Electronic – capacitor & voltage source power transfer

accapacitorpower

When I have a capacitor connected to an AC voltage source, we can get from i=C*dv/dt the current through the capacitor (therefore through the voltage source).
Than we can multiply the voltage across it with the current and we get:
Power_over_capacitor(t) = 0.5im*vm*sin(2wt)
During half cycly it gets power from the voltage source.
I dont understand however what does the negative power mean? when the capacitor discharges – where does the power go to?
The voltage source, as far as I understand, always provide power. So how can it get the power from the capacitor and where does it go to?

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Best Answer

It may be a voltage source but it can still take reverse current and the "negative power" goes back into the voltage source because the current is reversed. In a real supply this may not be possible of course (think voltage regulator) but, in something that behaves like an ideal voltage source, then energy is returned.