Why can a banana peel be used to scroll on my phone?
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A capacitor is 2 conductive parts with an insulator between them that doesn’t let the conductors touch and equalize their electrical charge. The closer the conductors get without touching, the higher the capacitance is (more charge can be stored). The surface area of the conductors also matters, bigger surface can hold more charge.
A capacitive sensor works by attempting to charge a conductor that’s usually under an insulator. When you touch it with anything conductive, the sensor notices that it could send more charge to its own conductor than usual and can send a signal to the device.
A phone’s screen is an advanced capacitive sensor that can measure more precise changes than a simple switch, that being the location where you touch, sometimes surface area and pressure. Banana peels conduct electricity, so they trigger the sensor. Depending on the sensitivity, sometimes even a graphite pencil can trigger it, letting you draw with a regular pencil on a touchscreen
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