Subject Investigatory Project

2024-25
TOPIC : Charging and discharging
of a Capacitor
Relevant picture to be added

Name : Harshil Aaron Lakra

Register Number:
Class : 12th
Silicon City Academy of Secondary Education

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 CERTIFICATE
OF AUTHENTICITY
THIS IS TO CERTIFY THAT THE PROJECT DONE BY,
NAME
Is a record of authentic work carried out during the period 2024-25.
This work has been done to fulfill the
‘Capacitor (charging and discharging) investigatory Project’
As prescribed by the CBSE Board, in the laboratory.
The afore mentioned has been carried out under the guidelines of our
_____________________teacher Ms. ___________________
I am thankful to Dr. Sumalini B Swamy, Principal of Silicon City Academy of
Secondary Education.

____________________ ___________________ _________________

EXTERNAL EXAMINER TEACHER IN-CHARGE PRINCIPAL

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 ACKNOWLEDGMENT
I express my heartfelt gratitude to all those who have been instrumental in the successful
completion of this Grade XII Physics Investigatory Project. This endeavour has been a significant
learning experience, and I am deeply indebted to the following individuals and institutions:

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to my school, Silicon City of Secondary Education
for providing me with the opportunity to undertake this investigatory project. The support and
guidance of the school faculty have been invaluable throughout this journey.

I am grateful to Ms. ______, my project guide, for their unwavering support, mentorship,
and expertise. Their guidance has been instrumental in shaping the direction of this project and
enhancing its quality.

I express my sincere gratitude to our Principal, Ms. Sumalini B Swamy and our
Coordinators for this opportunity and for providing me with all the facility that was required for
the completion of project.

My heartfelt thanks go to my parents and family for their constant encouragement and
understanding. Their support has been a source of motivation, and I am grateful for their belief in
my abilities.

I would like to express my appreciation to my classmates and friends for their

encouragement, discussions, and constructive feedback. Their insights and diverse perspectives
have enriched the project.

I acknowledge the invaluable role played by various online resources, forums, and open-
source communities. The wealth of information available on the internet has been a crucial asset in
the development and understanding of the project.

In conclusion, I would like to express my sincere thanks to everyone who has played a part,
directly or indirectly, in the successful completion of this investigatory project. Your contributions
have been indispensable, and I am truly grateful for your support.

Harshil Aaron Lakra

12th

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Introduction: -

Capacitance:
A capacitoris a device that stores electrical energy in an electric field. It is a passive electronic
component with two terminals. The effect of a capacitor is known as capacitance.

Formula:
q = CV
q = charge
C = capacitance
V = voltage

Uses of charging and discharging of a capacitor:

1. Timing Circuits:

 Capacitors are widely used in timing applications, where they control the time interval of a
process. By adjusting the resistor and capacitor values, specific time delays can be created.
 Examples include timers in household appliances, blinkers in vehicles, and interval timers in
cameras.

2. Power Supply Smoothing:

 Capacitors help smooth out fluctuations in power supplies by charging up when the voltage
increases and discharging when it drops.
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  This function is critical in devices like computers and audio equipment, where a stable
power supply is necessary.

3. Flash Photography:

 In flash cameras, a capacitor charges over a short period and then quickly discharges,
delivering a burst of energy to the flash bulb. This rapid discharge creates the bright flash
needed for photography.

4. Pulse Generation and Wave Shaping:

 Capacitors, along with resistors and other components, are used to shape pulses and create
specific waveforms in oscillators and function generators.
 These circuits are crucial in communication systems and digital electronics.

5. Signal Filtering:

Capacitors are used in filters to block certain frequencies while allowing others to pass, such as in
audio crossovers, where they help separate high, mid, and low frequencies in speakers.

Aim: -

To verify that 63% charge is stored in a capacitor in a R-C circuit at its time constant and
63% charge remains when capacitor is discharged and hence plot a graph between voltage
and time.

Apparatus:

1. Breadboard

2. 100µF capacitor

3. 1 MΩ resistor

4. Multimeter

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 5. 9V battery

6. Wire stripper, connecting wires, battery connector and stopwatch.

Theory:-
If we go on pouring a liquid into a vessel, the level of the liquid goes on rising this is similar to
charging.

If we drain the liquid from the vessel, the level of liquid goes down which is similar to discharging.

Similarly, if we go on giving charge to a conductor, its potential keeps on rising. Thus:

Charge (Q) ∝ potential (V)

Or

Q = CV … (1)

Here, C is a constant of proportionality and is called the capacitance or capacity of the conductor.

From equation …(1),

C = Q / V … (2)

The capacitance of a conductor is thus defined as the ratio of the charge on it to its potential.

Further, let V = 1, Therefore from Eqn. (1),

Q = C or C = Q.

The capacitance of a conductor is thus numerically equal to the amount of charge required to raise
its potential through unity.

Charging An Discharging Of A Capacitor Through a Resistor:

Consider a circuit having a capacitance C and a resistance R which are joined in series with a
battery of emf ε through a Morse key K as shown in the figure.

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 Charging of capacitor:

When the key is pressed, the capacitor begins to store charge. If at any time during charging, I
is the current through the circuit and Q is the charge on the capacitor, then

Potential difference across resistor = IR, and

Potential difference between the plates of the capacitor = Q/C

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Time Constant:
The dimensions of CR are those of time. Further, if CR < < 1, Q will attain its final value
rapidly and if CR > > 1, it will do so slowly.

Thus, CR determines the rate at which the capacitor charges (or discharges) itself through a
resistance. It is for this reason that the quantity CR is called the time constant or more
appropriately, the capacitive time constant of the circuit.

If t = τ, then from eqn. (4),

Thus, theoretically the charge on the capacitor will attain its maximum value only after infinite
time.

Procedure: -

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Connect all the components in the breadboard as shown in the following picture,

(i) Now take multimeter leads and place them in the two terminals.

(ii) Breadboard: a simple circuit building device used to build temporary circuits
just to test their working. It is very simple to work with as it does not require
any soldering or attachment of components. The components could be just
pushed in the holes and connections could be made easily. A straight line
pattern of holes resembles a wire and the arrangement of these holes are shown
below: -

(iii) Now take the battery and connect its terminals across the terminals of the
capacitor and start the stopwatch. Note the readings at 20sec intervals and write
them down. As time passes by the changing readings will get slowed down and
even after infinite time the capacitor can not be charged up to max voltage. Take
10 readings and if required the 20sec gap could be increased because as the time
passes by the change in voltage becomes smaller and smaller.

(iv) Now let the capacitor be charged up to 460 secs because then it will become
99.99% charged. Now remove the battery and now attach a wire in place of the
battery terminals and again note the multimeter readings changing and record
them.

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 (v) Plot a graph between voltage and time for charging as well as discharging.

2. Observations and calculations: -

Sn Multimeter reading Multimeter reading Time ( in seconds)

o. while charging( in volt) while discharging(in
volt)

1. 0 8.95 0
2. 1.65 7.34 20
3. 3.02 6.00 40
4. 4.11 4.91 60

5. 4.90 4.03 80
6. 5.69 3.30 100 (τ)

7. 6.72 2.21 140

8. 7.00 1.54 180

9. 8.12 0.74 250

10 8.40 0.43 300
.

Graph: -
Plot of voltage v/s time
Time on x-axis and voltage on y-axis For changing

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The original graphs for discharging and charging respectively are:

Calculations: -
Now since the graphs are very much similar to the graphs of charging and discharging of
capacitors.

At τ=100sec, during charging of the capacitor the voltage on the capacitor is 5.69 volt as it is
observed in the experiment. Now using the charging formula: -

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Conclusion:

Hence it is verified experimentally that 63% charge is there on capacitor after time
constant during charging and 63% charge is lost at time constant during discharging.

References:
Google.co.in
Concepts of physics part 2 by H.C. Verma.
Allen JEE physics module-7

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