Leyden Jar 5C30.10

attachment:LeydenJar5C3010.jpg attachment:MiniLeydenJar5C3010.jpg

A variety of sizes of Leyden Jar are in the [:ElectrostaticsCabinet:Electrostatics Cabinet].

The Leyden Jar is one of the oldest pieces of apparatus for the purpose of experimental researches in electricity (c. 1746).

Connect a Leyden Jar to the Toepler-Holtz machine (please observe the usual cautions about working with the Toepler-Holtz machine, as described in its [:ToeplerHoltzMachine:webpage].

Crank the Toepler-Holtz machine. The sparks are no longer, but are brighter, louder, and less frequent when the Toepler-Holtz machine is connected than when it is not.

Discussion: The voltage which the Toepler-Holtz machine reaches is controlled by the distance between its terminals. The amount of charge transferred per spark is set by the capacitance between the two terminals, which is greatly increased by adding the Leyden Jar.

[:Capacitance:Capacitance]

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