Q1. A 7.

7 F capacitor is charged by a 125-V battery (a) and then is disconnected from

the battery. When this capacitor is then connected (b) to a second (initially

uncharged) capacitor, the final voltage on each capacitor is 15V. What is the value of

After the first capacitor is disconnected from the battery, the total charge must remain constant. The
voltage across each capacitor must be the same when they are connected together, since each
capacitor plate is connected to a corresponding plate on the other capacitor by a constant-potential
connecting wire. Use the total charge and the final potential difference to find the value of the second
capacitor.

Q2. It takes 15 J of energy to move a 0.20-mC charge from one plate of a 15 F capacitor to
the other. How much charge is on each plate?

Q3. Dry air will break down if the electric field exceeds about What amount
of charge can be placed on a capacitor if the area of each plate is

We assume there is a uniform electric field between the capacitor plates, so that and then
Q4. How strong is the electric field between the plates of a 0.8 F air-gap capacitor if they
are 2.0 mm apart and each has a charge of 92 C ?

We assume there is a uniform electric field between the capacitor plates, so that and then

Q5. Three conducting plates, each of area A, are connected as shown. (a) Are the two
capacitors thus formed connected in series or in parallel? (b) Determine C as a function of

and A. Assume is much less than the dimensions of the plates. (c) The

middle plate can be moved (changing the values of and ), so as to vary the
capacitance. What are the minimum and maximum values of the net capacitance?

(a) The two capacitors are in parallel . Both capacitors have their high voltage plates at the same
potential (the middle plate), and both capacitors have their low voltage plates at the same
potential (the outer plates, which are connected).
(b) The capacitance of two capacitors in parallel is the sum of the individual capacitances.

(c) Let Then We see that as or

(which is ). Of course, a real capacitor would break down as the plates got

too close to each other. To find the minimum capacitance, set and solve for
Q6. A 0.5 15 F and a 0.8 15 F capacitor are connected in series to a 9.0-V battery.
Calculate (a) the potential difference across each capacitor and (b) the charge on each. (c)
Repeat parts (a) and (b) assuming the two capacitors are in parallel.

When the capacitors are connected in series, they each have the same charge as the net capacitance.

(a)

(b)

When the capacitors are connected in parallel, they each have the full potential difference.

(c)

Q7. In the figure below, suppose (a) Determine the equivalent

capacitance between points a and b. (b) Determine the charge on each capacitor and the
potential difference across each in terms of V.
(a) From the diagram, we see that C1 and C2 are in series. That combination is in parallel with C3,
and then that combination is in series with C4. Use those combinations to find the
equivalent capacitance. We use subscripts to indicate which capacitors have been
combined.

(b) The charge on the equivalent capacitor is given by This is the

charge on both of the series components of

The voltage across the equivalent capacitor is the voltage across both of its parallel
components. Note that the sum of the charges across the two parallel components of is
the same as the total charge on the two components,

Finally, the charge on the equivalent capacitor is the charge on both of the series
components of

Here are all the results, gathered together.

Q8. The switch S in the Figure is connected downward so that capacitor becomes fully

charged by the battery of voltage If the switch is then connected upward, determine
the charge on each capacitor after the switching.

When the switch is down the initial charge on C2 is calculated as

When the switch is moved up, charge will flow from C2 to C1 until the voltage across the two
capacitors is equal.

The sum of the charges on the two capacitors is equal to the initial charge on C2.

Inserting the initial charge in terms of the initial voltage gives the final charges.

Q9. (a) Determine the equivalent capacitance of the circuit shown in the Figure. (b) If

how much charge is stored on each capacitor when

(a) The series capacitors add reciprocally, and then the parallel combination is found by adding
linearly.

(b) For each capacitor, the charge is found by multiplying the capacitance times the voltage. For

, the full 35.0 V is across the capacitance, so

The equivalent capacitance of the series combination of and has the

full 35.0 V across it, and the charge on the series combination is the same as the charge on
each of the individual capacitors.

Q10. A voltage V is applied to the capacitor network shown in the Figure. (a) What is the

equivalent capacitance? (b) Determine the equivalent capacitance if and

No two capacitors are in series or in parallel in the diagram, and so we may not simplify by that
method. Instead use the hint as given in the problem. We consider point a as the higher voltage.
The equivalent capacitance must satisfy
(a) The potential between a and b can be written in three ways. Alternate but equivalent
expressions are shown in parentheses.
 There are also three independent charge relationships. Alternate but equivalent expressions
are shown in parentheses. Convert the charge expressions to voltage – capacitance
expression.

We have a set of six equations:

Solve for as follows.

(i) From Eq. (1), Rewrite equations (5) and (6). V1 has been
eliminated.

(ii) From Eq. (3), Rewrite equation (4). V5 has been eliminated.

(iii) From Eq. (2), Rewrite equation (6). V3 has been eliminated.

Here is the current set of equations.

(iv) From Eq. (4), Rewrite equations (5) and (6).

(v) Group all terms by common voltage.

(vi) Divide the two equations to eliminate the voltages, and solve for the
equivalent
capacitance.

(b) Evaluate with the given data. Since all capacitances are in and the expression involves
capacitance cubed terms divided by capacitance squared terms, the result will be in
Q11. Two different dielectrics each fill half the space between the plates of a parallel-plate
capacitor as shown in the Figure. Determine a formula for the capacitance in terms of

the area A of the plates, and the separation d.

The potential difference is the same on each half of the capacitor, so it can be treated as two
capacitors in parallel. Each parallel capacitor has half of the total area of the original capacitor.

Q12. Two identical capacitors are connected in parallel and each acquires a charge when

connected to a source of voltage The voltage source is disconnected and then a

dielectric is inserted to fill the space between the plates of one of the capacitors.
Determine (a) the charge now on each capacitor, and (b) the voltage now across each
capacitor.

(a) Since the capacitors each have the same charge and the same voltage in the initial situation,
 each has the same capacitance of When the dielectric is inserted, the total charge
of will not change, but the charge will no longer be divided equally between the two

capacitors. Some charge will move from the capacitor without the dielectric to the

capacitor with the dielectric . Since the capacitors are in parallel, their voltages will be
the same.

(b)