About Capacitors

Light emitting capacitor

Light emitting capacitor, or LEC, is a term used by CeeLite, a manufacturer of flat panel lighting products.

LECs are derived from and similar to electroluminescent panels. The company has put considerable effort into improving electroluminescent (EL) technology, and has come up with this new term to differentiate the improved technology from prior EL products, Above about "Light emitting capacitor" information content.

Car Audio Capacitor

The audio system in our cars is an assortment of different parts. Each and every part in the system performs a specific function. It is with the co-ordination of all the parts, that you can hear the system play those fantastic tracks as you drive along. In the entire system, car audio capacitors have a significance of their own, Above about "Car Audio Capacitor" information content.

Capacitor Circuit

In an electronic circuit, a capacitor is shown like this:

When you connect a capacitor to a battery, here's what happens:

Capacitance Farad

A capacitor's storage potential, or capacitance, is measured in units called farads. A 1-farad capacitor can store one coulomb (coo-lomb) of charge at 1 volt. A coulomb is 6.25e18 (6.25 * 10^18, or 6.25 billion billion) electrons. One amp represents a rate of electron flow of 1 coulomb of electrons per second, so a 1-farad capacitor can hold 1 amp-second of electrons at 1 volt.

History of the Capacitor

The invention of the capacitor varies somewhat depending on who you ask. There are records that indicate a German scientist named Ewald Georg von Kleist invented the capacitor in November 1745. Several months later Pieter van Musschenbroek, a Dutch professor at the University of Leyden came up with a very similar device in the form of the Leyden jar, which is typically credited as the first capacitor. Since Kleist didn't have detailed records and notes, nor the notoriety of his Dutch counterpart, he's often overlooked as a contributor to the capacitor's evolution. However, over the years, both have been given equal credit as it was established that their research was independent of each other and merely a scientific coincidence [source: Williams].

How Capacitors Work

In a way, a capacitor is a little like a battery. Although they work in completely different ways, capacitors and batteries both store electrical energy. Inside the battery, chemical reactions produce electrons on one terminal and absorb electrons on the other terminal. A capacitor is much simpler than a battery, as it can't produce new electrons -- it only stores them, Above about "How Capacitors Work" information content.

Polypropylene Capacitors

This Polypropylene capacitor is used when a higher tolerance is necessary than polyester capacitors offer. Polypropylene film is used for the dielectric. It is said that there is almost no change of capacitance in these devices if they are used with frequencies of 100KHz or less, Above about the Polypropylene Capacitors information content.
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Electric Double Layer Capacitors

This is a "Super Capacitor," which is quite a wonder. The capacitance is 0.47 F (470,000 µF). I have not used this capacitor in an actual circuit, Above about the Electric Double Layer Capacitors information content.

Capacitors

The capacitor's function is to store electricity, or electrical energy.
The capacitor also functions as a filter, passing alternating current (AC), and blocking direct current (DC).

Filter capacitor

Filter capacitors are any capacitors used for filtering. Filter capacitors are common in electrical and electronic work, and cover a number of applications, such as:

• Glitch removal on dc power rails
• Radio frequency interference (RFI) removal for signal or power lines entering or leaving equipment
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