Question

Suppose you have two capacitors and want to use them to store the maximum amount of energy by connecting them across a voltage source. You should connect them

Answer 1

Connect them in parallel

Step-by-step explanation:

The energy stored by two capacitors connected to the same voltage source is given by

`U=(1)/(2)C_T V^2`

where

`C_T` is the total capacitance of the two capacitors

V is the voltage of the source

In order to maximize the energy stored U, we need to maximize
`C_T`. We have:

- In parallel, the total capacitance is given by the sum of the individual capacitances:

`C_T(p) = C_1 + C_2`

- In series, the total capacitance is given by:

`C_T(s)=(1)/((1)/(C_1)+(1)/(C_2))`

Comparing the two equations, we notice that
`C_T(p)>C_T(s)`, so the parallel configuration is the one that maximizes the energy stored.