Parallel Plate Capacitor Capacitance Calculator

Compute the capacitance C of a parallel plate capacitor from plate area, gap distance and relative permittivity. Add a voltage to also get stored charge, energy and field strength.

Input

Enter the plate area, the gap between the plates and the relative permittivity to compute the capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor. Add a voltage to also get the stored charge, energy and field strength.

Plate area S

m²

Area of the facing plates in square meters

Gap distance d

Separation between the two plates in meters

Relative permittivity epsilon r

Relative permittivity of the dielectric between the plates (1 for vacuum)

Applied voltage V (optional)

Enter a value to also compute stored charge, energy and field strength

Result

Capacitance C

88.54pF

In farads: 0 F

Enter a voltage to also display the stored charge, energy and field strength.

Capacitance is computed as C = epsilon0 x epsilonr x S / d, where epsilon0 is the vacuum permittivity 8.854e-12 F/m. This ideal model ignores fringing, so real devices may differ slightly.

How it works

The capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor is C = epsilon0 x epsilonr x S / d, where epsilon0 is the vacuum permittivity 8.854e-12 F/m and epsilonr is the relative permittivity of the dielectric between the plates.
A larger plate area S, a smaller gap distance d and a higher relative permittivity epsilonr all increase the capacitance.
Enter a voltage V to also obtain the stored charge Q = C x V, the stored energy W = 0.5 x C x V squared and the electric field strength E = V / d between the plates.
Results are scaled automatically from farads to mF, microfarads, nF or pF based on magnitude so the value stays easy to read.
This formula assumes an ideal parallel plate model with no fringing effects. Real devices differ slightly due to edge fields and wiring.

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