Tinsel wire is a type of
electrical
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...
wire
file:Sample cross-section of high tension power (pylon) line.jpg, Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample d ...
used for applications that require high mechanical flexibility but low
current-carrying capacity. Tinsel wire is commonly used in cords of
telephone
A telephone, colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that enables two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most ...
s,
handsets,
headphones
Headphones are a pair of small loudspeaker drivers worn on or around the head over a user's ears. They are electroacoustic transducers, which convert an electrical signal to a corresponding sound. Headphones let a single user listen to an ...
, and small electrical appliances. It is far more resistant to
metal fatigue
In materials science, fatigue is the initiation and propagation of cracks in a material due to cyclic loading. Once a fatigue crack has initiated, it grows a small amount with each loading cycle, typically producing striation (fatigue), striati ...
failure than either
stranded wire or
solid wire.
Construction
Tinsel wire is produced by wrapping several strands of thin metal
foil
Foil may refer to:
Materials
* Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine
* Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal
* Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food
* Tin foil, metal foil ma ...
around a flexible nylon or
textile
Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...
core. Because the foil is very thin, the
bend radius imposed on the foil is much greater than the thickness of the foil, leading to a low probability of
metal fatigue
In materials science, fatigue is the initiation and propagation of cracks in a material due to cyclic loading. Once a fatigue crack has initiated, it grows a small amount with each loading cycle, typically producing striation (fatigue), striati ...
. Meanwhile, the core provides high
tensile strength
Ultimate tensile strength (also called UTS, tensile strength, TS, ultimate strength or F_\text in notation) is the maximum stress that a material can withstand while being stretched or pulled before breaking. In brittle materials, the ultimate ...
without impairing flexibility.
Typically, multiple tinsel wires are jacketed with an insulating layer to form one conductor. A cord is formed from several conductors in either a round profile or a flat cable.
Connections
Tinsel wire is commonly connected to equipment with
crimped terminal lugs that pierce the
insulation to make contact with the metal ribbons, rather than stripping insulation. Separated from the core, the individual ribbons are relatively fragile, and the core can be damaged by high temperatures. These factors make it difficult or impractical to terminate tinsel wire by
soldering
Soldering (; ) is a process of joining two metal surfaces together using a filler metal called solder. The soldering process involves heating the surfaces to be joined and melting the solder, which is then allowed to cool and solidify, creatin ...
during equipment manufacture, although soldering is possible, with some difficulty, to repair a failed connection. However, the conductors tend to break at their junction with the rigid solder.
Applications
Tinsel wires or cords are used for telephony and audio applications in which frequent
bending
In applied mechanics, bending (also known as flexure) characterizes the behavior of a slender structural element subjected to an external Structural load, load applied perpendicularly to a longitudinal axis of the element.
The structural eleme ...
of electric cords occurs, such as for
headsets and telephone handsets. It is also used in power cords for small appliances such as electric shavers or clocks, where stranded cable conductors of adequate mechanical size would be too stiff.
[G. F. Moore (ed) ''Electric cables handbook third edition'', Blackwell Science, 1997 , page 234] Tinsel cords are recognized as type TPT or TST in the US and Canadian electrical codes, and are rated at 0.5 amperes.
Manufacturers and suppliers
*
Maeden
* Dacon Systems, Inc.
* Gavitt Wire & Cable Co., Inc.
See also
*
Litz wire
References
{{reflist
Electrical wiring
Telephony equipment