Glossary

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W

W

Designation for outdoor listed flexible cord that is tested against sunlight requirements (e.g., STW).

W (Type)

An industry designation for a 2kV portable power cable consisting of 1 – 6 insulated conductors. For use in mines and similar severe duty applications.

wafer

(material/component) A thin, polished slice of single crystal silicon, on which monolithic integrated circuits are fabricated. See also substrate.

warp

(property) Dimensional change in a molded, extruded, formed, or fabricated plastic part after processing.

Water Resistant

UL designation for cords that have an insulation on the individual conductors that passes UL requirements (e.g., ST Water Resistant or ST Dry 105°C, Water Resistant 60°C).

watt

(measurement) Abbreviated W. The practical unit of electric power. In a dc circuit, the power in watts is equal to voltage multiplied by current. In an ac circuit, the true power in watts is effective voltage multiplied by effective current, then multiplied by the circuit power factor. There are 746 watts in 1 horsepower.

wattage rating

(electrical) A rating expressing the maximum power that a device can safely handle continuously.

Wavelength

The distance a wave travels to oscillate through one complete cycle.

wave soldering

(process) An automatic soldering method whereby the molten solder is pumped from a reservoir through a spout to form a head or wave. The board is then passed over the wave by a conveyor.

W crimp

(terminal) Used on SOLISTRAND* terminals. A confined type of crimp that makes two longitudinal indentations which form a “W” cross section.

wedge bond

(process) A metal to metal lead bond formed with a wedge-shaped tool. The bond itself may be a cold weld, an ultrasonic or a thermal compression bond.

welded circuit

(circuit) A circuit made up of electronic parts which have their leads interconnected by welding techniques.

wicking

(process) Capillary absorption of liquid (including water) along the fibers of the base material. The flow of solder along the strands and under the insulation of stranded lead wire.

wiping action

(product feature) The action which occurs when contacts are mated with a sliding motion. Wiping has the effect of removing small amounts of contamination from the contact surfaces, thus establishing better conductivity. See also contact wipe.

wire

(component) A single bare or insulated metallic conductor having solid, stranded, or tinsel construction, designed to carry current in an electric circuit.

wire barrel

(terminal) See barrel.

wire crimp

(terminal) See crimp.

wire nut

(component) A form of closed end splice, that is screwed on instead of being crimped.

wire size

(measurement) See American Wire Gauge, and circular mil area.

wire stop

(terminal) A stop at the end of a terminal wire barrel to prevent wire from passing completely through the barrel in such a way as to interfere with the function of the contact.

Wire Wrap

(terminal) Trademark of the Gardner-Denver Corp for a wrap-type termination. See also wrap type.

withstanding voltage

(connector) Test voltage which an electrical connector shall withstand for one minute without showing evidence of electrical breakdown when the voltage is applied between conductors and grounding devices of the connectors in various combinations.

work harden

(process) The hardening of metal from pressure or bending. When the metal gets too hard it becomes brittle.

wrap type

(termination) Method of connecting a solid wire to a square, rectangular, or V-shaped terminal post by tightly wrapping or winding the wire around it with a special automatic or hand-operated tool.