Electrolytic capacitor
Condensador electrolítico
- Date
- 1896 · confidence high
- Place
- Berlin, Germany
- Credited to
- Karol Pollak
- Field
- Matter & energy
What it is
Polish businessman Karol Pollak patented the electrolytic capacitor in Berlin in 1896: he discovered that the oxide layer on an aluminum anode remains stable in a neutral or slightly alkaline electrolyte even without current, and used it as a dielectric to achieve far higher capacitance than conventional capacitors.
What it led to
- Power supplies and electronic noise filtering
- Tantalum and niobium capacitors
- Miniaturization of power electronic circuits