​Conductors

​

​Electric charge, e.g. electrons, are able to move around easily in conductors.

​

​​Almost all metals are good conductors.

​

Copper is a great conductor. ​

Charges have a difficult time moving around in insulators.

​

Most materials are insulators.

​

Wood is an insulator.​

​

​Insulators

​Charges move in Electric Fields​

​Batteries provide the electric energy based on their voltage to push charges along.

​

Connecting a batter to a lightbulb with wires forms a simple circuit.​

Two charged parallel metal plates held apart make a simple parallel-plate capacitor.

​

Capacitors can store electrical energy.​

​

Connecting a capacitor to a battery will cause charge to flow from the battery to the parallel plates.

​Capacitors

​Electric Charge is pushed onto the metal plates by the battery, but there's a maximum amount of charge that can be put on a capacitor.

​

The amount of Charge per voltage is the capacitance.

​

​C = Q/V

​

Units in Farads (F) ​

A capacitor is charged with a 5V battery. The amount of charge is 1C.

​

What is the capacitance for the capacitor?

​

C = 1C/5V = 0.2 F​

​

​

A 1 F capacitor is charged with a 5V battery. How much charge is stored in the capacitor?

​

C = Q/V

​

Q = C*V = 1F * 5V = 5C

​

Q = 5C of charge​

​

​

Summary

The amount of charge stored on a capacitor per voltage is the capacitance.

C = Q/V

Capacitors store electrical Energy

​

Charges move freely through conductors.

​

Charges have a hard time moving through insulators.​

​

​Electric charges are pushed by electric fields from voltage sources.