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The reason why resistor voltage decreases while a capacitor discharges is because the resistor acts like a source of electrical energy. As the capacitor discharges, it draws energy from the resistor, which causes the voltage across the resistor to decrease. This is because the capacitor is acting like a drain, and is taking energy out of the resistor, thus causing the voltage across the resistor to decrease.

The resistor and capacitor work together in order to create a discharge circuit. This is done by connecting the capacitor to the resistor, and then to a voltage source. The voltage source supplies the energy to the resistor, and then the resistor transfers this energy to the capacitor. As the capacitor discharges, it takes energy from the resistor, which causes the voltage across the resistor to decrease.

In order to understand this process better, it is important to understand the basics of Ohm's Law. Ohm's Law states that the voltage across a resistor is equal to the current through the resistor multiplied by the resistance. As the capacitor discharges, it takes energy from the resistor, which means that the current through the resistor decreases, and therefore the voltage across the resistor will also decrease.

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Ted Haley

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1y ago
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12y ago

A capacitor resists a change in voltage. That is how it works. It had to be charged to apply voltage to it in the first case, so it has to be discharged to change the voltage, making the voltage smaller. It is no different than if you had increased the voltage; you would go through a new charge cycle.

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Q: Why do resistor voltage decrease while capacitor discharges?
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When a circuit consists of a capacitor and a resistor in series with a voltage source and the voltage across the resistor becomes zero then the capacitor is?

fully charged.


Does a resistor only decrease current in a circuit?

A resistor does not only decrease current in a circuit it can also reduce tension(voltage) if connected in series.


Why high value resistor should be connected in series with capacitor during charging or discharging process?

A resistor is used to limit current flow through a capacitor.If you did not use the resistor, you could potentially create large currents through the capacitor, damaging it. Capacitors do have current limit ratings - check the specification sheet for the capacitor.Also, in the case of an electrolytic capacitor, if it is generally in a discharged state then it is necessary from time to time to reform it. That process involved slowly charging it, i.e. through a resistor, and then letting it discharge by itself with no or little load. The resistor protects both the capacitor and the voltage source in the case that the capacitor might be shorted.


Why tilt is formed for square wave input in highpass filter?

Lets have an example of simple RC high pass filter. Here, we take output across Resistor(in HPF). The tilt is because of charging of capacitor. you can say, as capacitor charges (ofcourse with voltage) the same amount of voltage has to drop across resistor ( to follow KVL). Since we are taking output across Resistor, so we see small voltage drop (as tilt). This can be minimized by keeping RC time constant large.


What is the purpose of capacitor in power supply higher than rated voltage?

The voltage marked on a capacitor is its MAXIMUM SAFE WORKING VOLTAGE. The capacitor will work in a circuit at any voltage lower than that, but it may fail at any higher voltage.

Related questions

When a circuit consists of a capacitor and a resistor in series with a voltage source and the voltage across the resistor becomes zero then the capacitor is?

fully charged.


Why does the voltage reading drop in measuring the potential difference across the capacitors?

Because the capacitor discharges. so voltage across the capacitor decreases.


What happens to the current in a circuit as a capacitor charges?

What happens to the current in a circuit as a capacitor charges depends on the circuit. As a capacitor charges, the voltage drop across it increases. In a typical circuit with a constant voltage source and a resistor charging the capacitor, then the current in the circuit will decrease logarithmically over time as the capacitor charges, with the end result that the current is zero, and the voltage across the capacitor is the same as the voltage source.


Does a resistor only decrease current in a circuit?

A resistor does not only decrease current in a circuit it can also reduce tension(voltage) if connected in series.


What is voltage regulater and its working?

Voltage regulator is a device which regulates the voltage or maintains a stable voltage irrespective of the fluctuations caused in the main line voltage. It contains a diodes and a capacitor. The capacitor discharges whenever there is a downfall of voltage in the main line and it keeps on charging the remaining time. the diode avoids the excess voltage to enter the circuit thereby maintaining a constant voltage.


Does voltage matter when charging a capacitor?

Yes, voltage matters when charging a capacitor. Capacitor charge rate is proportional to current and inversely proportional to capacitance. dv/dt = i/c So, voltage matters in terms of charge rate, if you are simply using a resistor to limit the current flow, because a larger voltage will attempt to charge faster, and sometimes there is a limit on the current through a capacitor. There is also a limit on voltage across a capacitor, so a larger voltage could potentially damage the capacitor.


Why don't capacitor discharge completely in an RC circuit?

Capacitors do not get "full" like a glass of water. The current into a capacitor is the rate of change of charge, so it's equal to C * dV/dt or something. If the voltage is constant, there's no current. If the voltage on both sides of the resistor is the same, there's no current through the resistor and hence into the capacitor, so that's the steady-state - what you call "full" - the capacitor charged to the supply voltage.


What is the difference between an inductive low pass filter and a capacitive low pass filter?

Where you are measuring. A simple filter will be two elements - a capacitor or inductor and a resistor. A capacitor will tend to "trap" low frequencies. In the case of a lowpass filter made of a capacitor and resistor, the output voltage will be measured across the capacitor. Inductors are the opposite, so the output would be across the resistor.


How capacitor and resitor in a circuit effect the phase of input voltage?

A capacitor and a resistor has no effect on the supply voltage; however, this particular load combination will cause the load current to lead the supply voltage by some angle termed the 'phase angle'.


Does a resistor drop current or voltage?

A resistor drops both voltage and current, however the term "drop" is generally used to indicate a voltage or current drop across the device, so it is more correctly stated that a resistor drops voltage, by allowing the current in the circuit to decrease.


Why capacitor reduce gain of ce amplifier?

Where is this capacitor in the circuit?A capacitor across the emitter bias resistor actually increases the AC gain because it bypasses that resistor, by increasing the ratio of collector impedance to emitter impedance which determines the amplifier voltage gain.A capacitor across the base input resistor actually increases the AC gain because it bypasses that resistor, by decreasing the attenuation of the input signal by the input circuit network.


What effect a capacitor has on a supply current on an inductive load?

it will improve the power factor... The angle between voltage and current will decrease depends on capacitor value.