beer, and finally
nothing (foil). A glass vessel partly coated,
inside and out, with metal foil and the Leyden
jar (de Leidsche flesch) was born.

 Applications by Benjamin Franklin (17061790)

United States
Such a device is known today as a capacitor.
theory

Informal definition of capacitance

Formal
definition
of
capacitance.
The capacitance (C) of an electrostatic system is
the ratio of the quantity of charge separated (Q) to
the potential difference applied (V).
Q

C=

The SI unit of capacitance is the farad [F], which is

equivalent to the coulomb/volt [C/V].

One farad is
capacitance.

F=
generally

V
considered

large

Energy storage
Q

U=

V dq =

dq =

Since Q = CV, and also since C = Q/V

U=

1
2

CV =
2

1
2

QV

Henry Cavendish (1731-1810) determined the

factors affecting capacitance. The capacitance (C)
of a parallel plate capacitor is
directly proportional to the area (A) of one
plate,
inversely proportional to the separation (d)
between the plates, and
directly proportional to the dielectric constant
(, kappa) of the material between the plates.

 A
0

C=

Derivation

Example #1
Problem:
Consider two plates separated by d=1.5 cm , where the electric field between them is
100 V/m, and the charge on the plates is 30.0 C. What is the capacitance?
Solution:
The Capacitance is:

2.0E-5 F

Example #2
Problem:
Consider a capacitor made of two 0.05 m2 plates separated by 0.5 mm. If the
capacitance is 3.0 nf, what is the relative permeability, k, of the material between the
plates?
Solution:

3.4

Example #3
Problem: part a.)
What is the capacitance of the following segment of a circuit?

DATA: C1=C2=C3=3.0 f
Solution:
The capacitance of the two in parallel is C23=C2+C3. The capacitance of the entire circuit
is:

*** change C_34 to C_23 ***

2.0 (F)
part b.)
If a voltage Vab = 6.0 V is applied, what is the charge on each capacitor?
Solution:
The charge on the first capacitor is the same as the charge on the whole combination,
since it is the only thing the left-hand wire is connected to. This charge can be found
from the capacitance.

There is a charge Q1 on the opposite side of the first capacitor, which must have come
equally from the next capacitors since they are equal to each other.
Therefore, Q2=Q3=(1/2)Q1.
Q1 = 12 C,

Q2 = Q3 = 6.0 C

part c.)
What is the voltage across each capacitor?
Solution:
Use Vi=Qi/Ci. Check when you are done that the voltages add up to 6.0 V.
V1 = 4.0 V,

V2 = V3 = 2.0 V

Example #4
Problem:
A capacitor has a charge of 3.0 nC when the voltage across the capacitor is 12 V. What
is the energy stored in the capacitor?
Solution:
The energy is:

18 E-9 J
Capacitors in Series and Parallel
In a parallel combination of capacitances C 1 and C2 , the
voltage V across each capacitor is the same, but the
charges q1 and q2 on each capacitor are different.

Even though two capacitors are connected in parallel across it, the seat of emf
sees a single equivalent capacitance CP:

q1 q2
or
V
q q
CP 1 2 or
V V
CP C1 C2
CP

Example

A 3.0 F and a 5.0 F capacitor are connected in parallel across a 12 V battery.

a. Find the charge on each capacitor.

q1 C1V1; q1 3.0 F 12 V ;

q1 36 C

q2 C2V2 ; q2 5.0 F 12 V ; q2 60 C

b. Find the equivalent capacitance.

CP = C1 + C2; CP = 3.0 F + 5.0 F; CP = 8.0 F

In a series combination of capacitances C1 and C2 , the same amount of charge q is

on the plates of each capacitor, but the voltages V 1 and V2 across each capacitor are
different.
Even though two capacitors are connected in series with it, the seat of emf sees a
single equivalent capacitance CP, which may be determined as follows.

V V1 V2
q
q
q

;
CS C1 C2

1
1
1

CS C1 C2

An example follows on the next page.

Example

A 3.0 F and a 5.0 F capacitor are connected in series with a 12 V battery.

a. Find the equivalent capacitance.

1
1
1

;
CS 3.0 F 5.0 F

1
53
15 F

; CS
; CS 1.9 F
CS 15 F
8

b. Find the charge on each capacitor.

q = CSV: q = (1.9 F)(12 V); q = 23 C

c. Find the potential drop (or voltage) across each capacitor.

V1

q
23 C
: V1
;
C1
3.0 F

V2

q
23 C
: V2
; V1 4.6 V
C2
5.0 F

V1 7.7 V

Capacitance Networks
It is possible to use the formulas for capacitors connected in series and parallel to
find the equivalent capacitance of more elaborate capacitance networks.

Example (Chapter 20 problem 87)

Determine the equivalent capacitance between A

and B for the group of capacitors in the drawing.

87.
REASONING Our approach to this problem is to deal with the arrangement
in parts. We will combine separately those parts that involve a series connection
and those that involve a parallel connection.

SOLUTION The 24, 12, and 8.0-F capacitors are in series. Using Equation
20.19, we can find the equivalent capacitance for the three capacitors:

1
1
1
1

Cs 24 F 12 F 8.0 F

or

Cs 4.0 F

This 4.0-F capacitance is in parallel with the 4.0- F capacitance already

shown in the text diagram. Using Equation 20.18, we find that the equivalent
capacitance for the parallel group is

Cp 4.0 F + 4.0 F = 8.0 F

This 8.0-F capacitance is between the 5.0 and the 6.0- F capacitances and
in series with them. Equation 20.19 can be used, then, to determine the equivalent
capacitance between A and B in the text diagram:

1
1
1
1

Cs 5.0 F 8.0 F 6.0 F

or

Cs 2.0 F