When two unequal condensers are connected in parallel, what happens to the total capacity?

When two unequal capacitors are connected in parallel, the total capacitance is simply the sum of the individual capacitances. This principle stems from the way capacitors store charge. Each capacitor adds its ability to store charge to the circuit, which effectively increases the overall capacitance.

Therefore, if you have two capacitors, regardless of their values, the total capacitance in a parallel connection is increased because the capacitors share the same voltage across them and contribute to the total stored charge. Mathematically, this can be expressed as:

Total Capacitance (C_total) = C1 + C2

where C1 and C2 are the capacitances of the individual capacitors. This addition continues regardless of whether the capacitors are equal or unequal. As a result, it can be concluded that the total capacity indeed increases.