Learning Goals

Capacitance

Capacitor Combo's

Energy Stored in Capacitors

Dielectric Materials

MU: Potential and Capacitance

WebHW

Notes

Chapters

Home

Mechanical Universe

Viewing Information

Potential and Capacitance:

Benjamin Franklin, the great 18th-century American scientist, who later dabbled in politics, was the first to propose a successful theory of the Leyden Jar. He gave positive and negative charges their names, and invented the parallel plate capacitor. Electrical potential, the potential of charged conductors, equipotentials and capacitance.

Learning Objectives

• Be able to sketch the equipotential surfaces given the electric field in a region.
• Be able to distinguish clearly between electric potential and electric potential energy.
• Know the definition of capacitance and be able to calculate the capacitance for a parallel plate capacitor.
• Be able to state the definition for the energy density for an electric field and discuss the concept of electrostatic field energy.
• Be able to calculate the electrostatic potential energy for a system of point charges.
• Be able to calculate the electric potential for various charge distributions.