ELECTRICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

What is an Optical Fiber?   An optical fiber (or optical fibre) is a flexible, transparent fiber made of a pure glass (silica) not much wider than a human hair. It functions as a waveguide, or "light pipe", to transmit light between the two ends of the fiber.[1] The field of applied science and engineering concerned with the design and application of optical fibers is known as fiber optics. Optical fibers are widely used in fiber-optic communications, which permits transmission over longer distances and at higher bandwidths (data rates) than other forms of communication. Fibers are used instead of metal wires because signals travel along them with less loss and are also immune to electromagnetic interference. continue.. History of Fiber Optics?   Optical communication systems date back two centuries, to the "optical telegraph" that French engineer Claude Chappe invented in the 1790s. His system was a series of semaphores mounted on towers, where human operators ...

What is a Wire?   A wire is a single, usually cylindrical, flexible strand or rod of metal. Wires are used to bear mechanical loads and to carry electricity and telecommunications signals. Wire is commonly formed by drawing the metal through a hole in a die or draw plate. Standard sizes are determined by various wire gauges. The term wire is also used more loosely to refer to a bundle of such strands, as in 'multistranded wire', which is more correctly termed a wire rope in mechanics, or a cable in electricity. continue.. FAQs on Wire Types and Sizes   Most electrical wire is covered in a rubber or plastic coating called insulation. What is the purpose of having this ïnsulation" covering the metal wire? In the early days of electrical wiring, wires used to be insulated with cotton. This is no longer accepted practice. Explain why. Electrical wire is often rated according to its cross-sectional diameter by a gauge scale. Which is the larger-diameter wire size, 14 ...