Series and Parallel Combination of Capacitors

Series Capacitors:
When capacitors are connected in series the equivalent capacitance is less than any of the individual capacitors’ capacitance. For example if 3 capacitors of 3F , 4F and 5F capacitance respectively are connected in series the equivalent capacitance will be smaller than 3F and hence smaller than 4F and 5F as well. The capacitors in series behave as resistors in parallel. If n number of Capacitors are connected in series their equivalent Capacitance will be given by:

1/C_eq = 1/C₁ + 1/C₂ + … + 1/C_n

Parallel Capacitors:
When capacitors are connected in parallel the equivalent capacitance is equal to the sum of all individual capacitance i.e. they behave like resistors in series. If n number of Capacitors are connected in parallel their equivalent Capacitance will be given by:

C_eq = C₁ + C₂ + … + C_n