Capacitor Dictionary, Terms, and Definitions

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Farad: Unit of capacitance. A capacitor has a capacitance of 1 farad when a voltage potential of 1 volt across it produces a charge of 1 coulomb.

Feed-Thru Capacitor: A capacitor used to pass thru a bulk head. Refer to MIL-C-11015, M11015

Film Capacitor: A capacitor that uses plastic film as the dielectric. Plastic dielectrics; Mylar, Polycarbonate, Polyester, Polypropylene, Polysulfone, Teflon. More on Dielectric Materials

Filter: A selective network of resistors, capacitors, and inductors that offers comparatively little opposition to certain frequencies, while blocking or attenuating other frequencies.

Fix Capacitor: A capacitor with a fixed value.

Flashpoint of impregnant: The temperature to which the impregnant (liquid or solid) must be heated in order to give off sufficient vapor to form a flammable mixture.

Glass Capacitor: A capacitor that uses a glass dielectric. Glass dielectric is one of the most stable, inert materials available. Glass doesn’t corrode or degrade in any way. Glass is not subject to microfractures, delaminations, and other problems associated with certain crystalline materials.

GTO Capacitor: GTO capacitors are especially designed to attenuate voltage spikes on GTO (Gate-Turn-Off) Thyristors and IGBT (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor).

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