Electric Field and Energy of Parallel Plate Capacitor

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around a parallel plate capacitor, specifically focusing on calculating the electric field between the plates, energy per unit volume, capacitance, and total energy stored. The subject area is primarily related to electrostatics and capacitor theory.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Conceptual clarification, Mathematical reasoning

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants express uncertainty about finding the electric field and discuss the relationship between surface charge and electric field in a parallel plate capacitor. Some suggest using Gauss's law and vector addition to derive the electric field, while others emphasize the importance of equations from textbooks.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with participants sharing different approaches to understanding the electric field and energy calculations. Some guidance has been offered regarding the use of Gauss's law and the concept of electric fields from charged surfaces, but no consensus has been reached on a specific method or solution.

Contextual Notes

One participant notes the lack of a textbook for reference, which may be impacting their ability to engage with the problem effectively. There is also mention of specific values and parameters related to the capacitor that are being used in the discussion.

XxXDanTheManXxX
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A parallel plate capictor with a plate area of 1.8 m^2 and a separation of 0.1 mm is charged to 200V.
a. what is the electric field bwt. the plates?
b. what is the energy/unit volume in the space between the plates?
c. Find the capacitance C
d. Calculate the total energy stored in this capacitor
 
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I know how to find the capiciatnce in a parrallel but have no idea how to find out the electric field. Any help? I don't have a textbook with me so I am pretty much screwed :)
 
Do you know the electric field for a surface charge?

If so, a parallel plate capacitor is two charged surfaces with separation d. The field can be found by adding the field of each plate.
 
Use gauss's law in intgral form. Some times called the gaussian pilbox.
[tex] \int \vec{E}\cdot d\vec{A} =\frac{Q_{Enclosed}}{\epsilon_0}[/tex]
Sove for the electric field for one plate, then solve for the other plate and use vector addtion to add them together.

Use the elctric field to find the voltage and the energy density.
 
Last edited:
can't get any easier than this, simply use equations in your text.
 

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