Introduction

The second most common component after resistors in electronic circuits is the capacitor. It is a two-terminal device that stores an electric field when charged. Two electrodes inside the capacitor, separated by a small distance, hold positive charges on one electrode and negative charges on the other. An electrical field or voltage is developed across the electrodes. Unlike resistors, which require only one parameter to describe their AC circuit properties, a capacitor requires three:
1. Magnitude C (measured in farads)
2. Frequency f (measured in Hertz or radians)
3. Phase q (degrees or radians)

Materials

NI myDAQ
1 kW Resistor
0.1 mF Capacitor
Solderless Breadboard (recommended)

*This lab was taken from "Tinker, Learn and Do Engineering with NI myDAQ" with permission by the publisher. To find more labs like this, visit NTSpress.com.