Which of the following factors does NOT affect the capacitance of a capacitor?

Capacitance is fundamentally determined by the physical characteristics of the capacitor and the materials used. The area of the plates is directly proportional to capacitance; larger plates can store more charge. The spacing between the plates inversely affects capacitance; as this distance increases, the ability of the capacitor to store charge diminishes. The type of dielectric material also plays a critical role since different materials have varying dielectric constants, which influence how much charge can be stored for a given voltage.

Temperature, while it can affect the performance of a capacitor, does not fundamentally change the capacitance value itself in the way the other factors do. Changes in temperature can lead to variations in the materials' electrical properties and thus impact overall performance, but they do not alter the inherent capacitance as determined by the physical structure and materials used in the capacitor's design. Therefore, this makes it the correct choice for the factor that does not directly affect capacitance.