Electronic – why capacitance depends upon frequency physically irrespective of mathematical fact

capacitor

Sir,I know that when f=0 capacitive reactance will be infinity according to mathematical formula and thats why capacitor blocks dc.But what is its physical significance?I mean why capacitor blocks dc when frequency is null?I really dont get its answer to clearly understand it.Thank you.

Best Answer

There is a barrier...

Capacitors block DC because there is a physical barrier (non-conductor) that prevents current flow. AC can pass simply because the charges on one side push (repel) and pull (attract) the charges on the other side during each half-cycle of the AC waveform.

The phantom current

This causes the charges to appear to circulate even though they are not actually circulating. This concept is called a phantom current because it appears that there is a current crossing the non-conductor at the center of the capacitor even thought there really isn't. What is crossing over is the electric field lines. A more intuitive way to grasp this is that the forces exerted by a concentration of like charges on one side applies across the gap on the charges of opposite likeness on the far side.

Reactance

Reactance is the opposition of a circuit element to a change of voltage. When at DC, there is no effort made by the signal to "change the voltage" and therefore a perfect ability of the capacitor to resist the change (ergo infinite reactance). Physically, the inability of the static charges to generate a phantom current means that the capacitor can perfectly resist the transfer of energy in the ideal case.