Basic? Electronics question

[Nigel (UK)]

(08-09-2021 03:51 PM)KeithB Wrote:  I know how RC circuits work.
I was under the mistaken belief that as it charged, the input current would be more than the output current, with the excess current supplying the charge to charge(heh!) the capacitor.

The idea of a capacitor charging can be misleading. In fact, the total charge on a capacitor is zero, whether it is charged or uncharged! In the equation \(Q=V\times C\), \(Q\) isn't the total charge "stored" in the capacitor; rather, it is the "amount" of charge on each plate. One plate has charge \(+Q\) while the other has charge \(-Q\), giving a total of zero.

Nigel (UK)