Charging graphs: current decays, charge and p.d. rise

Capacitance & Charge/Discharge — AQA A-Level Physics

When charging through a resistor from a battery:
Electrons are pushed from the positive plate to the negative plate by the powerThe rate of energy transfer. Measured in watts (W). supply.
At first, the currentThe rate of flow of chargeA property of matter that causes it to experience a force in an electromagnetic field. Measured in coulombs (C).. Measured in amperes (A). is large because there is little repulsion on the plates.
As chargeA property of matter that causes it to experience a force in an electromagnetic field. Measured in coulombs (C). builds up, the repulsion increases and the currentThe rate of flow of chargeA property of matter that causes it to experience a force in an electromagnetic field. Measured in coulombs (C).. Measured in amperes (A). drops.
The currentThe rate of flow of charge. Measured in amperes (A). decreases exponentially to zero.
The charge and p.d. increase exponentially from zero towards their maximum values (Q0 and V0).

Key features of charging graphs

Current vs time: starts at I0, decays exponentially to zero.
Charge vs time: starts at 0, rises exponentially towards Q0.
P.d. vs time: identical shape to charge vs time -- starts at 0, rises towards V0.
The charge and p.d. graphs have the same shape because Q is directly proportional to V ($C = Q/V)$.