6.1: Theory Overview
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The current – voltage characteristic of a capacitor is unlike that of typical resistors. While resistors show a constant resistance value over a wide range of frequencies, the equivalent ohmic value for a capacitor, known as capacitive reactance, is inversely proportional to frequency. The capacitive reactance may be computed via the formula:
\[X_C = -j \frac{1}{2 \pi fC} \nonumber \]
The magnitude of capacitive reactance may be determined experimentally by feeding a capacitor a known current, measuring the resulting voltage, and dividing the two, following Ohm’s law. This process may be repeated a across a range of frequencies in order to obtain a plot of capacitive reactance versus frequency. An AC current source may be approximated by placing a large resistance in series with an AC voltage, the resistance being considerably larger than the maximum reactance expected.