We Can Figure This Out.org
Virtual Lab: Capacitor Water Tank Analogy
University of Virginia
           
 
© 2003-Present, John C. Bean
 
This represents a circuit. In this movie, the gerbil running in its wheel and the bucket pump are the equivalent of a battery. The water represents the flowing electrons. The membrane in the middle is the circuit’s capacitor. The spinning waterwheel represents the resistor which powers the light bulb.

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