A capacitor stores a separation of charge. To separate the charges on a capacitor, you have to move charges against where the E field wants to push them (the oppositely charges on the two plates are attracted and want to move together), so charging takes work. That work becomes stored energy -- just like carrying water up a hill so that you can let it roll down at a later time and turn a generator. The total amount of energy stored in a capacitor is ½|Q||ΔV|. We'll use this to determine the amount of energy stored in a cell membrane.In discussion, we found that a cell membrane maintains a potential difference of about 70 mV (0.07 V) between the inside and outside of the membrane. We also found that a 1 μm by 1 μm section of the membrane has a capacitance of about 1.75 10-15 F. What is the total energy stored in the full cell membrane?
Dielectric Constant Of Water
Water constitutes about 70% of earth. Some important distinguishing properties of water are high molar concentration, small dissociation constant and high dielectric constant.
Electrostatic Potential and Capacitance
An electrostatic force is a force caused by stationary electric charges /fields. The electrostatic force is caused by the transfer of electrons in conducting materials. Coulomb’s law determines the amount of force between two stationary, charged particles. The electric force is the force which acts between two stationary charges. It is also called Coulomb force.
A capacitor stores a separation of charge. To separate the charges on a capacitor, you have to move charges against where the E field wants to push them (the oppositely charges on the two plates are attracted and want to move together), so charging takes work. That work becomes stored energy -- just like carrying water up a hill so that you can let it roll down at a later time and turn a generator. The total amount of energy stored in a capacitor is ½|Q||ΔV|. We'll use this to determine the amount of energy stored in a cell membrane.
In discussion, we found that a cell membrane maintains a potential difference of about 70 mV (0.07 V) between the inside and outside of the membrane. We also found that a 1 μm by 1 μm section of the membrane has a capacitance of about 1.75 10-15 F.
What is the total energy stored in the full cell membrane?
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