What is the ability of a capacitor to store a charge called?

The ability of a capacitor to store a charge is known as capacitance. This characteristic is defined as the amount of electric charge a capacitor can hold per unit voltage across its plates. Capacitance is measured in farads, where one farad represents a capacitor that stores one coulomb of charge at one volt. This property is fundamental to how capacitors function in circuits, allowing them to temporarily store energy and release it when needed.

The term "resistance" refers to the opposition to the flow of electric current, which differs fundamentally from the concept of capacitance. "Voltage rating" is a measure of the maximum voltage a capacitor can withstand without breaking down but does not indicate its ability to store charge. "Permittivity" relates to the property of a material that affects how electric fields interact with it, influencing the capacitance of a capacitor but not defining its ability to store charge directly. Understanding these distinctions helps clarify the correct identification of capacitance as the measure of a capacitor's charge storage capability.