Physics II / Conductors and Capacitance
Practice question · Match the pairs

Match each capacitor arrangement to the quantity its elements share and the resulting combination.

  • Two capacitors in parallel
  • Two capacitors in series
  • Plates moved further apart
  • Dielectric inserted between the plates
  • Capacitance rises by the relative permittivity
  • Share charge; reciprocals add
  • Capacitance falls, as one over the gap
  • Share voltage; capacitances add directly
Hints
  1. Ask which quantity is common to both elements in each arrangement.
  2. Series capacitors share charge, which is why their combination is smaller than either.
Show the answer
  • Two capacitors in parallel Share voltage; capacitances add directly
  • Two capacitors in series Share charge; reciprocals add
  • Plates moved further apart Capacitance falls, as one over the gap
  • Dielectric inserted between the plates Capacitance rises by the relative permittivity
Why

Parallel elements share voltage so their charges add, giving a larger capacitance; series elements share charge and split the voltage, giving a smaller one. Geometry and the dielectric change CC directly, since C=ε0εrA/dC = \varepsilon_0\varepsilon_r A/d.

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