[Physics] Charge On parallel plate capacitor

capacitanceelectrostatics

Suppose if we supply two plates of parallel plate capacitor with charges $Q_1$ and $Q_2$.What would be the charge of the capacitor?
As the field inside plate should be zero and hence using gauss law I can understand that charges on inner surface should be equal in magnitude and of opposite nature.Further charges on outer surface would be $\frac {Q_1+Q_2}2$ but what do we call the charge of capacitor in these cases?

Best Answer

First, to be clear, when we speak of a charged capacitor, we almost never mean electrically charged but, rather, 'charged' with energy in the same way we speak of a charged battery.

If the plates of a capacitor with capacitance $C$ have equal and opposite electric charge $Q$, the capacitor is electrically neutral but stores an energy

$$U = \frac{Q^2}{2C} = \frac{1}{2}QV$$

where $V$ is the potential difference between the plates.

If the plates of a capacitor have unequal charge, there is now energy stored in more than one capacitance. There is the capacitance that exists between the two plates (the mutual capacitance) as well as the capacitance of each plate to the environment.

Let $V_1$ be the potential of plate 1 with charge $Q_1 = Q$.

Let $V_2$ be the potential of plate 2 with charge $Q_2 = -Q + \delta Q$.

The energy of system is then

$$U = \frac{1}{2}Q_1V_1 + \frac{1}{2}Q_2V_2 = \frac{1}{2}Q(V_1 - V_2) + \frac{1}{2}\delta QV_2 = \frac{Q^2}{2C} + \frac{\delta Q^2}{2C_{20}}$$

where $C_{20}$ is the capacitance of plate 2 to the environment.

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