Stranded wire
From Free net encyclopedia
Image:Stranded lamp wire.jpg Stranded wire is composed of a bundle of small-gauge wires wrapped in a single piece of insulation to make a larger conductor. Stranded wire is more flexible than a single, thick strand of the same gauge. It is commonly used for electrical applications carrying audio, video, or computer data signals and for power cables between an appliance and the wall outlet. Usually house wiring is done with single strand wire because there is normally no movement of wires inside walls, and thus no danger of those wires breaking owing to fatigue. If wires/cables are subject to frequent movement, then often a complete breakage can be prevented for some time by frequent inspection, which is required to see if any of the strands have been broken. If so, then the wire/cable should be replaced as soon as possible.
Stranded wire ("Litz wire") can be used in coils that are used as inductors in high-frequency tuned circuits, because at high frequencies electricity travels near the outside of the wire. This is called the skin effect.