Active and Passive components :

Electronic components are broadly classified into active and passive types. Active components
require an external power source to operate and can amplify or switch signals, while passive
components do not require an external power source and primarily store, dissipate, or filter
energy.

Active Components:

Definition:

These components need an external power source to function and can amplify, switch, or
generate electrical signals.
Functionality:

They control the flow of current and manipulate signals by amplifying or switching them,
enabling functions like signal processing, amplification, and oscillation.

Examples:

Transistors, integrated circuits (ICs), operational amplifiers (op-amps), diodes, and power
sources like batteries.

Passive Components:

Definition:

These components do not require an external power source and cannot amplify signals.

Functionality:

They store, dissipate, or filter electrical energy. They primarily manage the flow of current and
voltage within a circuit by resisting, storing, or attenuating signals.

Examples:
Resistors, capacitors, inductors, transformers, and diodes (in some applications).
Use of Resistor:

Resistors are primarily used to control the flow of electric current in a circuit. They limit the
amount of current that can flow through a component, which is essential for protecting sensitive
parts from damage due to excessive current or voltage. They also play a role in voltage division,
signal processing, and even heat generation in some applications.

CAPACITOR:
In electronics, a capacitor is a passive component that stores electrical energy in an electric field
by accumulating charge on two conductive plates separated by an insulator (dielectric). It's
essentially a charge reservoir, like a small rechargeable battery, but capable of charging and
discharging much faster.

Here's a more detailed explanation:

Structure:

A capacitor consists of two conductive plates (often metal) separated by a non-conductive

material called a dielectric.
Function:

When a voltage is applied, charge accumulates on the plates, creating an electric field between
them. This stored charge represents the stored electrical energy.

Capacitance:

The ability of a capacitor to store charge is called capacitance, measured in farads (F).

Applications:

Capacitors are widely used in various electronic circuits for functions like energy storage,
filtering, signal coupling, and noise suppression.

Comparison to Batteries:

While capacitors and batteries both store energy, capacitors typically store less energy per unit
volume but can charge and discharge much faster than batteries.

Types:

Various types of capacitors exist, each with different characteristics and applications,
including electrolytic capacitors, ceramic capacitors, and supercapacitors.

Types of capacitor
The capacitor is one of the widely used electrical circuit elements in electrical and
electronic circuits. In fact, it is hard to imagine any circuit without capacitors.
Depending on the type of dielectric material and the construction of the
capacitor, there are various types of capacitor which are used in different
applications, like decoupling, timing and wave shaping, filtering, etc. Depending
on the different characteristics or the electrical properties of the capacitor,
different capacitors are used for different applications.

Fig. 1 Various Types of Capacitors

Here is a list of some of the important specifications or the electrical

characteristics of the capacitor.

1. Rated Capacitance
2. Rated Voltage
3. Tolerance
4. Temperature Coefficient
5. Leakage Resistance
 6. Volumetric Efficiency
7. Effective Series Resistance / Dissipation Factor

These electrical characteristics or the specification decides which type of

capacitor should be used for a specific application.

Types of Capacitors
There are various types of capacitors that are used in electrical and electronic
circuits. But here is the list of widely used capacitor types.

1. Electrolytic Capacitors
2. Ceramic Capacitors
3. Film Capacitors
4. Mica Capacitors
5. Supercapacitors
6. Trimmer Capacitors (Variable Capacitor)
The capacitors can be classified as polarized and non-polarized capacitors.
Electrolytic capacitors and supercapacitors are polarized capacitors, while
ceramic, film, mica, or trimmer capacitor are non-polarized capacitors.

Electrolytic Capacitor
The electrolytic capacitors are polarized capacitors where the anode or the
positive terminal of the plate is made up of metal and through anodization, the
oxide layer is created. This oxide layer acts as an insulator. The electrolyte covers
the surface of the oxide layer and acts as a cathode or the negative plate of the
capacitor. Depending on the type of material used for the electrode, there are
three types of electrolytic capacitors.

1. Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitor

2. Tantalum Electrolytic Capacitor
3. Niobium Electrolytic Capacitors
Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitor

In aluminum electrolytic capacitors, the anode or the positive terminal is made up

of aluminum. The aluminum oxide acts as a dielectric. And the electrolyte acts as
a cathode of the capacitor. Due to the very thin oxide layer, it is possible to
achieve very high capacitance in these aluminum capacitors.

Here is the typical characteristics of the Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitor

• Cheaper than other types of capacitor

• Large Capacitance (0.1 µF to 2.2 F)
• Voltage Rating ( 2.5 V to 700V)
• Typical Tolerance (± 10% to 20 %)
• High Effective Series Resistance (ESR)
• High Leakage current
• Lower Lifetime than other types of capacitor (Particularly for wet
electrolytic capacitors)
Usage: Since these capacitors are polarized they are typically used in DC
applications. They are used in the DC power supply filtering and the de-coupling
application.
Tantalum Capacitor

Fig.3 Tantalum Capacitors

In the tantalum capacitor, the tantalum metal is used as electrode and thin
tantalum oxide Is created on top of it, which acts as a dielectric. This tantalum
capacitors are available in lead type and as well in the chip form for the surface
mounting.

Here is the typical characteristics of the Tantalum Electrolytic Capacitor

• Capacitance Range: 10 nF to 100 mF

• higher Volumetric Efficiency than Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitors
• Rated Voltage: 2V to 500 V
• Tolerance : ± 5% to 20 %
 • Lower ESR than Aluminium Capacitors (can withstand higher ripple
currents than aluminum capacitors for the same capacitance and
voltage rating)
• Very stable over the temperature range and very reliable
• Longer shelf life
• Very sensitive to reverse polarity (Even a small amount of reverse
voltage can lead to the destruction of the capacitor)
• Very sensitive to the high voltage spikes
Usage:
Due to reliability and good volumetric efficiency, the tantalum capacitors are
used in applications where good reliability is required and there is a size
constrain.

1. Sample and Hold Circuits

2. Medical Devices
3. Power Supply Filtering Circuits in laptops and other compact devices
4. Military and Space Applications
Niobium Capacitors

Fig. 4 Niobium Oxide Capacitors

Niobium Capacitors are not as popular as tantalum and aluminum capacitors but,
in some capacitance, and voltage range they are used over
tantalum capacitors because of their lower price.
Ceramic Capacitors
 Fig. 5 Ceramic Capacitors
In a ceramic capacitor, the dielectric material is the ceramic material. They are
available in the lead from and the surface mount from. The ceramic capacitors are
available in wide capacitance (0.1 pF to 100µF) and the voltage range ( 2V to 50
kV). The ceramic capacitors are non-polarised capacitors and can be connected
either way in the circuit.

Depending on the type of dielectric material of ceramic capacitors, there are two
types of ceramic capacitors.

Depending on the type of dielectric material of ceramic capacitors, there are two
types of ceramic capacitors.

1. Type- I Ceramic Capacitors

2. Type-II Ceramic Capacitors
Class-I Ceramic Capacitors
Class-I ceramic capacitors are used in the circuits where high stability and low
losses are [Link] are very accurate and provides very stable capacitance
over the change in the temperature, biasing voltage or the frequency.

Here is the typical characteristics of the Class-I Ceramic Capacitor

• Good Stability and Reliability

• Low ESR and Low leakage current
• Low tolerance
• Low Volumetric Efficiency (Typically available in low capacitance
value)
Usage: Class-I ceramic capacitors are used in high-frequency applications like
resonant circuits and oscillators.
Class-II Ceramic Capacitors
Here is the typical characteristics of the Class-II Ceramic Capacitor

• Low Stability and accuracy than Class-I Capacitors

• High Volumetric Efficiency than Class-I Capacitors
 • Non-linear change in the capacitance over the operating
temperature range
• Change in capacitance with biasing voltage
• Large Tolerance than class-I capacitors
Usage: Class-II ceramic capacitors are used in applications where stability and
the accurate value of capacitance are less important. Typically, they are used in
DC power supply filtering circuits and for coupling and decoupling in various
circuits.

Multilayer Ceramic Capacitors (MLCC)

 Fig. 6 Multilayer Ceramic Capacitors (MLCC)
Now a days, the surface mount type multilayer ceramic capacitor or the MLCC is
very popular and billions of such capacitors are produced every year. As shown in
Fig. 7, MLCCs are made up of alternating layers of metal electrodes and dielectric
ceramic.

Fig. 7 Construction of Multilayer Ceramic chip Capacitor (MLCC)

The resulting capacitor basically consists of many smaller capacitors connected in
parallel, and that increases the overall capacitance. MLCCs consist of 500 or more
such layers. For type-I MLCC, the

capacitance is in the range of pF to nF. And they are used in applications where
precision and stability are required. The type-II MLCC are available with
capacitance up to 100 µF, and they are used in power supply filtering and
general-purpose applications.
Film Capacitors

Fig. 8 Film Capacitors

In the film capacitor, the plastic film is used as a dielectric material. Depending on
the different film materials, there are different types of film capacitors. (e.g
polypropylene, polyester, and polystyrene)

The film capacitors are used in applications where good reliability and stability
are required. In general, the film capacitors have low ESL and ESR or low
dissipation factor. They are available in pF to mF capacitance range with a voltage
rating range from 10V to 10 kV.

Depending on the film material, different types of film capacitors have different
electrical characteristics.
Polypropylene Film Capacitors

Polypropylene film capacitors are one of the widely used type of film capacitors.
Here are typical

characteristics of Polypropylene film capacitor.

• Low Leakage Current

• Low Dissipation Factor
• Good Temperature Stability
• Can withstand high voltage and high current surges
• Low Volumetric Efficiency
Usage: They are used in the oscillator and the frequency selective circuits where
precise capacitance is required. Due to the low leakage current, it is also used in
the sample and hold circuits.
In power electronics,they are used for EMI suppression, power factor correction
and in the pulse applications.
Polyester Film Capacitors
They have higher volumetric efficiency than polypropylene capacitors but the
capacitance is temperature and frequency dependent. They are typically used in
the general-purpose applications.
Supercapacitors

Fig. 9 Supercapacitors
Supercapacitors are also known as ultra-capacitor. It is used to store a large
amount of electrical charge. Typically its capacitance ranges from a few Farad to
100s of Farad. And Maximum charge voltage is 2.5 to 2.9V. Sometimes you also
find a supercapacitor whose voltage rating is higher. But in such case, two or
more capacitors are connected in series internally. The super capacitors are used
to quickly transfer the charge or for fast charge and discharge [Link]
usually take up to several hours to reach a fully charged state, while
supercapacitors can be brought to the same charge state in less than two
minutes. It finds its application in the automotive industry and in low-power
applications where a large life cycle and quick recharge are important. (e.g
photographic flash and SRAM)

Mica Capacitors
In the Mica capacitor, a silver mica is used as a dielectric material. These
capacitors provide good temperature stability and very accurate capacitance. And
therefore they are used in RF applications. Due to the high breakdown voltage,
these capacitors are used in high voltage applications. Because of their large size
and high cost, now a days these capacitors are replaced by other capacitors.
Trimmer Capacitorsl

Fig. 10 Trimmer Capacitor

Trimmer capacitors are variable capacitors. They are used for the initial calibration
of equipment during manufacturing or servicing. In this type of capacitor, by
changing the distance between the two plates or by changing the overlapping
area between the two plates, the capacitance is varied in certain range.

These capacitors are used to initially set oscillator frequency values, latencies, rise
and fall times, and other variables in a circuit. There are two

types of trimmer capacitors: air trimmer capacitor and ceramic trimmer capacitor.

The minimum capacitance of these capacitors is around 0.5 pF and it can be

varied up to 100 pF. These capacitors are available up to the voltage rating of
300V.