Capacitors - Multiple Choice

Q1. A 1F capacitor is charged using a constant current of 10 A for 20 s. What is

the energy finally stored by the capacitor?
A 2 10
-3
J
B 2 10
-2
J
C 4 10
-2
J
D 4 10
-1
J
Q2. A capacitor of capacitance 10 F is fully charged through a resistor R to a p.d.
of 20V using the circuit shown below.
Which one of the following statements is incorrect?
A The p.d. across the capacitor is 20V.
B The p.d. across the resistor is 0V.
C The energy stored by the capacitor is 2mJ.
D The total energy taken from the battery during the charging process is 2 mJ.

Q3. A 10 mF capacitor is charged to 10V and then discharged completely through
a small motor. During this process, the motor lifts a weight of mass 0.10 kg.
% of the energy stored in the capacitor is used to lift the weight, through what
approximate height will the weight be lifted?
A 0.05 m
B 0.10 m
C 0.50 m
D 1.00 m

Multiple Choice
A 1F capacitor is charged using a constant current of 10 A for 20 s. What is
the energy finally stored by the capacitor?
ance 10 F is fully charged through a resistor R to a p.d.
of 20V using the circuit shown below.

Which one of the following statements is incorrect?
The p.d. across the capacitor is 20V.
The p.d. across the resistor is 0V.
capacitor is 2mJ.
The total energy taken from the battery during the charging process is 2 mJ.
A 10 mF capacitor is charged to 10V and then discharged completely through
a small motor. During this process, the motor lifts a weight of mass 0.10 kg.
% of the energy stored in the capacitor is used to lift the weight, through what
approximate height will the weight be lifted?

A 1F capacitor is charged using a constant current of 10 A for 20 s. What is
ance 10 F is fully charged through a resistor R to a p.d.
The total energy taken from the battery during the charging process is 2 mJ.
A 10 mF capacitor is charged to 10V and then discharged completely through
a small motor. During this process, the motor lifts a weight of mass 0.10 kg. If 10
% of the energy stored in the capacitor is used to lift the weight, through what
Q4. A capacitor of capacitance 15 F is fully charged and the potential difference
across its plates is 8.0V. It is then connected into the circuit as shown below.
The switch S is closed at time t = 0. Which one of the following statements is
correct?
A The time constant of the circuit is 6.0 ms.
B The initial charge on the capacitor is 12 C.
C After a time equal to twice the time constant, the charge remaining on the
capacitor is Q
0
e
2
, where Q
0
is the charge at time t = 0.
D After a time equal to the time c
capacitor is 2.9V.

Q5. A capacitor of capacitance C discharges through a resistor of resistance R.
Which one of the following statements is not true?
A The time constant will increase if R is increased.
B The time constant will decrease if C increased.
C After charging to the same voltage, the initial discharge current will increase if
R is decreased.
D After charging to the same voltage, the initial discharge current will be
unaffected if C is increased.









A capacitor of capacitance 15 F is fully charged and the potential difference
across its plates is 8.0V. It is then connected into the circuit as shown below.

The switch S is closed at time t = 0. Which one of the following statements is
time constant of the circuit is 6.0 ms.
The initial charge on the capacitor is 12 C.
After a time equal to twice the time constant, the charge remaining on the
is the charge at time t = 0.
After a time equal to the time constant, the potential difference across the
A capacitor of capacitance C discharges through a resistor of resistance R.
Which one of the following statements is not true?
The time constant will increase if R is increased.
time constant will decrease if C increased.
After charging to the same voltage, the initial discharge current will increase if
After charging to the same voltage, the initial discharge current will be
A capacitor of capacitance 15 F is fully charged and the potential difference
across its plates is 8.0V. It is then connected into the circuit as shown below.
The switch S is closed at time t = 0. Which one of the following statements is
After a time equal to twice the time constant, the charge remaining on the
onstant, the potential difference across the
A capacitor of capacitance C discharges through a resistor of resistance R.
After charging to the same voltage, the initial discharge current will increase if
Q6. In the circuit shown below, the capacitor C is charged to a potential
difference V when the switch S is closed.
Which line, A to D, in the table gives a correct pair of graphs showing how the
charge and current change with time after S is closed?


CHARGE
A graph 1
B graph 1
C graph 2
D graph 2







In the circuit shown below, the capacitor C is charged to a potential
difference V when the switch S is closed.

Which line, A to D, in the table gives a correct pair of graphs showing how the
charge and current change with time after S is closed?
CHARGE CURRENT
graph 1 graph 1
graph 1 graph 2
graph 2 graph 1
graph 2 graph 2

Which line, A to D, in the table gives a correct pair of graphs showing how the
Q7. The graph shows how the charge stored by a capacitor varies with the
potential difference across it as it is charged from a 6V battery.
Which one of the following statements is not correct?
A The capacitance of the capacitor is 5.0 F.
B When the potential difference is 2V the charge stored is 10 C.
C When the potential difference is 2V the energy stored is 10 J.
D When the potential difference is 6V the en

Q8. A capacitor of capacitance C stores an amount of energy E when the pd across
it is V. Which line, A to D, gives the correct stored energy and pd when the charge
is increased by 50% ?

energy
A 1.5E
B 2.25E
C 1.5E
D 2.25E
Q9. How many of the following four equations correctly represent the energy E
stored by a capacitor of capacitance C when it is charged to a pd V and its charge
is Q?
E = Q
2
/C E = C/V

A one
B two
C three
D four
The graph shows how the charge stored by a capacitor varies with the
potential difference across it as it is charged from a 6V battery.

lowing statements is not correct?
The capacitance of the capacitor is 5.0 F.
When the potential difference is 2V the charge stored is 10 C.
When the potential difference is 2V the energy stored is 10 J.
When the potential difference is 6V the energy stored is 180 J.
A capacitor of capacitance C stores an amount of energy E when the pd across
it is V. Which line, A to D, gives the correct stored energy and pd when the charge
energy p.d.
1.5E 1.5V
2.25E 1.5V
1.5E 2.25V
2.25E 2.25V
How many of the following four equations correctly represent the energy E
stored by a capacitor of capacitance C when it is charged to a pd V and its charge

E = C/V
2
E = QC E = CV
2

A capacitor of capacitance C stores an amount of energy E when the pd across
it is V. Which line, A to D, gives the correct stored energy and pd when the charge
How many of the following four equations correctly represent the energy E
stored by a capacitor of capacitance C when it is charged to a pd V and its charge
Q10. A voltage sensor and a datalogger are used to record the discharge of a 10
mF capacitor in series with a 500! resistor from an initial pd of 6.0V. The
datalogger is capable of recording 1000 readings in 10s.
Which line, A to D, in the table gives the pd
after a time equal to the time constant of the discharge circuit?
potential difference/V
A 2.2
B 3.8
C 2.2
D 3.8

Q11. When switch S in the circuit is closed, the capacitor C is charg
battery to a pd V
0
.
The switch is then opened until the capacitor pd decreases to 0.5 V
S is closed
again. The capacitor then charges back to V



A voltage sensor and a datalogger are used to record the discharge of a 10
mF capacitor in series with a 500! resistor from an initial pd of 6.0V. The
datalogger is capable of recording 1000 readings in 10s.
Which line, A to D, in the table gives the pd and the number of readings made
after a time equal to the time constant of the discharge circuit?
potential difference/V number of readings
50
50
500
500
When switch S in the circuit is closed, the capacitor C is charged by the
The switch is then opened until the capacitor pd decreases to 0.5 V
0
, at which time
again. The capacitor then charges back to V
0
.

A voltage sensor and a datalogger are used to record the discharge of a 10

and the number of readings made
ed by the
, at which time
Which graph best shows how the pd across the capacitor varies with time, t, after
S is opened?

Q12. A 2.0 mF capacitor, used as the backup for a memory unit, has a potential
difference of 5.0V across it when fully charged. The capacitor is required to
supply a constant current of 1.0A and can be used until the potential difference
across it falls by 10%.
How long can the capacitor be used for before it must be recharged?
A 10 s
B 100 s
C 200 s
D 1000 s

Q13. When a capacitor discharges through a resistor it loses 50% of its charge in
10 s. What is the time constant of the capac
A 0.5 s
B 5 s
C 14 s
D 17 s





Which graph best shows how the pd across the capacitor varies with time, t, after
A 2.0 mF capacitor, used as the backup for a memory unit, has a potential
difference of 5.0V across it when fully charged. The capacitor is required to
supply a constant current of 1.0A and can be used until the potential difference
How long can the capacitor be used for before it must be recharged?
When a capacitor discharges through a resistor it loses 50% of its charge in
10 s. What is the time constant of the capacitor-resistor circuit?
Which graph best shows how the pd across the capacitor varies with time, t, after
A 2.0 mF capacitor, used as the backup for a memory unit, has a potential
difference of 5.0V across it when fully charged. The capacitor is required to
supply a constant current of 1.0A and can be used until the potential difference
When a capacitor discharges through a resistor it loses 50% of its charge in
Q14. An uncharged capacitor of fixed capacitance is connected in series with a
switch and battery. The switch is closed at time t = 0.
Which graph, A to D, shows how the energy, E, stored by the capa
with time, t, after the switch is closed?

Q15.The voltage across a capacitor falls from 10 V to 5 V in 48 ms as it discharges
through a resistor. What is the time constant of the circuit?
A 24 ms
B 33 ms
C 69 ms
D 96 ms

Q16. The graph shows how the charge stored by each of two capacitors, X and Y,
increases as the pd across them increases. Which one of the following statements
is correct?
An uncharged capacitor of fixed capacitance is connected in series with a
switch and battery. The switch is closed at time t = 0.
Which graph, A to D, shows how the energy, E, stored by the capacitor, changes
with time, t, after the switch is closed?

The voltage across a capacitor falls from 10 V to 5 V in 48 ms as it discharges
through a resistor. What is the time constant of the circuit?
ph shows how the charge stored by each of two capacitors, X and Y,
increases as the pd across them increases. Which one of the following statements

An uncharged capacitor of fixed capacitance is connected in series with a
citor, changes
The voltage across a capacitor falls from 10 V to 5 V in 48 ms as it discharges
ph shows how the charge stored by each of two capacitors, X and Y,
increases as the pd across them increases. Which one of the following statements
A The capacitance of X is equal to that of Y.
B The capacitance of Y is greater than that of
C The capacitance of Y is less than that of X.
D The capacitances of both X and Y are increasing.

Q17. A 1000 F capacitor and a 10 F capacitor are charged so that the potential
difference across each of them is the same. The charge stored in the
capacitor is Q
1
and the charge stored in the 10 F capacitor is Q
What is the ratio Q
1
/Q
2
?
A 100
B 10
C 1
D 0.01
Q18. The graph shows how the potential difference across a capacitor varies with
the charge stored by it.
Which one of the following statements is correct?
A The gradient of the line equals the capacitance of the capacitor.
B The gradient of the line equals the energy stored by the capacitor.
C The reciprocal of the gradient equals the energy stored by the capacitor.
D The reciprocal of the gradient equals the capacitance of the capacitor.


Q19. An initially uncharged capacitor of capacitance 10 F is charged by a
constant current of 200 A. After what time will the potential difference across
the capacitor be 2000V?
A 50 s
B 100 s
C 200 s
D 400 s


The capacitance of X is equal to that of Y.
The capacitance of Y is greater than that of X.
The capacitance of Y is less than that of X.
The capacitances of both X and Y are increasing.
A 1000 F capacitor and a 10 F capacitor are charged so that the potential
difference across each of them is the same. The charge stored in the 1000 F
and the charge stored in the 10 F capacitor is Q
2
.
The graph shows how the potential difference across a capacitor varies with

owing statements is correct?
The gradient of the line equals the capacitance of the capacitor.
The gradient of the line equals the energy stored by the capacitor.
The reciprocal of the gradient equals the energy stored by the capacitor.
cal of the gradient equals the capacitance of the capacitor.
An initially uncharged capacitor of capacitance 10 F is charged by a
constant current of 200 A. After what time will the potential difference across
A 1000 F capacitor and a 10 F capacitor are charged so that the potential
1000 F
The graph shows how the potential difference across a capacitor varies with

constant current of 200 A. After what time will the potential difference across
Q20. A 1000 F capacitor, X, and a 100 F capacitor, Y, are charged to the same
potential difference.
Which row, A to D, in the table gives correct ratios of charge stored and energy
stored by the capacitors?

charge stored by X / charge
stored by Y
energy stored by X /energy
stored by Y
A 1 1
B 1 10
C 10 1
D 10 10