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Glossary of Terms

Gain – The increase of voltage, current, or power over a standard or previous reading. Usually expressed in decibels.

Gauge – A term used to denote the physical size of a wire.

Gender – A generic term referring to the male or female orientation of a connector, housing, plug or socket.

Geophysical Cable – Cable used in exploring for underground oil deposits.

Gigahertz (GHz) – A unit of frequency equal to one billion hertz.

Goldflash - The least expensive type of gold contact plating available.

GND – Abbreviation for Ground.

Graded-Index – A type f optical fiber in which the refractive index of the core is in the form of a parabolic curve, decreasing toward cladding. This type of fiber provides high bandwidth capabilities.

Ground – An electrical connection to the earth, generally through a ground rod. Also a common return to a point of zero potential, such as the metal chassis in radio equipment.

Ground Loop – A completed circuit between shielded pairs of a multiple pair created by random contact between shields. An undesirable circuit condition in which interference is created by ground currents when grounds are connected at more than one point.

Ground Potential – The potential of the earth. A circuit, terminal, or chassis is said to be at ground potential when it is used as a reference point for other potentials in the system.

H – Symbol designation for magnetic intensity and henry.

Hardware - A general term used to describe the thumbscrews, nuts, washers, etc. that accompany cable assemblies.

Harness – A group of wires and cables, usually made with breakouts, which are tied together or pulled into a rubber or plastic sheath, and are used to interconnect electric circuits.

Headroom – The amount by which a cable ACR exceeds 10 dB. The TIA/EIA 568B standard states a minimum of 10 dB of ACR is required for Category 5 certification.

Henry – A practical unit of inductance that will produce a voltage drop of one volt when the current changes at the rate of one ampere per second (abbreviated H).

Hertz (Hz) – The unit of frequency, one cycle per second.

HF – High Frequency.

Hi Pot – A dielectric strength test that tests the insulation between two circuits.

High Frequency – The band from 3 to 30 MHz in the radio spectrum, as designated by the Federal Communications Commission.

Hum – A term used to describe the 60- or 120 cycle per second noise present in the sound of some communications equipment. Usually hum is the result of undesired coupling to a 60 cycle source or to the defective filtering of 120 cycle ripple output of a rectifier.

I – Symbol used to designate current.

I2R – Formula for power in watts, where I=current in amperes, R=resistance in ohms. Also see watt.

IF – Abbreviation for Intermediate Frequency.

Impedance – The total opposition a circuit, cable, or component offers to alternating current flow. It includes both resistance and reactance and is generally expressed in ohms and designated by the symbol z.

Impedance, Characteristic – In a transmission cable of infinite length, the ratio of the applied voltage to the resultant current at the point the voltage is applied. Or the impedance which makes a transmission cable seem infinitely long, when connected across the cable's output terminals.

Impedance, High – Generally, the area of 25,000 ohms or higher.

Impedance, Low -- Generally, the area of 1 through 600 ohms.

Impedance Match – A condition whereby the impedance of a particular circuit cable or component is the same as the impedance of the circuit, cable, or device to which it is connected.

Impedance Matching Sub – A section of transmission line or pair of conductors cut to match the impedance of a load. Also called matching sub.

Inductance – A property of a conductor or circuit which resists a change in current. It causes current changes to lag behind voltage changes and is measured in henrys.

Induction – The phenomenon of a voltage, magnetic field, or electrostatic charge being produced in an object by lines of force from the source of such fields.

Induction Heating – Heating a conducting material by placing it in a rapidly changing magnetic field. The changing field induces electric currents in the material and I2Rlosses account for the resultant heat.

Injection Laser Diode – Sometimes called the semiconductor diode. A laser in which the lasing occurs at the junction of n-type and p-type semiconductor materials.

Input – A signal (or power) which is applied to a piece of electric apparatus or the terminals on the apparatus to which a signal or power is applied.

Insertion Force – The force required to insert a connector housing into its final position in a printed circuit board or panel cut out.

Insertion Loss – A measure of the attenuation of a device by determining the output of a system before and after the device is inserted into the system.

Insulation – A material having good dielectric properties which is used to separate close electrical components, such as cable conductors and circuit components.

Insulation Displacement Technology (IDT) – A wire termination technique in which an insulated wire is pressed into a terminal slot smaller that the conductor diameter, displacing the insulation, and forming an electrical contact between the terminal and the conductor.

Insulation Stress – The molecule separation pressure caused by a potential difference across an insulator. The practical stress on insulation is expressed in volts per mil.

Interface – The region where two systems or a major and a minor system meet and interact with each other.

Interference – Disturbances of an electrical or electromagnetic nature that introduces undesirable responses into other electronic equipment.

Intermediate Frequency – A frequency to which a signal is converted for ease of handling. Receives its name from the fact that it is an intermediate step between the initial and final conversion or detection stages.

Inventory - The quantity of goods or materials on hand; the act or process of listing what is in stock.

Invoice - An itemized list of goods shipped specifying the price, freight, and payment terms of the sale.

Ionization – The formation of ions. Ions are produced when polar compounds are dissolved in a solvent and when a liquid, gas, or solid is caused to lose or gain electrons due to the passage of an electric current.

Ionization Voltage – The potential at which a material ionizes. The potential at which an atom gives up an electron.

ICEA – Insulated Cable Engineers Association.

IR Drop – The designation of a voltage drop in terms of current and resistance.

IRS – Abbreviation for Ignition Radiation Suppression.

Isolation – The ability of a circuit or component to reject interference, usually expressed in dB.

Jacket – Pertaining to wire and cable, the outer protective covering (may also provide additional insulation).

Jackscrew – A screw attached to one-half of a two-piece, multiple-contact connector and used to draw and secure both halves together and to separate them.

KEV – 1000 electron volts.

Keying - A mechanical arrangement of inserts and/or shell configurations (referred to as clocking in some instances) that prohibits the mating of mismatched plugs and receptacles. This allows connectors of the same size to be lined up, side-by-side, with no danger of making the wrong connection.

Kilo – Prefix meaning thousand.

Kit or Kitting – A product classification based on supplying components to the factory for manufacturing the entire assembly or the process of assembling components into one unit (known as "kitting").

Kit List – A list of the components required to complete an assembly or unit.

KPSI – Tensile strength in thousands of pounds per square inch.

KV – Abbreviation for Kilovolt (1000 volts).

KVA – Abbreviation for Kilovolt ampere.

KW – Abbreviation for Kilowatt.