[Physics] How to energy be stored in a field

electric-fieldselectromagnetismenergy

Textbooks say that in a capacitor or inductor, energy is stored in a electric or magnetic field. How can energy be stored in a field? Mathematically it can be proved but I am not able to feel what it means physically.

Best Answer

Energy stored in fields = the total energy required to assemble the fields

It takes energy to bring the charges to specific positions to assemble the field, and when you let everything go, the charges will just fly apart. The energy you stored in the field becomes the kinetic energy of the charges once you let them go.