Medical Device Simulators · Interactive Lab
Defibrillator Simulator
Change the capacitor capacitance and charge voltage to observe the energy stored in a defibrillator's capacitor bank.
Parameters
Use the controls or enter precise values.
10 µF200 µF
500 V3000 V
Why these controls?
Capacitance and charge voltage are the two ingredients of stored energy. Move them to test E = ½CV² — for example, why doubling the voltage quadruples the stored energy while doubling the capacitance only doubles it.
Calculated result
Stored capacitor energy
Stored energy
200.0
J
½ · 1.00e-4 F · 2000² V²
- Capacitance
- 100 µF
- Charge voltage
- 2000 V
Energy vs. voltage
Capacitance fixed at 100 µF — quadratic curve
Energy vs. capacitance
Voltage fixed at 2000 V — linear curve
Formula
E = ½ · C · V²
- E = stored energy in joules (J)
- C = capacitance in farads (F) — entered in microfarads (µF)
- V = charge voltage in volts (V)
Assumptions & safety notes
- The capacitor is ideal: no leakage, no equivalent series resistance, no dielectric losses.
- The value shown is the energy stored in the capacitor — it is NOT the energy delivered to the patient. Real defibrillators deliver only a fraction of the stored energy through the patient circuit.
- Waveform shape (monophasic/biphasic), inductor losses and patient impedance are neglected.
- This simulator does NOT recommend treatment energies. Clinical energy selection follows current resuscitation guidelines and device instructions.