History of electrochemistry
In 1789, Franz Aepinus developed a device with the properties of a "condenser" (now known as a capacitor.) The Aepinus condenser was the first capacitor developed after the Leyden jar, and was used to demonstrate conduction and induction. The device was constructed so that the space between two plates could be adjusted, and the glass dielectric separating the two plates could be removed or replaced with other materials.
Niobium capacitor
Niobium capacitors were developed in the United States as well as in the Soviet Union in the 1960s. Since 2002 they have been commercially available in the West to take advantage of the lower cost and better availability of niobium compared with tantalum.