Translations:Introduction to Dielectricity & Capacitance (Eric P. Dollard)/32/en

Misconceptions of Present Theory of Capacitance

The misconception that capacitance is the result of accumulating electrons has seriously distorted our view of dielectric phenomena. Also the theory of the velocity of light as a limit of energy flow, while adequate for magnetic force and material velocity, limits our ability to visualize or understand certain possibilities in electric phenomena. The true workings of free space capacitance can be best illustrated by the following example. It has been previously stated that dielectric lines of force must terminate on conductors. No line of force can end in space. If we take any conductor and remove it to the most remote portion of the universe, no lines of force can extend from this electrode to other conductors. It can have no free space capacity, regardless of the size of the electrode, therefore it can store no energy. This indicates that the free space capacitance of an object is the sum mutual capacity of it to all the conducting objects of the universe.