1. Physics 6B Capacitors Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

2. Basic Formulas for capacitors:
Definition of capacitance:
The standard unit for C is the Farad.
Formula relating voltage across plates to the electric field strength for a parallel-plate capacitor:
Energy stored in a capacitor:
Diagram of a parallel-plate capacitor
Voltage Source + _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ d E
Capacitors in Parallel:
Voltage across C1 and C2 must be equal.
Charge on each may be different.
Capacitors in Series:
Voltage across C1 and C2 may be different.
Charge on each must be equal. C1 C1 C2
Shortcut – works for any pair of capacitors in series. C2
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

3. Example: A uniform electric field is established by connecting the plates of a parallel-plate capacitor to a 12-volt battery. (a) If the plates are separated by 0.75cm, what is the magnitude of the electric field in the capacitor? (b) A charge of x 10-6 C moves from the positive plate to the negative plate. Find the change in electric potential energy for this charge.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ +
0.75 cm
12 V + _
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

4. Example: A uniform electric field is established by connecting the plates of a parallel-plate capacitor to a 12-volt battery. (a) If the plates are separated by 0.75cm, what is the magnitude of the electric field in the capacitor? (b) A charge of x 10-6 C moves from the positive plate to the negative plate. Find the change in electric potential energy for this charge.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
For a parallel-plate capacitor we have a very simple formula relating the voltage to the electric field inside.
V = E∙d +
0.75 cm
12 V + _
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

5. Bonus Question: Which direction does the E-field point?
Example: A uniform electric field is established by connecting the plates of a parallel-plate capacitor to a 12-volt battery. (a) If the plates are separated by 0.75cm, what is the magnitude of the electric field in the capacitor? (b) A charge of x 10-6 C moves from the positive plate to the negative plate. Find the change in electric potential energy for this charge.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
For a parallel-plate capacitor we have a very simple formula relating the voltage to the electric field inside.
V = E∙d +
0.75 cm
12 V + _
Bonus Question: Which direction does the E-field point?
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

6. Example: A uniform electric field is established by connecting the plates of a parallel-plate capacitor to a 12-volt battery. (a) If the plates are separated by 0.75cm, what is the magnitude of the electric field in the capacitor? (b) A charge of x 10-6 C moves from the positive plate to the negative plate. Find the change in electric potential energy for this charge.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
For a parallel-plate capacitor we have a very simple formula relating the voltage to the electric field inside.
V = E∙d + E
0.75 cm
12 V + _
Bonus Question: Which direction does the E-field point? Downward (away from + charge and toward - )
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

7. For part (b) we need to remember what exactly voltage means.
Example: A uniform electric field is established by connecting the plates of a parallel-plate capacitor to a 12-volt battery. (a) If the plates are separated by 0.75cm, what is the magnitude of the electric field in the capacitor? (b) A charge of x 10-6 C moves from the positive plate to the negative plate. Find the change in electric potential energy for this charge.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
For a parallel-plate capacitor we have a very simple formula relating the voltage to the electric field inside.
V = E∙d + E
0.75 cm
12 V + _
Bonus Question: Which direction does the E-field point? Downward (away from + charge and toward - )
For part (b) we need to remember what exactly voltage means.
Each volt of potential difference represents 1 Joule of energy for each Coulomb of charge. So if we multiply the voltage and the charge, we get the change in the energy.
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

8. For part (b) we need to remember what exactly voltage means.
Example: A uniform electric field is established by connecting the plates of a parallel-plate capacitor to a 12-volt battery. (a) If the plates are separated by 0.75cm, what is the magnitude of the electric field in the capacitor? (b) A charge of x 10-6 C moves from the positive plate to the negative plate. Find the change in electric potential energy for this charge.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
For a parallel-plate capacitor we have a very simple formula relating the voltage to the electric field inside.
V = E∙d + E
0.75 cm
12 V + _
Bonus Question: Which direction does the E-field point? Downward (away from + charge and toward - )
For part (b) we need to remember what exactly voltage means.
Each volt of potential difference represents 1 Joule of energy for each Coulomb of charge. So if we multiply the voltage and the charge, we get the change in the energy. So our answer is:
Note that the answer is negative in this case. This is because we have a postive charge moving with the E-field. As a general rule, if the charge is moving in the direction that you expect the E-field to push it, then it is losing potential energy and gaining kinetic energy.
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

9. What is the mass of the charge and its final kinetic energy?
Suppose the charge from the previous problem is released from rest at the positive plate and that it reaches the negative plate with speed 3.4 m/s.
What is the mass of the charge and its final kinetic energy?
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

10. What is the mass of the charge and its final kinetic energy?
Suppose the charge from the previous problem is released from rest at the positive plate and that it reaches the negative plate with speed 3.4 m/s.
What is the mass of the charge and its final kinetic energy?
For this one, just remember that when the positive charge is moving with the field, it is picking up kinetic energy as it loses potential energy.
We just calculated the amount in the previous problem.
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

11. What is the mass of the charge and its final kinetic energy?
Suppose the charge from the previous problem is released from rest at the positive plate and that it reaches the negative plate with speed 3.4 m/s.
What is the mass of the charge and its final kinetic energy?
For this one, just remember that when the positive charge is moving with the field, it is picking up kinetic energy as it loses potential energy.
We just calculated the amount in the previous problem.
We can now calculate the mass from our definition of kinetic energy.
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

12. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

13. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
These capacitors are in series.
Use the formula to find the equivalent capacitance:
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

14. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
These capacitors are in series.
Use the formula to find the equivalent capacitance:
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge:
Ceq 6V
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

15. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
These capacitors are in series.
Use the formula to find the equivalent capacitance:
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge:
Ceq 6V
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

16. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
These capacitors are in series.
Use the formula to find the equivalent capacitance:
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge:
Ceq 6V
This is the charge on the (fictional) equivalent capacitor. However, by looking at the original diagram we see that the charge on each of the series capacitors must be equal to this total (there is nowhere else for the charges to go).
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

17. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
These capacitors are in series.
Use the formula to find the equivalent capacitance:
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge:
Ceq 6V
This is the charge on the (fictional) equivalent capacitor. However, by looking at the original diagram we see that the charge on each of the series capacitors must be equal to this total (there is nowhere else for the charges to go).
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

18. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
These capacitors are in series.
Use the formula to find the equivalent capacitance:
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge:
Ceq 6V
This is the charge on the (fictional) equivalent capacitor. However, by looking at the original diagram we see that the charge on each of the series capacitors must be equal to this total (there is nowhere else for the charges to go).
Rearranging our basic formula and applying it to each individual capacitor gives us the voltage across each:
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

19. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
These capacitors are in series.
Use the formula to find the equivalent capacitance:
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge:
Ceq 6V
This is the charge on the (fictional) equivalent capacitor. However, by looking at the original diagram we see that the charge on each of the series capacitors must be equal to this total (there is nowhere else for the charges to go).
Rearranging our basic formula and applying it to each individual capacitor gives us the voltage across each:
Notice that the total voltage adds up to 6V, as it should.
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

20. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
These capacitors are in series.
Use the formula to find the equivalent capacitance:
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge:
Ceq 6V
This is the charge on the (fictional) equivalent capacitor. However, by looking at the original diagram we see that the charge on each of the series capacitors must be equal to this total (there is nowhere else for the charges to go).
Rearranging our basic formula and applying it to each individual capacitor gives us the voltage across each:
Notice that the total voltage adds up to 6V, as it should.
Our final calculations use a formula for stored energy:
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

21. Circuit Example #1:
Find the voltage across, and energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=6μF; C2=2μF C2 C1 6V
These capacitors are in series.
Use the formula to find the equivalent capacitance:
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge:
Ceq 6V
This is the charge on the (fictional) equivalent capacitor. However, by looking at the original diagram we see that the charge on each of the series capacitors must be equal to this total (there is nowhere else for the charges to go).
Rearranging our basic formula and applying it to each individual capacitor gives us the voltage across each:
Notice that the total voltage adds up to 6V, as it should.
Our final calculations use a formula for stored energy:
Note that the total energy adds up to 27μJ. This is what we would get if we used the single equivalent capacitance of 1.5 μF and the total battery voltage of 6V.
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

22. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF C2 6V C3
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

23. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF
We need to find the equivalent capacitance for this circuit, then work backwards to find the energy in each capacitor. C2 6V C3
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

24. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF
We need to find the equivalent capacitance for this circuit, then work backwards to find the energy in each capacitor. C2 6V C3
The first step is to recognize that C1 and C2 are in parallel to each other, so they are equivalent to a single capacitor with capacitance C1+C2=3µF. Draw a new diagram for this:
C1+C2 6V C3
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

25. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF
We need to find the equivalent capacitance for this circuit, then work backwards to find the energy in each capacitor. C2 6V C3
The first step is to recognize that C1 and C2 are in parallel to each other, so they are equivalent to a single capacitor with capacitance C1+C2=3µF. Draw a new diagram for this:
C1+C2
Now we see that the remaining capacitors are in series, so we use the reciprocal formula to find the equivalent capacitance. Draw a new diagram: 6V C3
Ceq
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge: 6V
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

26. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF
We need to find the equivalent capacitance for this circuit, then work backwards to find the energy in each capacitor. C2 6V C3
The first step is to recognize that C1 and C2 are in parallel to each other, so they are equivalent to a single capacitor with capacitance C1+C2=3µF. Draw a new diagram for this:
C1+C2
Now we see that the remaining capacitors are in series, so we use the reciprocal formula to find the equivalent capacitance. Draw a new diagram: 6V C3
Ceq
The new diagram has just a single capacitor. Now we can use the definition of capacitance to find the charge: 6V
Next we will work backwards to find the information about each individual capacitor:
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

27. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF C2
It may help to set up a table like this to keep track of all the info. 6V
Capac.
Voltage
Charge
Energy C1
1µF C2
2µF C3
3µF
Ceq
1.5µF 6V
9µC C3
C1+C2 6V C3
This is what we know so far.
The next step is to realize that the charge on C3 must be the total charge. Take a look at the middle diagram (or the original one) and convince yourself that all the charge must land on C3.
Ceq 6V
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

28. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF C2
It may help to set up a table like this to keep track of all the info. 6V
Capac.
Voltage
Charge
Energy C1
1µF C2
2µF C3
3µF
9µC
Ceq
1.5µF 6V C3
C1+C2 6V C3
This is what we know so far.
The next step is to realize that the charge on C3 must be the total charge. Take a look at the middle diagram (or the original one) and convince yourself that all the charge must land on C3.
So we can fill in the charge on C3.
Now that we have the charge we can find the voltage as well:
Ceq 6V
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

29. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF C2
It may help to set up a table like this to keep track of all the info. 6V
Capac.
Voltage
Charge
Energy C1
1µF C2
2µF C3
3µF 3V
9µC
Ceq
1.5µF 6V C3
C1+C2 6V C3
This is what we know so far.
The next step is to realize that the charge on C3 must be the total charge. Take a look at the middle diagram (or the original one) and convince yourself that all the charge must land on C3.
So we can fill in the charge on C3.
Now that we have the charge we can find the voltage as well:
Ceq 6V
We can also find the energy stored in C3, as well as the total.
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

30. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF C2
It may help to set up a table like this to keep track of all the info. 6V
Capac.
Voltage
Charge
Energy C1
1µF C2
2µF C3
3µF 3V
9µC
13.5µJ
Ceq
1.5µF 6V
27µJ C3
C1+C2 6V C3
This is what we know so far.
Next we have to figure out the info for C1 and C2.
These are parallel capacitors, so they should have the same voltage.
Ceq 6V
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

31. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF C2
It may help to set up a table like this to keep track of all the info. 6V
Capac.
Voltage
Charge
Energy C1
1µF C2
2µF C3
3µF 3V
9µC
13.5µJ
Ceq
1.5µF 6V
27µJ C3
C1+C2 6V C3
This is what we know so far.
Next we have to figure out the info for C1 and C2.
These are parallel capacitors, so they should have the same voltage.
We know the total voltage is 6V, and since the voltage on C3 (in series with the others) is 3V, that leaves 3V left for C1 and C2. The basic rule is that the voltages have to add up when you make a complete loop around the circuit.
So let’s fill in those boxes in the table:
Ceq 6V
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

32. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF C2
It may help to set up a table like this to keep track of all the info. 6V
Capac.
Voltage
Charge
Energy C1
1µF 3V C2
2µF C3
3µF
9µC
13.5µJ
Ceq
1.5µF 6V
27µJ C3
C1+C2 6V C3
This is what we know so far.
Next we have to figure out the info for C1 and C2.
These are parallel capacitors, so they should have the same voltage.
We know the total voltage is 6V, and since the voltage on C3 (in series with the others) is 3V, that leaves 3V left for C1 and C2. The basic rule is that the voltages have to add up when you make a complete loop around the circuit.
So let’s fill in those boxes in the table:
For completeness let’s find the charge on C1 and C2 as well:
Ceq 6V
Notice that the charge adds up to the total, as it should.
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

33. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF C2
It may help to set up a table like this to keep track of all the info. 6V
Capac.
Voltage
Charge
Energy C1
1µF 3V
3µC C2
2µF
6µC C3
3µF
9µC
13.5µJ
Ceq
1.5µF 6V
27µJ C3
C1+C2 6V C3
Finally we can calculate the energy stored in C1 and C2, and we are done.
Ceq 6V
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB

34. Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
Circuit Example #2:
Find the energy stored in each capacitor in the circuit shown.
C1=1μF; C2=2μF; C3=3μF C2
It may help to set up a table like this to keep track of all the info. 6V
Capac.
Voltage
Charge
Energy C1
1µF 3V
3µC
4.5µJ C2
2µF
6µC
9µJ C3
3µF
9µC
13.5µJ
Ceq
1.5µF 6V
27µJ C3
C1+C2 6V C3
Finally we can calculate the energy stored in C1 and C2, and we are done.
Ceq 6V
Note that we can check our answers to make sure they add up. The total energy provided by the battery should match up with the sum of the energies of the 3 individual capacitors, and it does.
Prepared by Vince Zaccone
For Campus Learning Assistance Services at UCSB