Introduction to Capacitors

Just like the Resistor, the Capacitor or sometimes referred to as a Condenser is a passive device, and
one which stores energy in the form of an electrostatic field which produces a potential (Static Voltage)
across its plates. In its basic form a capacitor consists of two parallel conductive plates that are not
connected but are electrically separated either by air or by an insulating material called the Dielectric. When
a voltage is applied to these plates, a current flows charging up the plates with electrons giving one plate a
positive charge and the other plate an equal and opposite negative charge. his flow of electrons to the
plates is known as the Charging Current and continues to flow until the voltage across the plates (and
hence the capacitor) is equal to the applied voltage !c. "t this point the capacitor is said to be fully charged
and this is illustrated below.
Capacitor Construction
he parallel plate capacitor is the simplest form of capacitor and its capacitance value is fi#ed by the equal
area of the plates and the distance or separation between them. "ltering any two of these values alters the
the value of its capacitance and this forms the basis of operation of the variable capacitors. "lso, because
capacitors store the energy of the electrons in the form of an electrical charge on the plates the larger the
plates and$or smaller their separation the greater will be the charge that the capacitor holds for any given
voltage across its plates.
%y applying a voltage to a capacitor and measuring the charge on the plates, the ratio of the charge & to the
voltage ! will give the capacitance value of the capacitor and is therefore given as' ( ) &$! this equation
can also be re*arranged to give the more familiar formula for the quantity of charge on the plates as' & ) (
# !
he unit of capacitance is the Farad (abbreviated to +) named after the %ritish physicist ,ichael +araday
and is defined as a capacitor has the capacitance of One Farad when a charge of One Coulomb is stored
on the plates by a voltage of One volt. (apacitance, ( is always positive and has no negative units.
-owever, the +arad is a very large unit of measurement to use on its own so sub*multiples of the +arad are
generally used such as micro*farads, nano*farads and pico*farads, for e#ample.
Units of Capacitance
,icrofarad (.+) /.+ ) /$/,000,000 ) 0.00000/ ) /0
*1
+

2anofarad (n+) /n+ ) /$/,000,000,000 ) 0.00000000/ ) /0
*3
+

4icofarad (p+) /p+ ) /$/,000,000,000,000 ) 0.00000000000/ ) /0
*/5
+
"s well as the overall si6e of the conductive plates and their distance or spacing apart from each other,
another factor which affects the overall capacitance of the device is the type of dielectric material being
used. In other words the 74ermittivity7 (8) of the dielectric. he conductive plates are generally made of a
metal foil or a metal film deposited on an insulating dielectric material. his dielectric material can be made
from a number of insulating materials or combinations of these materials with the most common types used
being9 paper, plastic, ceramic, glass, oil, or even air.
he factor by which the dielectric increases the capacitance compared with air is known as the Dielectric
Constant. he permittivity of the dielectric between the plates is then the product of the permittivity of free
space (8o) and the relative permittivity (8r) and is given as'
Permittivity
ypical units of dielectric permittivity, 8 are' "ir ) /, 4aper ) 5.:, ;lass ) :, mica ) <, etc.
,odern capacitors can be classified according to the characteristics and properties of their insulating
dielectric'
=ow =oss, -igh >tability such as ,ica, =ow*? (eramic, 4olystyrene.

,edium =oss, ,edium >tability such as 4aper, 4lastic +ilm, -igh*? (eramic.

4olari6ed (apacitors such as @lectrolyticAs, antalumAs.
here are a large variety of capacitor styles and types, each one having its own particular advantage,
disadvantage and characteristics. o include all types would make this tutorial very large so I shall limit them
in the ne#t tutorial to the most commonly used types.
Types of Capacitors
here are a very large variety of different types of (apacitors available in the market place and each one
has its own set of characteristics and applications from small delicate trimming capacitors up to large power
metal can type capacitors used in high voltage power correction and smoothing circuits. =ike resistors, there
are also variable types of capacitors which allow us to vary their capacitance value for use in radio or
7frequency tuning7 type circuits. @ither way, capacitors play an important part in electronic circuits so here
are a few of the more 7(ommon7 types of capacitors available.
1 Dielectric
Dielectric Capacitors are usually of the variable type such as used for tuning transmitters, receivers and
transistor radios. hey have a set of fi#ed plates and a set of moving plates that mesh with the fi#ed plates
and the position of the moving plates with respect to the fi#ed plates determines the overall capacitance.
he capacitance is generally at ma#imum when the plates are fully meshed. -igh voltage type tuning
capacitors have relatively large spacings or air*gaps between the plates with breakdown voltages reaching
many thousands of volts.
!ariable Capacitor "ymbols
"s well as the continuously variable types, preset types are also available called Trimmers. hese are
generally small devices that can be adBusted or 7pre*set7 to a particular capacitance with the aid of a
screwdriver and are available in very small capacitances of /00p+ or less and are non*polari6ed.
# Film Capacitors
Film Capacitors are the most commonly available of all types of capacitors, consisting of a relatively large
family of capacitors with the difference being in their dielectric properties. hese include polyester (,ylar),
polystyrene, polypropylene, polycarbonate, metalli6ed paper, teflon etc. +ilm type capacitors are available in
capacitance ranges from :p+ to /00u+ depending upon the actual type of capacitor and its voltage rating.
+ilm capacitors also come in an assortment of shapes and case styles which include'
Wrap C +ill (Dval C Eound) * where the capacitor is wrapped in a tight plastic tape and
have the ends filled with epo#y to seal them.

@po#y (ase (Eectangular C Eound) * where the capacitor is encased in a moulded
plastic shell which is then filled with epo#y.

,etal -ermetically >ealed (Eectangular C Eound) * where the capacitor is encased
in a metal tube or can and again sealed with epo#y.
with all the above case styles available in both "#ial and Eadial =eads.
@#amples of film capacitors are the rectangular metalli6ed film and cylindrical film C foil types as shown
below.
Radial $ead Type
%&ial $ead Type
he film and foil types of capacitors are made from long thin strips of thin metal foil with the dielectric
material sandwiched together which are wound into a tight roll and then sealed in paper or metal tubes.
hese film types require a much thicker dielectric film to reduce the risk of tears or punctures in the film, and
is therefore more suited to lower capacitance values and larger case si6es.
,etalli6ed foil capacitors have the conductive film metalli6ed sprayed directly onto each side of the dielectric
which gives the capacitor self*healing properties and can therefore use much thinner dielectric films. his
allows for higher capacitance values and smaller case si6es for a given capacitance. +ilm and foil capacitors
are generally used for higher power and more precise applications.
' Ceramic Capacitors
Ceramic Capacitors or Disc Capacitors as they are generally called, are made by coating two sides of a
small porcelain or ceramic disc with silver and are then stacked together to make a capacitor. +or very low
capacitance values a single ceramic disc of about F*1mm is used. (eramic capacitors have a high dielectric
constant (-igh*?) and are available so that relatively high capacitances can be obtained in a small physical
si6e. hey e#hibit large non*linear changes in capacitance against temperature and as a result are used as
de*coupling or by*pass capacitors as they are also non*polari6ed devices. (eramic capacitors have values
ranging from a few picofarads to one or two microfarads but their voltage ratings are generally quite low.
(eramic types of capacitors generally have a F*digit code printed onto their body to identify their
capacitance value. +or e#ample, /0F would indicate /0 # /0Fp+ which is equivalent to /0,000 p+ or
0.0/.+. =ikewise, /0G would indicate /0 # /0Gp+ which is equivalent to /00,000 p+ or 0./.+ and so on.
=etter codes are sometimes used to indicate their tolerance value such as' J ) :H, ? ) /0H or , ) 50H
etc.
( )lectrolytic Capacitors
)lectrolytic Capacitors are generally used when very large capacitance values are required. -ere instead
of using a very thin metallic film layer for one of the electrodes, a semi*liquid electrolyte solution in the form
of a Belly or paste is used which serves as the second electrode (usually the cathode). he dielectric is a
very thin layer of o#ide which is grown electro*chemically in production with the thickness of the film being
less than ten microns. his insulating layer is so thin that it is possible to make large value capacitors of a
small si6e. he maBority of electrolytic types of capacitors are Polari*ed, that is the voltage applied to the
capacitor terminals must be of the correct polarity as an incorrect polari6ation will break down the insulating
o#ide layer and permanent damage may result.
)lectrolytic Capacitors are generally used in I( power supply circuits to help reduce the ripple voltage or
for coupling and decoupling applications. @lectrolyticAs generally come in two basic forms9 %luminum
)lectrolytic and Tantalum )lectrolytic capacitors.
)lectrolytic Capacitor
1 %luminium )lectrolytic Capacitors
here are basically two types of %luminium )lectrolytic Capacitor, the plain foil type and the etched foil
type. he thickness of the aluminium o#ide film and high breakdown voltage give these capacitors very high
capacitance values for their si6e. he etched foil type differs from the plain foil type in that the aluminium
o#ide on the anode and cathode foils has been chemically etched to increase its surface area and
permittivity. his gives a smaller si6ed capacitor than a plain foil type of equivalent value but has the
disadvantage of not being able to withstand high "( currents compared to the plain type. "lso their
tolerance range is quite large up to 50H. @tched foil electrolyticAs are best used in coupling, I( blocking and
by*pass circuits while plain foil types are better suited as smoothing capacitors in power supplies. ypical
values of capacitance range from /u+ to G<000u+. "luminium @lectrolyticAs are 7polari6ed7 devices so
reversing the applied voltage on the leads will cause the insulating layer within the capacitor to be destroyed
along with the capacitor, 7so be aware7.
# Tantalum )lectrolytic Capacitors
Tantalum )lectrolytic Capacitors or Tantalum +eads, are available in both wet (foil) and dry (solid)
electrolytic types with the dry or solid tantalum being the most common. >olid tantalums use manganese
dio#ide as their second terminal and are physically smaller than the equivalent aluminium capacitors. he
dielectric properties of tantalum o#ide is also much better than those of aluminium o#ide giving a lower
leakage currents and better capacitance stability which makes them suitable for timing applications. "lso
tantalum capacitors although polari6ed, can tolerate being connected to a reverse voltage much more easily
than the "luminium types but are rated at much lower working voltages. ypical values of capacitance range
from G<n+ to G<0u+.
%luminium , Tantalum )lectrolytic Capacitor
Capacitor Characteristics
here are a bewildering array of characteristics associated with the humble capacitor so here are Bust a few
of the more important ones.
1 -or.ing !oltage/ 0!n1
he -or.ing !oltage (Wvdc, Wvac) is the ma#imum continuous voltage that can be applied to the
capacitor without failure during its working life. I( and "( values are usually not the same as the "( value
refers to the r.m.s. value. (ommon working I( voltages are /0!, /1!, 5:!, F:!, 1F!, /00!, /10!, 5:0!,
G00! and /000! and are printed onto the body of the capacitor.
# Tolerance/ 0231
"s with resistors, (apacitors also have a tolerance rating e#pressed as a plus*or*minus value either in
4icofarads (Jp+) for low value capacitors generally less than /0p+ or as a percentage (JH) for higher value
capacitors generally higher than /0p+. (apacitors are rated according to how near their actual values are to
the rated capacitance with coloured bands or letters used to indicated the actual tolerance. he most
common tolerance for capacitors is :H or /0H but some electrolytic capacitors are rated as high as 50H.
' $ea.age Current
he dielectric used inside the capacitor is not a perfect insulator resulting in a very small current flowing or
7leaking7 through the dielectric when applied to a constant supply voltage. his small current flow in the
region of micro amps (.") is called the $ea.age Current. his lea.age current is a result of electrons
physically making their way through the dielectric medium, around its edges or across the leads. he
7leakage current7 of a capacitor is sometimes called the 7insulation resistance7 and can be found using
DhmAs law. he film$foil type capacitor has e#tremely low leakage currents while the leakage current of
aluminium electrolyticAs increases with temperature.
( -or.ing Temperature/ 0T1
(hanges in temperature around the capacitor affect the value of the capacitance because of changes in the
dielectric. If the air or surrounding temperature becomes to hot or to cold the capacitance value of the
capacitor may change so much as to affect the correct operation of the circuit. he normal working range for
most capacitors is *F0K( to L/5:K( with nominal voltage ratings given for a working temperature of no more
than L<0K(. ;enerally electrolyticAs can not be used below about */0K(, as the electrolyte Belly free6es.
4 Temperature Coefficient/ 0TC1
he Temperature Coefficient of a capacitor is the change in its capacitance with temperature e#pressed
linearly as parts per million per degree centigrade (44,$K(), or as a percent change over a specified
temperature range. >ome capacitors are non linear and increase their value as the temperature rises giving
a temperature coefficient that is e#pressed as a positive (p.t.c.). >ome capacitors decrease their value as
the temperature rises giving a temperature coefficient that is e#pressed as a negative (n.t.c.). +or
e#ample J/0H, or LM0H $ *50H etc. -owever, some capacitors do not change their value and remain
constant over a certain temperature range, such capacitors have a 6ero temperature coefficient.
It is also possible to connect a capacitor with a positive temperature coefficient in series or parallel with a
capacitor having a negative temperature coefficient the net result being that the two opposite effects will
cancel each other out over a certain range of temperatures. "nother useful application of temperature
coefficient capacitors is to use them to cancel out the effect of temperature on other components within a
circuit, such as inductors or resistors etc.
5 Polari*ation
Polari*ation generally refers to the @lectrolytic type capacitors but mainly the "luminium @lectrolyticAs, with
regards to their connection. he maBority are polari6ed types, that is the voltage connected to the capacitor
terminals must have the correct polarity, i.e. Lve to Lve and *ve to *ve. Incorrect polari6ation can cause the
o#ide layer inside the capacitor to break down resulting in very large currents flowing through the device.
he maBority of electrolytic capacitors have their *ve terminal clearly marked with a black stripe or black
arrows down the side to prevent any incorrect connection. >ome electrolyticAs have their metal can
connected to the negative terminal but high voltage types have their can insulated with the electrodes being
brought out to separate spade or screw terminals for safety. "lso, when using electrolyticAs in power supply
smoothing circuits care should be taken to prevent the sum of the peak I( value and "( ripple voltage from
becoming a reverse voltage.
6 )7uivalent "eries Resistance/ 0)"R1
he )7uivalent "eries Resistance is the "( impedance of the capacitor when used at high frequencies
and includes the resistance of the dielectric, plate and terminal leads. @>E acts like a resistor (less than
0./N) in series with the capacitor (hence the name @quivalent >eries Eesistance), and is frequency
dependant. he @>E of electrolytic capacitors increase over time as their electrolyte dries out. (apacitors
with very low @>E ratings are available.
Capacitance and Charge
We saw in the previous tutorials that a (apacitor consists of two parallel conductive plates (usually a metal)
which are prevented from touching each other (separated) by an insulating material called the 7dielectric7.
We also saw that when a voltage is applied to these plates an electrical current flows charging up one plate
with a positive charge with respect to the supply voltage and the other plate with an equal and opposite
negative charge. hen, a capacitor has the ability of being able to store an electrical charge & (units in
Coulombs) of electrons. When a capacitor is charged there is a potential difference between its plates, and
the larger the area of the plates and$or the smaller the distance between them (known as separation) the
greater will be the charge that the capacitor can hold.
he (apacitors ability to store this electrical charge (&) between its plates is proportional to the applied
voltage, ! for a capacitor of known capacitance in +arads, capacitance ( is always positive. he greater the
applied voltage the greater will be the charge on the plates. =ikewise, the smaller the applied voltage the
smaller the charge. herefore, the actual charge & on the plates of the capacitor can be calculated as'
Capacitor Charge



Onits' & measured in (oulombs, ! in volts and ( in +arads.
he ability of a capacitor to store a charge gives it its capacitance value. (apacitance can also be
determined from the dimensions of the plates and the properties of the dielectric. >o another way of
e#pressing the capacitance of a capacitor is9
where " is the area of the plates in square metres, d is the distance between them and 8 (epsilon) is the
value of the dielectric constant.
Parallel Plate Capacitor
he capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor is proportional to the area " and inversely proportional to the
distance, d between the plates. he capacitance can be increased by inserting a dielectric which has a
relative permittivity or dielectric constant greater than that of air with typical values of epsilon 8 being'
"ir ) /, 4aper ) 5.:, ;lass ) :, ,ica ) < etc.
Charging , Discharging a Capacitor
(onsider the following circuit.
"ssume that the capacitor is fully discharged and the switch connected to the capacitor has Bust been moved
to position ". he voltage across the /00uf capacitor is 6ero at this point and a charging current i begins to
flow charging up the capacitor until the voltage across the plates is equal to the /5v supply voltage. he
charging current stops flowing and the capacitor is said to be 7fully*charged7.
hen, !c ) !s ) /5v.
Dnce the capacitor is 7fully*charged7 in theory it will maintain its state of voltage charge even when the
supply voltage has been disconnected as they act as a sort of temporary storage device. -owever, while this
may be true of an 7ideal7 capacitor, a real capacitor will slowly discharge itself over a long period of time due
to the internal leakage currents flowing through the dielectric. his is an important point to remember as
large value capacitors connected across high voltage supplies can still maintain a significant amount of
charge even when the supply voltage is switched D++.
If the switch was disconnected at this point, the capacitor would maintain its charge indefinitely, but due to
internal leakage currents flowing across its dielectric the capacitor would very slowly begin to discharge itself
as the electrons passed through the dielectric. he time taken for the capacitor to discharge down to F<H of
its supply voltage is known as its Time Constant.
If the switch is now moved from position " to position %, the fully charged capacitor would start to discharge
through the lamp now connected across it, illuminating the lamp until the capacitor was fully discharged as
the element of the lamp has a resistive value. he brightness of the lamp and the duration of illumination
would ultimately depend upon the capacitance value of the capacitor and the resistance of the lamp (t )
(#E). he larger the value of the capacitor the brighter and longer will be the illumination of the lamp as it
could store more charge.
)&ample 8o1
(alculate the charge in the above capacitor circuit.
then the charge on the capacitor is /.5 millicoulombs.
The Farad
We now know that the ability of a capacitor to store a charge gives it its capacitance value (, which has the
unit of the Farad/ F. %ut the farad is a e#tremely large unit on its own making it impractical to use so
submultiples or fractions of the standard +arad unit are used instead. he prefi#es used in electronic
formulas and component values are the micro (.), nano (n) and the pico (p). +or e#ample9
"ub9units of the Farad

(onvert the following capacitances a) ##nF to uF, b) :#uF to nF, c) 44:pF to uF.
a) 55n+ ) 0.055u+
b) 0.5u+ ) 500n+
c) ::0p+ ) 0.000::u+
)nergy
When a capacitor charges up from the power supply connected to it, energy in ;oules is stored in the
capacitor and is given by the formula9

so the energy stored in the capacitor circuit above is9
Capacitor Colour Codes
;enerally, the values of (apacitance, !oltage or olerance are marked onto the body of the capacitors.
-owever, when the value of the capacitance is of a decimal value problems arise with the marking of a
7Iecimal 4oint7 as it could easily no be noticed resulting in a misreading of the actual value. Instead letters
such as p (pico) or n (nano) are used in place of the decimal point to identify its position. +or e#ample, a
capacitor can be labelled as, nG< ) 0.G<n+, Gn< ) G.<n+ or G<n ) G<n+.
o reduce the confusion regarding letter, numbers and decimal points, an International colour coding
scheme was developed many years ago as a simple way of identifying capacitor values and tolerances. It
consists of coloured bands (in spectral order) whose meanings are illustrated below'
Capacitor Colour Code Table
Colour
Digit
%
Digit
+
<ultiplier
D
Tolerance
T = 1:pf
Tolerance
T > 1:pf
Temperature
Coefficient
TC
-or.ing
voltage
!
%lack 0 0 #/ J 50H J 5.0p+
%rown / / #/0 J /H J 0./p+ *FF#/0
*1

Eed 5 5 #/00 J 5H J 0.5:p+ *<:#/0
*1
5:0v
Drange F F #/000 J FH */:0#/0
*1

Pellow G G #/0k L/00H,*0H *550#/0
*1
G00v
;reen : : #/00k J :H J 0.:p+ *FF0#/0
*1
/00v
%lue 1 1 #/m *G<0#/0
*1
1F0v
!iolet < < *<:0#/0
*1

;rey M M #0.0/ LM0H,*50H
White 3 3 #0./ J /0H

=ike resistors, small capacitors such as film or disk types conform to the %>/M:5 >tandard where the
colours are replaced by a letter or number coded system. he code consists of 5 or F numbers and an
optional tolerance letter code. Where a two number code is used the value of the capacitor only is given in
picofarads (ie. G< ) G< p+). " three letter code consists of the two value digits and a multiplier much like a
resistor colour code (ie. G</ ) G<Q/0 ) G<0p+). hree digit codes are often accompanied by an additional
tolerance letter code as given below.
Capacitor Tolerance $etter Codes Table
=etter % ( I + ; J ? , R
olerance
( S/0p+ Jp+ 0./ 0.5: 0.: / 5
( T/0p+ JH 0.: / 5 : /0 50 LM0*50
(onsider the capacitor below'
he capacitor on the left is of a ceramic disc type capacitor that has the
code G<FJ printed onto its body. his translates to'
G<p+ Q /,000 (F 6eroAs) ) G<,000 p+ , G<n+ or 0.0G< u+
the J indicates a tolerance of L$* :H
hen Bust by using number and =etter codes on the body of the capacitor we can easily determine the value
of its capacitance either in 4icofaradAs, 2ano+arads or ,icrofarads and these codes are given in the
following table along with the equivalent capacitances.
Capacitor $etter Codes Table
Picofarad
0pF1
8anofarad
0nF1
<icrofarad
0uF1
Code
Picofarad
0pF1
8anofarad
0nF1
<icrofarad
0uF1
Code
/0 0.0/ 0.0000/ /00 G<00 G.< 0.00G< G<5
/: 0.0/: 0.0000/: /:0 :000 :.0 0.00: :05
55 0.055 0.000055 550 :100 :.1 0.00:1 :15
FF 0.0FF 0.0000FF FF0 1M00 1.M 0.001M 1M5
G< 0.0G< 0.0000G< G<0 /0000 /0 0.0/ /0F
/00 0./ 0.000/ /0/ /:000 /: 0.0/: /:F
/50 0./5 0.000/5 /5/ 55000 55 0.055 55F
/F0 0./F 0.000/F /F/ FF000 FF 0.0FF FFF
/:0 0./: 0.000/: /:/ G<000 G< 0.0G< G<F
/M0 0./M 0.000/M /M/ 1M000 1M 0.01M 1MF
550 0.55 0.00055 55/ /00000 /00 0./ /0G
FF0 0.FF 0.000FF FF/ /:0000 /:0 0./: /:G
G<0 0.G< 0.000G< G</ 500000 500 0.5 5:G
:10 0.:1 0.000:1 :1/ 550000 550 0.55 55G
1M0 0.1M 0.0001M 1M/ FF0000 FF0 0.FF FFG
<:0 0.<: 0.000<: <:/ G<0000 G<0 0.G< G<G
M50 0.M5 0.000M5 M5/ 1M0000 1M0 0.1M 1MG
/000 /.0 0.00/ /05 /000000 /000 /.0 /0:
/:00 /.: 0.00/: /:5 /:00000 /:00 /.: /::
5000 5.0 0.005 505 5000000 5000 5.0 50:
5500 5.5 0.0055 555 5500000 5500 5.5 55:
FF00 F.F 0.00FF FF5 FF00000 FF00 F.F FF:
Capacitors in Parallel
(apacitors are said to be connected 7in parallel7 when both of their terminals are respectively connected to
each terminal of the other capacitor or capacitors. he voltage (!c) across all the capacitors connected in
parallel is -@ >",@. hen, parallel capacitors have a Common !oltage supply across them and'
!(/ ) !(5 ) !(F ) !"% ) /5!
In the following circuit capacitor, (/ and capacitor, (5 are connected in parallel between points " and %.
When capacitors are connected in parallel the total capacitance in the circuit is equal to the sum of all the
individual capacitors added together. hat is'
Parallel Capacitors )7uation

Where all the capacitors are given in the same capacitance units, either u+, n+ or p+.
)&ample 8o1
aking the three capacitor values from the above, we can calculate the total circuit capacitance as'
( ) (/ L (5 L (F ) 0./u+ L 0.5u+ L 0.Fu+ ) 0.1u+
Dne important point to remember about parallel connected capacitor circuits, the total capacitance (() of
any two or more capacitors connected together in parallel will always be ?R)%T)R than the value of the
largest capacitor in the chain and in our e#ample above ( ) 0.1u+ were as the largest value capacitor is
only 0.Fu+.
When G, :, 1 or even more capacitors are connected together the total capacitance of the circuit ( would
still be the sum of all the individual capacitors added together and the total capacitance of a parallel circuit is
always greater than the highest value capacitor.
he total charge stored by the circuit is also the sum of the individual values and is given as'
& ) &/ L &5 L &F L etc....
Where9 & ) (! , (apacitance # !oltage.
"lso the total current flowing the circuit is also the sum of the individual currents and is given as'
I ) I/ L I5 L IF L etc....
)&ample 8o#
(alculate the combined capacitance of the following capacitors when they are connected together in parallel
combination' a) 5 capacitors, each of G<n+ and b) " capacitor of G<0n+ connected to a capacitor of /u+.
a1 Total Capacitance/
( ) (/ L (5 ) G<n+ L G<n+ ) 3Gn+ or 0.03Gu+
b1 Total Capacitance/
( ) (/ L (5 ) G<0n+ L /u+
therefore, ( ) G<0n+ L /000n+ ) /G<0n+ or /.G<u+
Capacitors in "eries
(apacitors are said to be 7connected in series7 when they are effectively 7daisy chained7 together in a single
line. he charging current (Ic) flowing through the capacitors is -@ >",@ for the same amount of time so
each capacitor stores the same amount of charge regardless of its capacitance and'
& ) &/ ) &5 ) &F etc.....
In the following circuit, capacitors, (/, (5 and (F are connected together in series between points " and %.
In the parallel circuit we saw that the total capacitance, ( of the circuit was equal to the sum of all the
individual capacitors added together. In a series connected circuit the equivalent capacitance ( is
calculated differently. -ere, the reciprocal (/$() of the individual capacitors are added together (Bust like
resistors in parallel) instead of the capacitors themselves, for e#ample.
"eries Capacitors )7uation

)&ample 8o1
aking the three capacitor values from the above, we can calculate the total circuit capacitance as'
Dne important point to remember about series connected capacitor circuits, is that the total circuit
capacitance (() of any capacitors connected together in series will always be $)"" than the value of the
smallest capacitor and in our e#ample above ( ) 0.0::u+ were as the value of the smallest capacitor is
only 0./u+.
his reciprocal method of calculation can be used for calculating any number of capacitors connected
together in a single series network. If however, there are only two capacitors connected together in series,
then a much simpler and quicker formula can be used and is given as'

In the above series circuit the I( supply voltage, ! between points " and % is divided between all three
capacitors with the smaller capacitor having the largest voltage drop across it and vice versa. he voltage
across the capacitors, !/, !5 and !F is inversely proportional to its capacitance and for the three capacitors
in our e#ample above is given as'
Where & is the total charge across the circuit and is given as' ( # !, (which for above is 0.11 micro*
coulombs).
)&ample 8o#
+ind the overall capacitance and the individual voltages of two capacitors connected together in series when
connected to a /5! d.c. supply.
a) 5 capacitors, each of G<n+.
b) " capacitor of G<0n+ and a capacitor of /u+.
a1 Total Capacitance/
!oltage across Capacitors/
b1 Total Capacitance/
!oltage across Capacitors/
Capacitors in %C Circuits
When capacitors are connected across a direct current I( supply voltage they become charged to the value
of the applied voltage, acting like temporary storage devices and maintain or hold this charge indefinitely as
long as the supply voltage is present. Iuring this charging process, a charging current, I will flow into the
capacitor opposing any changes to the voltage at a rate that is equal to the rate of change of the electrical
charge on the plates. his charging current can be defined as' I ) (d!$dt. Dnce the capacitor is 7fully*
charged7 the capacitor blocks the flow of any more electrons onto its plates as they have become saturated.
-owever, if we apply an alternating current or "( supply, the capacitor will alternately charge and discharge
at a rate determined by the frequency of the supply. hen capacitors in "( circuits are constantly charging
and discharging.
We know that the flow of electrons through the capacitor is directly proportional to the rate of change of the
voltage across the plates. hen, we can see that capacitors in "( circuits like to pass current when the
voltage across itsplates is constantly changing with respect to time such as in "( signals, but it does not like
to pass current when the applied voltage is of a constant value such as in I( signals. (onsider the circuit
below.
%C Capacitor Circuit
In the purely capacitive circuit above, the capacitor is connected directly across the "( supply voltage. "s
the supply voltage increases and decreases, the capacitor charges and discharges with respect to this
change. We know that the charging current is directly proportional to the rate of change of the voltage
across the plates with this rate of change at its greatest as the supply voltage crosses over from its positive
half cycle to its negative half cycle or vice versa at points, 0
o
and /M0
o
along the sine wave. (onsequently,
the least voltage change occurs when the "( sine wave crosses over at its ma#imum or minimum peak
voltage level, (!m). "t these positions in the cycle the ma#imum or minimum currents are flowing through
the capacitor circuit and this is shown below.
%C Capacitor Phasor Diagram
"t 0
o
the rate of change of the supply voltage is increasing in a positive direction resulting in a ma#imum
charging current at that instant in time. "s the applied voltage reaches its ma#imum peak value at 30
o
for a
very brief instant in time the supply voltage is neither increasing or decreasing so there is no current flowing
through the circuit. "s the applied voltage begins to decrease to 6ero at /M0
o
, the slope of the voltage is
negative so the capacitor discharges in the negative direction. "t the /M0
o
point along the line the rate of
change of the voltage is at its ma#imum again so ma#imum current flows at that instant and so on. hen we
can say that for capacitors in "( circuits the instantaneous current is at its minimum or 6ero whenever the
applied voltage is at its ma#imum and likewise the instantaneous value of the current is at its ma#imum or
peak value when the applied voltage is at its minimum or 6ero. +rom the waveform above, we can see that
the current is leading the voltage by /$G cycle or 30
o
as shown by the vector diagram. hen we can say that
in a purely capacitive circuit the alternating voltage lags the current by 30
o
.
We know that the current flowing through the capacitor is in opposition to the rate of change of the applied
voltage but Bust like resistors, capacitors also offer some form of resistance against the flow of current
through the circuit, but with capacitors in "( circuits this "( resistance is known as Reactance or more
commonly in capacitor circuits, Capacitive Reactance, so capacitors in "( circuits suffer from Capacitive
Reactance.
Capacitive Reactance
Capacitive Reactance in a purely capacitive circuit is the opposition to current flow in "( circuits only. =ike
resistance, reactance is also measured in DhmAs but is given the symbol U to distinguish it from a purely
resistive value. "s reactance can also be applied to Inductors as well as (apacitors it is more commonly
known as Capacitive Reactance for capacitors in "( circuits and is given the symbol Uc so we can actually
say that Capacitive Reactance is Resistance that varies with frequency. "lso, capacitive reactance
depends on the value of the capacitor in +arads as well as the frequency of the "( waveform and the
formula used to define capacitive reactance is given as'
Capacitive Reactance

Where'
+ is in -ert6 and ( is in +arads.
5V+ can also be e#pressed collectively as the ;reek letter Omega, W to denote an angular frequency.
+rom the capacitive reactance formula above, it can be seen that if either of the Fre7uency or Capacitance
where to be increased the overall capacitive reactance would decrease. "s the frequency approaches
infinity the capacitors reactance would reduce to 6ero acting like a perfect conductor. -owever, as the
frequency approaches 6ero or I(, the capacitors reactance would increase up to infinity, acting like a very
large resistance. his means then that capacitive reactance is 7Inversely proportional7 to frequency for any
given value of (apacitance and this shown below'
Capacitive Reactance against Fre7uency
he Eeactance value of a
(apacitor decreases as
the +requency across it
increases.
)&ample 8o1
+ind the current flowing in a circuit when a Gu+ capacitor is connected across a MM0v, 10-6 supply.
"ummary of Capacitors
" (apacitor consists of two metal plates separated by a dielectric.
he dielectric can be made of many insulating materials such as air, glass, paper, plastic etc.
" (apacitor is capable of storing electrical charge and energy.
he higher the value of capacitance, the more charge the (apacitor can store.
he larger the area of the plates or the smaller their separation the more charge the (apacitor
can store.
" (apacitor is said to be +ully (harged when the voltage across its plates equals the supply
voltage.
he symbol for electrical charge is & and its unit is the (oulomb.
@lectrolytic (apacitors are polari6ed. hey have a Lve and a *ve terminal.
(apacitance is measured in Farads, which is a very large unit so <icrofarad (u+),
8anofarad (n+) and Picofarad (p+) are generally used.
(apacitors that are daisy chained together in a line are said to be connected in >eries.
(apacitors that have both of their respective terminals connected to each terminal of another
capacitor are said to be connected in 4arallel.
4arallel connected (apacitors have a common supply voltage across them.
>eries connected (apacitors have a common current flowing through them.
(apacitive reactance is the opposition to current flow in "( circuits.
In "( capacitive circuits the voltage 7lags7 the current by 30
o
.
he basic construction and symbol for a parallel plate capacitor is given as'