Capacitor

A capacitor is an electrical component that stores energy in an electric field between conductors. Its capacitance measures how much charge it stores per unit voltage.

Capacitance: The ratio of electric charge stored on a conductor to the voltage across it. This quantity describes how much charge a capacitor stores at a given voltage.
Electric charge: A fundamental property of matter that produces electric forces and fields. A capacitor stores separated positive and negative charge on its conductors.
Decoupling capacitor: A capacitor placed near a circuit component to reduce supply-voltage disturbances. It supplies transient current and suppresses noise on power rails.
Ceramic capacitor: A capacitor that uses a ceramic material as its dielectric. Its compact size and electrical behavior suit many high-frequency and bypass uses.
Leyden jar: An early device that stored static electric charge using conductors separated by glass. It was the first widely used form of capacitor.
Dielectric: An electrical insulator that becomes polarized in an electric field. A dielectric between capacitor conductors increases capacitance and limits charge flow.
Voltage: The electric potential difference between two points. Voltage across a capacitor sets the stored charge for a given capacitance.
Capacitor bank: An assembly of capacitors connected to provide a desired capacitance or power capability. Banks deliver large amounts of stored energy or compensate reactive power.
Electrolytic capacitor: A polarized capacitor that uses an electrolyte to achieve high capacitance per volume. It offers high capacitance but requires correct polarity and has greater leakage than many alternatives.
Pieter van Musschenbroek: A Dutch physicist associated with the eighteenth-century Leyden jar. Experiments in Leiden helped make the jar known as a device for storing charge.

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