PHY 172 Capacitance Lab Report

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St. Augustine's University *

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Electrical Engineering

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Dec 6, 2023

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Justin Alvarado Capacitor Lab This lab is adapted from Loeblein 4/7/2020. https://phet.colorado.edu/sims/html/capacitor - lab - basics/latest/capacitor - lab - basics_en.html 1. Identify what features of a capacitor can be maximized or minimized to make a capacitor with the greatest capacitance. Insert screenshots here to prove your points. To make a capacitor with the greatest capacitance, you simply minimize the separation distance between the plates and maximize the surface area of each plate. Capacitance is found by the equation C = where a is the surface area of the plates and d is the separation distance between the two plates. Default capacitor when you log onto the experiment. 4/7/2020 Loeblein https://phet.colorado.edu/en/contributions/update-success/5449 page 1

Capacitor with separation shortened and plate area increased. 2. Design experiments to find the relationships between charge, voltage, and stored energy for a capacitor. Summarize your experimental procedures and findings, insert screenshots as part of designs and findings. Hint: look at the Capacitor Equation for Charge and Stored Energy. Table 1: Constants: Area: 200mm 2 , Separation: 6 mm Voltage (V) Charge (pC) Capacitance (pF) Energy (pJ) 0 0 .3 0 .250 .07 .3 .01 .500 .15 .3 .04 .750 .22 .3 .08 1.00 .30 .3 .15 1.50 .44 .3 .33 Last Trial of Experiment 1: Constant Area and Separation Distance with increasing voltage Table 2: Constants: 1.5 V , Plate Surface Area: 200mm 2 Distance (mm) Charge (pC) Capacitance (pF) Energy (pJ) 10 .27 .18 .20 7 .38 .25 .28 5 .53 .35 .40 4/7/2020 Loeblein https://phet.colorado.edu/en/contributions/update-success/5449 page 2

2 1.33 .89 1.00 Last Trial of Experiment 2: Constant voltage and plate area with decreasing separation distance. Table 3: Constants: Separation distance: 2mm , 1.5 V Plate Area (mm 2 ) Charge (pC) Capacitance (pF) Energy (pJ) 400 2.66 1.77 1.99 300 1.99 1.33 1.49 200 1.33 .89 1.00 100 .66 .44 .50 Last Trial of Experiment 3: Constant distance and voltage with decreasing plate area In Experiment 1, where I made the plate area and separation constant, I found that as you increase the voltage from the battery, both the charge and energy increase while the capacitance stays the same. In Experiment 2, where I made both the voltage and surface area constant, I found that as you decrease the separation distance between the plates, the charge, energy, and capacitance all increase. In Experiment 3, where I made both the voltage and separation distance constant, I found that as you decrease the plate surface area, the energy, capacitance, and energy all decrease as well. 4/7/2020 Loeblein https://phet.colorado.edu/en/contributions/update-success/5449 page 3

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3. If you wanted to design a capacitor system to store the greatest energy, what would you use? Insert screenshots here to prove your points. To design a capacitor system to store the greatest amount of energy, first you would maximize the amount of voltage coming from your battery. In the case of this simulation, it would be 1.5 V. Next, you would minimize the separation distance between the two plates. For this simulation, the smallest distance you can separate the plates by is 2 mm. Last, you would want to maximize the surface area of the plates. For this simulation, the maximum surface area the plates can have is 400 mm 2 . Switch to Light Bulb s creen to investigate how to use a capacitor to turn on a light bulb. Use your own words and captured images from the simulation to show you know how to use a capacitor to light a bulb. 4/7/2020 Loeblein https://phet.colorado.edu/en/contributions/update-success/5449 page 4

4. What are the required components to use a capacitor to light a bulb and how does the system operate? Insert screenshots here to show your simulation. The required components to use a capacitor to light a bulb are a battery, a capacitor with a certain level of capacitance, and a bulb. Voltage from the battery is sent in-between the capacitor plates, where energy is being stored. Once the capacitor is charged, we then disconnected the capacitor from the battery and connect it to the bulb where it will glow until the capacitor’s energy is depleted. By turning the battery to 1.5 V, decreasing the separation distance of the plates, and increasing the surface area of the plates, we are generating and storing the maximum amount of energy to light the bulb, allowing it to be lit for it’s maximum amount of time. Charging of the Capacitor Lighting of the bulb 5. How would using a capacitor to light a bulb compare to using just a battery as shown: Capacitors are able to store energy from electric fields while batteries store energy from chemical reactions that happen inside of batteries. That is why old batteries that corrode may leak something called battery acid. This means that capacitors are fully rechargeable while batteries are not rechargeable. Energy is also transmitted faster from a capacitor than a battery so capacitors will produce the brightest light while batteries take longer to produce energy. 6. Research to find a practical application where the energy stored in a capacitor is used. (cite references) Flash Photography: In disposable cameras where a flash is used, the capacitor stores lots of energy from the camera battery and when the shutter button is pressed, a high 4/7/2020 Loeblein https://phet.colorado.edu/en/contributions/update-success/5449 page 5

voltage is released in the current so that the camera bulb flashes. The battery is then recharged waiting for the next picture to be taken. Part 2: The capacitor is the hidden star of electronic circuits-role #1: Storing electricity . Learn about Technology with TDK. (n.d.). https://www.tdk.com/en/tech- mag/capacitor/02#:~:text=In%20the%20strobes%20for%20digital,power%20supplies %20in%20electronic%20devices 4/7/2020 Loeblein https://phet.colorado.edu/en/contributions/update-success/5449 page 6

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