Capacitance: How a Capacitor Stores Charge (and Why It Blocks DC)

Two plates, a gap, and a charge that wants to get across. A capacitor stores energy in the electric field between its plates. This video shows the charge building, the voltage rising, and what the area, the gap and the dielectric each do.

You'll see why capacitors smooth, filter and time circuits, and why a big one can be dangerous after the power is off.

In this video

• Charge, voltage and capacitance
• Plate area, gap and dielectric
• Energy stored in the field
• Smoothing, filtering and timing