How to choose the right capacitor type for a circuit?! || Film vs. Ceramic vs. Electrolytic
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- Опубліковано 10 лют 2025
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In this video we will have a closer look at a decoupling problem of one of my recent LED circuits. That means I will explain how a decoupling capacitor can save my circuit from harmful oscillations. Along the way I will talk about three popular capacitor types, the film capacitor, the ceramic capacitor and the electrolytic capacitor and explain which one is best suited for which application and why. Let's get started!
Thanks to the Würth Elektronik eiSos Gruppe for sponsoring this video.
Music:
2011 Lookalike by Bartlebeats
Killing Time, Kevin MacLeod
(incompetech.com)
As an Electronics Engineer, this a very good approach and explanation condensed in 12 minutes! Many thanks and keep doing these videos
This is a perfect video. I wish something like this was used in school while I was studying instead of the lots and lots of equations with no real world understanding. It took me years to find it out myself, this single video would shorten my learning curve to minutes instead of months or even years. THANKS to both you and Wurth Elektronik for providing you the design kit.
This is what I consider spot-on partnership.
Me as well. I just wish there were less formulas and more rules of thumb like this video!
i dont mean to be so off topic but does anybody know a tool to log back into an instagram account..?
I stupidly lost my account password. I love any help you can offer me
@Hugh Tyler i really appreciate your reply. I got to the site thru google and I'm trying it out atm.
Looks like it's gonna take a while so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
@Hugh Tyler it worked and I now got access to my account again. I'm so happy:D
Thank you so much you saved my account!
@Major Beckett happy to help xD
I stumbled on Wurth when shopping for smoothing caps. I really loved how much insight they gave into their products. As a non electrical engineer I really appreciate when companies do that and it's so awesome that they even sponsor channels like this.
Great Scott! That's what I say every time I see his penmanship. His freehand looks better than most fonts, and his wiring diagrams are cleaner than something in Fritzing!
This is a very helpful information dense video. It definitly earns a bookmark. Thanks for posting.
Thanks for the feedback :-)
gute nacht great scotty!
This is so helpful. I wish I could show this to every guitarist ever. Quantifies why different caps sound different.
I've been watching your videos for 2 years now and it's very interesting how I understand more and more of your in depth analysis as I go through my electrical engineering degree in college. Thank you for making quality videos and going so much more in depth than other videos. Huge fan!
Thank you for making English versions of your tutorials.
Same!
@michel777ification only one
I've been subscribed for a long time in this channel but once again Dr. Scott, you are the most gifted & amazing teacher in the whole world (at least currently).
You go so much deep into details & you videos are always slow paced, a visual feasting & they heat up the cold deep inside my heart & knowledge.
THANK YOU Sir.
I wish we had a way to show you our appreciation.
Thanks for the feedback :-)
I think it's fantastic the way you can use a sponsorship to explain something that actually is useful to know. Keep up with this kind of sponsors and with this tutorials.
You did a great job balancing sponsorship and content itself. Thanks.
I just learned more about capacitors in this video then in the last semester at uni (I study electronics). love the way you give examples where one can use the different types. would love to see other similar videos about different components
Me: slaps ceramic capacitor on everything
Seller: that will be one kidney and 19 cent
It's not that expensive
@@johnyang799 German fighter jet noise
@@blackturbine bruh how the hell are you using 1000 4.7uf film capacitors for rectification filtering
@@johnyang799 at that point something's wrong with the power supply
*more capacitor*
@@blackturbine moar!!!!
I had the same issue with a cyberdeck, I was curious what kind of a capacitor I should use and low and behold you’ve solved my problem! Thank you! 🎉
As usual very nice tutorial. I have over 40 years experience with electronics and still enjoy watching your videos. Thank you.
Wow
So much information dude....
It seems like engineering a capacitor is not that easy.
We use Würth tools at work and their quality is second to none, but I didn't know that Würth sell electronic components too. I'll be passing this info to my Boss tomorrow.
Thanks! :)
I always think why we use Different capacitor types in Induction motor(fan) and normally different. A great confusion gets sorted. Thank youh Great Scott
The quality of your videos is amazing, i only managed to understand like 30% of all the info on this video but some day i will do 100% :D Thanks and greetings from Mexiko!
Wow. I’ve been trying to get rid of fast spikes on my power rail and big electrolytics dont help beyond a certain point. I’ve been wondering about adding some small film caps and up comes your video! Brilliant.
What kind(s) of cap(s) of what value? Always look at the datasheet. From the TC4420 datasheet (cap values for most ICs are usually more definitively stated):
"The VDD input should be bypassed to ground with
a local ceramic capacitor. The value of the capacitor should be chosen based on the capacitive load that is being driven. A minimum value of 1.0 µF is suggested."
Late reply, the cap should be able to provide the capacitor load provided by the MOSFET Source Gate Junction. Higher load values require higher bypass cap values. For example, driving an International Rectifier IRF3805 is driving into a typical gate capacitance of 7.96 nF. At 100KHZ, this is considerable gate current. A 10nF (0.01uF) bypass cap is going to be inadequate. I worked on an inverter where one driver drove a bank of 4 of these transistors, so the minimum value of 1uF is a good start.
@@isettech sooo... Basically, read the data sheet again.
I got for free these set of capacitors. But it is a gift from a engineer to another engineer. Each capacitor has advantages/draw back that are clearly represented in the datasheets. Engineering is often making compromises.
Phenomenal content. I love how much detail is given to a seemingly simple subject. Great job, as usual.
I just wanted to take a second and thank Scott for all the great videos over the years vary easy to follow and vary helpful
Random Q&A a while ago
Question: would you make videos in German?
GreatScott: ...Nein
resistance is futile :^)
Perhaps the sponsor requires it
Link to the video and time stamp?
It was one of his Q&A videos.
@@Felix-ve9hs Damn BORG!
Thank you so much. Great video! This answered several questions for me.
I think this video could have gone on for another 30 minutes. Choosing the correct capacitor for a project is important based on what the circuit needs.
Very nicely done. I also selected the German video at first, and suddenly thought something went wrong with my iPad. 😂😂😂. I really think your videos are the best!!
This type of video may not gather quite the audience of your build videos, but they are extremely helpful for students.
More great vids like this please! Always a pleasure seeing electronics concepts broken down and explained well. Thanks! Stay awesome and I will see you next time!
That was the Video I looked for some months ago 😁. So I searched the web and found something I didn't understand much. But with the help of your video I understand a lot more now. Thank you for that😉
This is a great way to do sponsorships. We get to learn more about a general part and you get more revenue for your hard work. Win win in my book.
Ahhhh I found it in simple plain and understandable language!!
Yeepee!!
Wow... there's so much to keep track of when building electronics! I've only recently started playing around, and to do something as simple as lighten a LED on a button press requires me to watch a tutorial xD and I still have no idea what I've done after successfully turning on the LED...
Don't worry about me though, I have a fire extinguisher ready ;)
Excellent treatment of an often overlooked subject Scott. Nice one!
Realy a great video! This helps people that are non ee engineers a lot
I am with you! Well explained, Thanks :)
The 2nd E in EE stands for engineer btw
That's very very excellent content in video, the science behind the electronic component.
Thumbs up for Mr. GreatScott!!.
That is an awesome capacitor kit! My first thought was high frequency oscillating best to use ceramic. Electrolitics start “ringing” at high frequency creating additional oscillations. A transformer and capacitor would be the most effective in my thinking.
Awesome tutorial and great resource links. This is a good balance of education an sponsorship. The sponsorship is somewhat behind the scenes but that is goodwill for Würth and I will think of them when component searching. I hope they continue to support the channel.
Great tut. thanx! Now I'm more lively understand what is the parasitic resistance and understand _why_ not to use electrolytic caps for power filtering!
I really like the way you explain man, thanks :)
I love your channel!! Keep it up! It gives me all i need to learn about electricity, circuits and components!
This was really helpful for me, I am learning electronics.
Very fine video! I actually understood most of the theory for once. And thanks for the link to order free samples from Würth Electronik. I knew this procedure existed with other companies but always had trouble in the past. My foreign address or lack of a company name are the usual stumbling blocks. Had I known this procedure I could have avoided some of the $400 on various caps I just spent buying low volumes from several suppliers. More videos like this would be much appreciated!
Well explained (as usual) !
Wurth are a great company, we use them all the time.
Fair play for the video in German. It takes a lot of extra work, well done 😁
Great video! I appreciated the practical explanation of each type of capacitor. What is also interesting is the fact that the power supply was slower in providing the initial current than the capacitor.
Thanks for making the video.
18 hours ago???
Thankyou sir i think their must be some unexpected bug had came a while ago...but now m very thankful of you
Nicely done,even when you know this stuff. And the cap self resonant freq, yep had totally forgot about that, i think i've never considered it, but its totally useful to know.
I remember the first time I read a datasheet in school and saw timings in nanoseconds. I was hooked.
The pen execution is excellent
أشكرك وأقدر مجهودك ، تحياتي لك من تركيا .
Very precise drafting and handwriting.
"GREAT SCOTT" ole chap...Another great video !!
100 nF X7R bypass caps everywhere. Most of the time, they do their job pretty well. If more "not that instantaneous" energy is needed, add additional 1-10uF ceramic IN PARALLELE to the 100 nF bypass. E.g. for power regulation ICs, I put 100 nF at the in and out and an additional high-capacity cap in parallel at least to the output (mostly, both sides and low-esr electrolyte, 10-100 uF) .
Thanks a lot for this great webinar . It was indeed interesting and educationnal with , a cherry on the cake , your clearly writing
Got here from Adafruits Blog. Learned a lot thank you!
Wow, this was a really good video. I learned like three things that I didn't before, and didn't quite know how to ask.
I've come across caps from Würth Elektronik before on Conrad but i don't remember why i didn't choose them.
Looks like WE has neat demo kits and more components than i thought.
Würth connectors are also quite interesting, for example they make or made some high current PCB connectors that don't even need soldering.
Those kits look very handy to have around. I wonder how much they cost for hobbyists. I have used Würth products and they are great quality.
21 hours ago?
@@yasyasmarangoz3577 patreon
GBP £200+ your youngest child
Adam Bryant Wow... yeah as I expected, way out of my budget
WOW , good video !
i think it need to be in the basic playlist.
Very useful video. Thank you so much
Congratulations on 1M subscribers
I got to "I built this test track" then I got lost. It is not your fault, you explain very well, it is I who should review some electronics lessons ....
Great video, as always. Thanks!!!
Have you thought about creating a playlist featuring electronic projects that we can undertake at home to learn electronics, similar to school labs?
I liked it when scott tried to underline the datasheet with the phillips head screwdriver ....
can you recommend a video that covers what capacitors do in guitars?
Awesome! I've always wondered how big is too big.
Another great video
You are best teacher in the world.
I always wait for your next video. Thanks man
Thanks for the in-depth analysis. 🙏🏼
Excellent presentation and great refresher for me.
Nice video sir.. Make video on datasheet understanding how to study datasheet of any component
And study different properties of materials which use in components..
As always thanks for providing us with awesome videos. Just what I needed. Thanks
Super interesting! Can you also discuss about the difference between MKT, MKP type film capacitors? Their price seem to vary quite a lot. What are the practical differences?
Simply brilliant as always! Cheers.
Love this video's! For me 40% is too difficult. However I still like it a lot. Lezen a lot from these video's. Thanks you. Stay creative!
Damn dude, you are good. Always learning something new on your channel. Thanks!
That was a great explanation. Well done, and thank you very much.
wurth es una marca de reconocida calidad en herramientas , no sabia que tenia una división de electrónica , probablemente sean componentes de buena calidad
Greetings Scott.
I am from India and i have been watching your videos since the beginning of your channel and they all are very good, my request is that, can you make a video about FPGAs? A beginner's guide to FPGAs.
Vaibhav bhai can u sub to me
Thanks for an interesting video. Wurth has been promoting their products a lot recently on many electronics distributor websites. Time to check their annual report. Aaand, yupp, as expected, it's nice to see our European companies developing. Hoorah.
P.S. Add a 1K pulldown resistor between the MOS gate (connected to driver IC out) and ground. It helps stabilize the circuit and it discharges the gate faster allowing for greater frequencies and less noise (depending on the resistor package, trace width or wire length, etc).
Also, you could make a video on linear regulator types and stability. It's interesting how they behave depending on capacitance at the output. Some newer types are far more energy efficient but they easily become unstable to the point they require high ESR tantalum caps. I wonder what's the theory behind that...
Like, before watching the video. A fan from Italy.
dont forget lead/wire/trace inductance. As a general rule I put 100n caps near the power pin of chips and a larger electro or tantalum cap near the power connector of the cards I made for my TTL computer
just asking myself which capacitors to use on an audio project this morning. thanks!
Thanks for an awesome vid .
Btw I toke your advise and used jlcpcb. I am new to buying pcbs.. so I toke a mayor chance.. the program I use. (which I also recommend for pro beginners is circuit wiz. ) Had some things I was not sure would work in the Gerber file. So I sended them the Gerber to see if it was alright. It was... The service from jlcpcb is amasing..from start to finish a little over a week with shipment . I have now my new smart pcbs (in black 😁).. an the end result is magnificent...also the price So I wanted all to know.. also you great Scott, as you promoted it. I am excited for the next phase...so thanks Scott for the promotion.. 👍... I know this has not much to do with the current video...
Highly informative. Wish I understood more of it.
Very good description and analyze.
Did anyone notice a 'puff' of smoke rise when the LED lit up at the beginning of the video?
It's magic i guess xD
WOW!!!! one only can but wonder, where to buy those really beautiful heat sink inside of your power supply!!
It would be much easier if you use an inductor/choke before the drain-led-source trace. This way, the high frequency components are blocked from the driving side. I would also suggest the "bypassing capacitor" video from eevblog, which is more intuitive in a sense to differentiate various types of caps.
Thanks man
It was a very good explanation
Really nice! 😊
But what about low ESR electrolytic capacitors? 🤔
They still have a much higher ESR and ESL than ceramic or film capacitors, but are available in higher capacities. They can provide larger currents without getting too hot and also work up to a little higher frequency. There are also differences for different capacities, especially with ceramic capacitors, that are often used as bypass caps, datasheets of ICs with higher power requirement, like microcontrollers or FPGAs often show, that ceramic caps with different values are used in parallel, like 1µF and 100nF and 10nF, because they have different frequency characteristics and the lower capacity ones also have lower ESL and can filter higher frequencies.
Also Electrolytic capacitors are prone to fail in the long run due to leakage of the electrolyte. Just my 2cents
@@Conservator.
Not really, only the cheap ones.
@@user255 Even the expensive ones have somewhat limited usable life according to their dataheets. And you kinda have to choose between a long-life series or an otherwise higher performance one.
@@benbaselet2026
Well, depends on how you use the capacitor. Example the usable life can be determined by when the capacitance has dropped to certain percent of the original. If you take the changes in time into consideration, the circuit can work considerably longer than the life time given in the datasheet.
Have you tried synchronizing the LED to a camera in order to make a light that reduces motion blur? Then you can go into how to select a capacitor to deliver the current pulses.
A question
How did u learn all this about electronics
I want to ask the pathway of education through which u became so good in electronics
To reduce ESR with capacitors put two smaller values in parrellel incresing the capacitance but also reducing the ESR .
The way you draw on paper with out grid squares is sarisfying
@GreatScott! please make a video about metal oxide the varistor
please make a video on which *transistor* to use and videos on wireless projects
Which transistor to use? what like NPN or PNP???? and wireless = black magic! he probably doesn't want to sell his soul...
@@uggima1wooosh!!!!!
Thank you for a most excellent and informative video.