PhysicsCode 9702
Discharging a capacitor
What this topic asks you to be able to do
- analyse graphs showing how the potential difference, charge and current of a capacitor change over time as it discharges through a resistor
- recall and use τ = RC as the time constant when a capacitor discharges via a resistor
- use equations like x = x0 e–(t/RC) for a capacitor that discharges through a resistor, where x can stand for the current, the charge or the potential difference