Capacitor discharge vs. Pole relaxation

[Christian Hernandez]

I'm trying to understand the difference between these two when it comes to measuring the amount of time they take.
As of right now, my current understanding is that pole relaxation is based on the amount of time that it takes for polarization of the charges to go back to its relaxed state.
For capacitor discharge, its the amount of time it takes for time to excess charge to be gotten rid of.

What confuses me is when measuring both of these for a capacitor, using an oscilloscope and a DC power supply. When I apply a voltage to a capacitor and then un-apply it, is the time shown on the oscilloscope the amount it takes to discharge or the amount it takes to for the charges to relax.

Thanks.

 

[CWatters]

Discharge. An ideal capacitor will hold charge indefinitely. A real capacitor has some leakage between the plates and of course some leaks out through the oscilloscope probes. In some cases even the very high resistance of the PCB or breadboard a capacitor is mounted on can form a significant discharge path.