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Capacitance (A-level only)

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Question 24

An aerospace engineer is testing the backup power system of an atmospheric probe. The system relies on a capacitor bank discharging through an onboard heater. In five test runs, the engineer measures the time T1/2T_{1/2}T1/2​ for the potential difference across the capacitor to drop to exactly half of its fully charged value.

The recorded values of T1/2T_{1/2}T1/2​ are:

23.1 ms,22.6 ms,23.4 ms,22.8 ms,23.1 ms 23.1\text{ ms}, \quad 22.6\text{ ms}, \quad 23.4\text{ ms}, \quad 22.8\text{ ms}, \quad 23.1\text{ ms} 23.1 ms,22.6 ms,23.4 ms,22.8 ms,23.1 ms
a.

Determine the percentage uncertainty in the measurement of T1/2T_{1/2}T1/2​.

[3]
b.

Calculate the time constant τ\tauτ of the discharge circuit.

[3]

Capacitance (A-level only) Questions

  1. A Level
  2. /Physics
  3. /Capacitance (A-level only)