Glossary

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B

Back Mounted

(connector) A connector attached to the inside of a panel or box with its mounting flanges inside the equipment.

Backbone

The part of the network that carries the heaviest traffic. It is the main trunk cable from which all connections to the network are made.

Bail Lock

(accessory/hardware) Spring members which are attached to the connector flanges and used to hold mated connectors together.

Balanced Line

(circuit) A two-conductor line in which both conductors have the same impedance with respect to ground. Since noise pickup is equal on both conductors, common-mode interference is cancelled at the load.

Ballast

(component) An impedor, used to stabilize the current in the circuit.

Balun

(Balanced/ Unbalanced) An impedance matching device to connect balanced twisted pair cabling with unbalanced coaxial cable.

Ball Bond

(process/IC) A type of thermo compression bond in which a gold wire is flame-cut to produce a ball-shaped end. The ball-shaped end is then bonded to a metal pad by pressure and heat.

Bandwidth

The data-carrying capacity of a transmission medium, usually measured in hertz (Hz) which equals cycles per second.

Barrel

(terminal) The portion(s) of a terminal, splice, or contact that is crimped. When designed to receive the conductor, it is called the wire barrel. When designed to support or grip the insulation, it is called the insulation barrel. Wire and/or insulation barrels may be either “open” or “closed” in design. Closed barrels resemble a hollow cylinder into which the wire must be inserted. Open barrels are formed into an open “U” and are common to most strip terminals manufactured by AMP Incorporated.

Barrier Block

(component) See terminal strip.

Base

(IC) An insulating support for the printed pattern. It may be of flexible or rigid material.

Baseband signal

(electrical) A signal transmitted at its original frequency, without modulation.

Base metal

(material) Metal from which the product or accessory is made, and on which one or more platings or coatings may be deposited.

Bayonet Coupling

(product feature) A quick coupling device for circular plug and receptacle connectors. Pins projecting from the outside of the cylindrical receptacle engage with corresponding cam slots in the bayonet plug.

Beam Lead

(component feature) A particular connection lead to a silicon chip. Consists of a lead formed on and attached to a chip by chemical and electrical processes. The lead is cantilevered beyond the edge of the completed chip to permit bonding to an interconnecting conductor pattern.

Bell Mouth

(terminal) Flared at the mouth. The rear of a properly crimped wire barrel will have a slight flare (bellmouth) to relieve the strain on the wire strands as they leave the area of high compression and take their natural “lay.” Bellmouth may also be present on the front of the wire barrel.

Bend Radius

Radius of curvature that a wire or multi conductor cable is flexed.

Bezel

(keyboards) The frame (usually plastic) that holds the keyboard together and provides for key mounting and a general framework.

Bias Voltage

(circuit) A voltage used to establish the desired dc operating voltage for a semiconductor. Generally refers to the base voltage.

bifurcated Contact

(product feature) A spring contact that has been split lengthwise to provide two independent contact surfaces. This redundancy assures two points of contact with the mating conductor element.

Binder

A tape or thread used for holding assembled cable components in place.

Birmingham Wire Gauge

(BWG) (measurement) The Birmingham Wire Gauge was used extensively in Great Britain and the United States for many years, but is now obsolete. Its uses have persisted, however, for certain purposes including galvanized steel wire for cable armor.

Bi-Stable

(circuit) Having two stable electrical states. A bistable circuit will remain in either state indefinitely, until an external signal switches it to the other state. A flip-flop is an example of a circuit with this property.

Black Box

(circuit/system) A term used loosely to refer to any assembly or subassembly, usually electronic, that can readily be installed or removed from a specific location in a larger system by an operator not familiar with its detailed internal structure.

Blistering

(printed circuit/plastics) A localized swelling and separation between any of the layers of the printed circuit base laminate and/or between the laminate and the metal cladding. Also, similar swelling in molded parts.

BNC Series

(connector) A radio frequency connector covered by Military Specification. It has an impedance of 50 ohms, and is designed to operate in the 0 to 4 GHz frequency range. Quick connect/disconnect is featured by a pin and cam bayonet coupling.

Bobbin

(component) A part having one or more flanges connected to a barrel in a spool configuration. It may be any one of a number of round, square, oval, or rectangular configurations on which magnet wire is spirally wound into a coil.

Body

(connector) Main, or largest, portion of a connector, to which other portions are attached.

Bonding

(circuit) The permanent connecting of two metal parts to provide a low resistance path across the junction.

Bonding Pad

(component feature) Metallized areas on the surface of a semiconductor device, wafer, or die, to which electrical leads may be connected or probes applied.

Bond Strength

(test/property) A measure of the stress required to separate a layer of material from the base to which it is bonded. It is measured in pounds per square inch of width (peel strength) obtained by peeling the layer, and in pounds per square inch (pull strength) obtained by a perpendicular pull applied to a surface of the layer. Often used to describe the adhesion of a printed circuit path to the basic board material.

Bootstrap

(circuit) A feedback technique which tends to improve linearity and input impedance of circuits operating over a wide range of input signal with a larger, more sophisticated program.

Braid

A weave of metal fibers used as a shield covering for an insulated conductor or group of insulated conductors. When flattened it may be used as a grounding strap.

Branched

(process) Chemistry term referring to side chains attached to original chain (in a direction different from that of the original chain) in molecular structure of polymers.

Breadboard

(circuit) A test board on which components are mounted to test the feasibility of prototype circuitry.

Breadboard Circuit

(circuit) A circuit simulation using discrete components or partially integrated components to prove feasibility of a circuit.

Breakdown Voltage

The voltage at which the insulation between two conductors breaks down.

British Standard Wire Gauge

(measurement) A modification of the Birmingham Wire Gauge and the legal standard of Great Britain for all wires. It is variously known as Standard Wire Gauge (SWG), New British Standard (NBS), English Legal Standard, and Imperial Wire Gauge.

Broadband EMI

(electrical) Interference generated over a wide range of frequencies. For example, automotive ignition noise.

Broadband Signal

(electrical) A signal transmitted by being impressed on a higher frequency carrier wave.

Brush

(component) A conductor, usually composed in part of some form of the element carbon, serving to maintain an electrical connection between stationary and moving parts of a motor or apparatus.

B&S

(abbreviation/standard) Brown & Sharpe Gauge, a wire diameter standard that is the same as AWG.

“B” Stage

(of resin process) The condition of a resin polymer when it is more viscous, with higher molecular weight, being insoluble but plastic and fusible.

Buffer

The material that surrounds the fiber cladding or wires

Bulkhead

(connector) A term used to define a mounting style of connectors. Bulkhead connectors are designed to be inserted into a panel cutout from the rear (component side) of the panel.

Buna Rubber

(material) See Nitrile-Butadiene Rubber and Styrene-Butadiene Rubber.

Bunch Stranding

A group of wires of the same diameter twisted together without a predetermined pattern.

Burn In

(circuit) Operation of a circuit or equipment to stabilize all components and reduce failure rates.

Bus Bar

(circuit) A heavy bar or strap (usually of copper) for carrying heavy currents, or serving as a common connection between several circuits.

Bus Network

(network) A network topology in which nodes are all connected to a single line serving as the bus.

Bus Reactor

(circuit) A current limiting reactor connected between two buses, or between two sections of one bus, to limit and localize any disturbance caused by either bus (or bus section).

Butt

(electrical) When two conductors are placed together end-to-end with their axes in line, but not overlapping.

Butt Splice

(electrical) A splice wherein two wires from opposite ends butt against each other, or against a stop, in the center of the splice.

Bypass Filter

(electrical) A filter or capacitor that provides a low impedance path for high frequencies around a circuit element such as an integrated circuit.