Information

Design and specifi cations are subject to change without notice. Ask factory for technical specifi cations before purchase and/or use.
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Gold Capacitors Technical Guide
Principles and Operation of Gold Capacitors
2-1 What are Electric Double Layer capacitors?
In general, capacitors have a dielectric sandwiched between two opposing electrodes. An aluminum electrolytic
capacitor, as an example, uses an aluminum oxide fi lm, while a tantalum capacitor uses tantalum oxide fi lm as a
dielectric.
However, an electric double layer capacitor (EDLC) does not have a dielectric but uses a physical mechanism
that generates a double electric fi eld which acts like a dielectric, hence the name Electric Double Layer Capacitor.
Charging-discharging occurs in the ion absorption layer which is formed on the surfaces of the positive and negative
electrodes of activated carbon.
There are 2 types of electrolytes used by EDLC manufacturers. One is water-soluble and the other is non-water
soluble. The non-water soluble electrolyte can increase the withstand voltage per cell compared to that of a water-
soluble electrolyte. Panasonic’s Gold Capacitors are made with non-water soluble electrolytes, and feature a small
size and light weight.
The capacitance range of a Gold Capacitor is mid-range between an aluminum electrolytic capacitor and a
secondary battery. A Gold Capacitor is mostly used as a back up for a battery or a secondary battery.
Smaller Gold Capacitors with greater capacitance can be used in memory back up for microcomputer’s RAM during
power failure. Equipment that can also use a Gold Capacitor during power failures include video recorders, DVD
players, fax machines, telephones, digital still cameras, mobile phones, audio stereo systems, etc. Capacitors for
hybrid power sources combined with solar cells are also becoming popular because of the nuisance of exchanging
primary cells. Having a device that uses a Gold Capacitor is very convenient for users in areas where batteries
cannot easily be obtained.