Question

A charge of 1 µC is given to one plate of a parallel-plate capacitor of capacitance 0⋅1 µF and a charge of 2 µC is given to the other plate. Find the potential difference developed between the plates.

Answer 1

Charges on the plates : 

`q_1 = 1  "uC" = 1 xx 10^-6 C`

`q_2 = 2  "uC" = 2 xx 10^-6 C`

The effective charge on the capacitor is given by `q_"net" = (q_2 - q_1)/2` = `((2-1) xx 10^-6)/2` = `0.5 xx 10^-6  "C"`

The potential difference is given by `V = q_"net"/C = (0.5 xx 10^-6)/(0.1 xx 10^-6) = 5V`