What is Wire: Definition and 1000 Discussions

A wire is a single usually cylindrical, flexible strand or rod of metal. Wires are used to bear mechanical loads or electricity and telecommunications signals. Wire is commonly formed by drawing the metal through a hole in a die or draw plate. Wire gauges come in various standard sizes, as expressed in terms of a gauge number. 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.
Wire comes in solid core, stranded, or braided forms. Although usually circular in cross-section, wire can be made in square, hexagonal, flattened rectangular, or other cross-sections, either for decorative purposes, or for technical purposes such as high-efficiency voice coils in loudspeakers. Edge-wound coil springs, such as the Slinky toy, are made of special flattened wire.

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  1. E

    Problem on the magnetic force on a wire

    Homework Statement A wire 42.1 cm long carries a 0.660 A current in the positive direction of an x-axis through a magnetic field with an x component of zero, a y component of 0.000330 T, and a z component of 0.00840 T. Find the (a) x, (b) y, and (c) z components of the magnetic force on the...
  2. F

    What is the resistivity of a copper wire with given dimensions and length?

    Homework Statement A number 12 copper wire has a diameter of 2.053mm. Calculate the resistance of a 31m long piece of such wire. Use rho=1.72x10-8 Ohm-m for the resistivity of copper. Homework Equations This is the part that I am unsure of, all of my equations for resistivity do not...
  3. R

    How can 2 signals go thru copper wire?

    talking to someone about direct tv systems, how they talk between HD boxes over the rg6 coax line one person said one part sends a signal and it travels down the center of the center coax conductor and another signal going the other way travels down the outer part of the conductor, the surface...
  4. R

    Wheatstone bridge arrangement with an ideal wire in middle

    Homework Statement I came across this questions in one of the online entrance tests,so i do not remember the exact values,I remembered the arrangement. ________________ |... |...| |... A...C 2v...|--------| (Please ignore the dots,they are to prevent...
  5. T

    Strong Steel wire but an elastic spring? Why?

    The steel wire can withstand strong tensile stress, but when the steel wire is being coiled into a spring it can be an elastic spring. Why is this? Can this be proven mathematically?
  6. D

    Problem regardin an elastic wire.

    Homework Statement An elastic wire has the folowing charcteristics:initial length l_0=60cm,section S=6mm^2,Young's Modulus E=\frac{12MN}{m^-2}.Initially the wire has both ends fixed. Its initial position is horizontal, untensioned. At the middle of the wire it's hanged a body that produces an...
  7. P

    Question about flow of electrons along wire.

    I know that electrons flow across the wire from the source to the receiver, but would it be possible to keep these electrons on the wire after disconnecting the source and receiver?
  8. E

    Understanding Magnet Wire: Differences and Uses

    What is "magnet wire"? I have a test procedure I am trying to follow and it calls for "two strands of twisted magnet wire." I know it is referring to something like this: http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXHZW4&P=FR I know the transmission line characteristics of twisted...
  9. C

    Current Induced in a Wire

    If a wire moves with some constant velocity (4 m/s for example in the diagram) parallel to the direction of the wire itself (unlike in most physics problems in which you drag a wire 'sideways' or perpendicular to the direction of the wire) but still perpendicular to the magnetic field, what is...
  10. Q

    Understanding Voltage Drop in Wires: Causes and Solutions

    Hi Why is there a voltage drop in a wire when there is a high current flowing ?. Is this due to the electrons colliding with the lattice which causes the kinetic energy that the electrons have gained trough the voltage to be transfer to heat energy ?
  11. E

    Calculate resistivity of a wire

    Hello All, I was curious to know if there is a way to calculate resistivity of a wire that did not have a uniform cross section? For example, what if the cable was in a bow-tie geometry? Is there anyway to quantify the electrical resistivity of the constriction (the area of the cable that has...
  12. A

    Force of one wire due to the other

    Homework Statement D=1.0cm=0.01m I=1.0A Homework Equations B=(μ0I)/(2∏r) The Attempt at a Solution B1=(4∏x10^-7 * 1.0A)/(2∏ * 0.01m)= 2.0x10^-5 B2=(4∏x10^-7 * 1.0A)/(2∏ * 0.01m)= 2.0x10^-5 Not sure what to do with these two numbers.
  13. A

    Force on a Moving Charge Due to a Current-Carrying Wire

    Homework Statement A charge q+ 4.5 x 10^-9 is located a distance of 7.0 mm to the right of a wire and is moving directly away from the wire with a velocity of v =3.0 x 10^4 m/s, as shown in the drawing (drawing shows charge moving to the right and current moving upwards). The wire carries a...
  14. P

    Does the strength of an electric field in a wire change with shape?

    If I have a charged wire and shape it into a spiral, is the electric field stronger?
  15. P

    How to measure temperature of a wire without connecting it to a ckt

    Hi, I'm doing a physics extended essay and my independent variable is the temperature of a copper wire. I need to be able to alter this temperature without connecting it to a circuit and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on whether there is a special type of equipment (such as a probe)...
  16. S

    Find the mutual inductance between the coil and the wire in two ways

    Homework Statement We have a toroidal coil, and an infinite wire that runs through it on its symmetry axis. (See picture) We need to find the mutual inductance between the coil and the wire in two ways: 1. By running a current through the wire, and finding the induced voltage in the...
  17. A

    Magnetic Flux of a Wire Sliding on L-Shaped Rail

    A conducting wire slides with constant speed of 1 m/s on a bent L shaped metalic rail. The angke between the wire and the rail is 45 deg and it remains constant during the whole motion of the wire. Perpendicular to the plane of the rail acts a magnetic field B=0.2 T in the X direction (Into the...
  18. M

    How does a bent wire keep spinning in a magnetic field?

    For the basic principle of motors and electromagnetic induction, when a wire loop with a current running through it is put in a magnetic field, wouldn't it only spin until it reached a certain point (i.e. flat, 180 degrees) before it stopped? What accounts for this? Is it that the loop must...
  19. P

    How much current can a 3 mm wire carry?

    how much current can a 3 mm wire carry? Hello I was wondering how much current can a wire with of 3 mm diameter can carry? Considering the maximum temperature of the wire doesn't change considerably, to melt the insulation... Unfortunately I don't know which gauge wire this is...
  20. S

    Does a current carrying wire attached to a magnet generate a force?

    I have a bit of a theoretical question. If one has a current carrying wire in a magnetic field such as in an electric motor rotor, does the resulting force on the wire also impart an opposing force on the stator magnets which are producing the magnetic field as Newton’s third law says? Also, if...
  21. DHF

    This is how Atlantic wire scientific columnists roll

    If anyone wants a good laugh please read this article. If you take a shot every time you find an error, you will likely be drunk before you are finished reading. http://news.yahoo.com/heres-rare-closeup-planet-thats-300-million-light-220223737.html;_ylt=Ah6ZqTKb53fikMKpqfgW6PXQtDMD
  22. C

    Lorentz Force & Frame Changes: Explaining E & B Fields

    Lets say in frame 1 I have a neutral current carrying wire that has a +x line charge and a -x line charge and they have a relative speed between them. So In frame 1 there is only a B field. And in frame 1 we also have an electron moving with respect to the wire, so the electron is deflected...
  23. AJKing

    Young's Modulus; Extension of a wire

    Homework Statement This is from A.P. French, Vibrations and Waves, Problem 3-7 A wire of unstretched length l0 is extended by a distance of 10-3l0 when a certain mass is hung from its bottom end. If this same wire is [turned to be horizontal] and the same mass is hung from the midpoint of...
  24. C

    How Long Can Copper Wire Be in a Data Center to Limit Voltage Drop to 1V?

    Homework Statement Your data center has 100,000 CPUs. Each burns 100 W at 120 V. Copper has a resistivity of 1.7E-8 Ω*m. What is the maximum length of copper wire on the power supply to give a voltage drop of no more than 1V? Homework Equations P = V*I R = (rho*L)/A, where L is the...
  25. G

    Faraday's law on circular wire

    In my examples on Faraday's law in my book, they use a drawing of a magnet approaching a circular wire. The changing magnetic flux then induces an emf on the circle of wire, which in turn causes a current to flow. I'm wondering if a current will flow in that wire without it having an element...
  26. E

    Will steel wire work as well as copper for antennas?

    Seems to me in that an antenna is carrying microamps at most that slightly higher resistance of steel Vs copper wouldn't matter. What's the fault of this logic??
  27. E

    When two equal electric current flow opposite to each other in a wire

    Let us consider a circuit... There's a 10 V battery... A Rh(resistor with changeable resistance) and another battery is connected in parallel in the circuit... Now current I (due to the 10 V battery) divides into two parts when it reaches the parallel connection... Let's note them by Ir and...
  28. rude man

    Curl H outside a long, thin wire of constant current

    Homework Statement Per Maxwell's equation and my H. H. Skilling EM textbook, curl H = 0 in the absence of current density. But consider a long, thin wire along the z axis carrying time-invariant current I. By Ampere's law, at a point (x,0) outside the wire, H = I/2πx j . But curl H...
  29. D

    Current Carrying Wire in Magnetic Field

    Homework Statement Find the total magnetic force acting on the loop http://tinypic.com/r/2yvvyuw/5 Homework Equations f_{m} = IL X B B =\frac{μ_{0}*I}{2∏*R} The Attempt at a Solution Magnetic Field from Wire at Top B = \frac{4∏*10^{-7}*10}{2∏*2*10^{-2}} B = .0001 Magnetic...
  30. B

    Shielding a single AC current carrying wire.

    I was thinking whether it was possible to shield a portion of a circuit that has only a single conductor without a return path. The frequency is high enough for the Earth's capacitive impedance to be low. Is my assumption then correct that the induced voltage in the shield will create a...
  31. K

    E-field from Time Varying B-field of Current wire

    Homework Statement Time Varying Current carrying wire creates time varying magnetic field.How can we analytically calculate electric field at distance r from the time varying current carrying wire? I(t) is time varying current where α , β are angle of two ends of current carrying wire...
  32. W

    Magnetic field strength infinitely long wire

    I'm new to posting on this forum so excuse me if I'm using the wrong symbols underlined := vector/vectorfield δ := derivative uvar := unit vector Homework Statement Consider a finitely conducting wire of infinity length with radius b. The wire is centered about the z-axis. Current is...
  33. W

    Drift velocity in uniform magnetic field near charged wire

    Problem (a) Derive and expression (using cylindrical coordinates) for the drift velocity of a particle of mass m and charge q in a uniform vertical magnetic field B\hat{z} when the particle is located at a perpindicular distance p from a long, straight vertical wire carrying a line charge...
  34. A

    Two wire touching side by side

    so say i have a nichrom wire of 0.5 mm dia, and pass 230 v through it.and i coil it up, but some part of the coil touched (imagine the wire parallel to each other so basically 2 circle.) will it short the circuit? i have been told that the area they touch is extremely smaller since they are...
  35. A

    Wire rope and pulley sheave resistance calculation

    Hi, this is my first posting on this forum in the hope someone could assist me with a calculation. I have read several threads which I think partly covers my problem but to be honest the example answers given are way beyond my comprehension. Basically I need to raise a platform which runs...
  36. N

    (Calc 3) Finding mass of a wire using line integral

    Homework Statement Find the mass of a wire in the shape of the parabola y=x2 for 1 \leq x\leq2 and with density p(x,y)=x. Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution I just want to make sure I am setting this integral up right. Here is what I did: I parameterized the equation to x=t, y=t2...
  37. A

    Require length of a wire in free air with one hot end(1000 c) to 100c

    let say i have a horizontal wire of alumel(or steel or what ever), the thermal conductivity is 30 w/m^2/k. let say D=0.4mm one end of the wire at 1000 degree c ( so like submerge in a cement which is at 1000 c). how long do i need wire to horizontaly in free air so that the cold end is at 100...
  38. A

    Resistive wire and temperature

    so i have a piece of nichrome resistance wire, 230 v supply in free air horizontal it is 650 c when current 3.61 ohm pass through. ( it in wikipedia) if i wrap the wire around inside a concerte or metal(assum it will not conduct electricity) small cylinder say 5cm dia. does the current have to...
  39. I

    Wire With Greatest Bending Fatigue Resistance

    I need to add flexibility to this joint (where the arrow is pointing) and I was thinking about using a method I saw on this flexible clamp. I ripped it apart and it looks like they used copper wire as the flex material. What would be the best wire to use? I'm worried that perhaps it could...
  40. J

    Resistance of a Copper Wire with initial and final radius

    Homework Statement A Copper wire has a shape given by a radius that increases as R(x)= aex+ b. Its initial radius is .45 mm and final radius is 9.67 mm and its horizontal length is 38 cm. Find its resistance. Homework Equations R = pL/A where p = resistivity of copper A = ∏r2 L = length of...
  41. F

    Optimization Problem involving a wire

    1. A piece of wire 10 m long is cut into two pieces. One piece is bent into a square and the other is bent into an equilateral triangle. How should the wire be cut so that the total area enclosed is (a) a maximum? (b) A minimum? 2. A_{s}(x) = x^{2}, A_{t}(x)=\frac{\sqrt{3}}{4}x^{2}...
  42. B

    Parabola problem about the sag of a wire

    Homework Statement Determine a function for wire between two poles if the arc of the wire is parabola. For every 75m there is 1m of sag. Homework Equations y = a(x-p)^2 + q The Attempt at a Solution I think that you need to make the lowest point of the wire the origin and hence...
  43. N

    Magnetic field = 0 inside a conducting wire?

    Hey. If a wire is conducting electricity and all the current is concentrated at the edge of the wire, as in the skin effect, the magnetic field everywhere inside should be zero due to symmetry when applying biot-savarts law. However, according to ampere's law, it shouldn't. I take a...
  44. Pruddy

    The rate at which the energy in the wire is transformed into kinetic

    Homework Statement A potential difference of 50 mV is maintained between the ends of a 9.70 m length of wire whose cross section area is 25.0mm^2. The conductivity of the wire is 6.80 x 10^6 (ohm.m)^-1. Determine the rate at which the energy in the wire is transformed into kinetic to...
  45. M

    Copper wire and shove it into the positive terminal

    If I were to take a copper wire and shove it into the positive terminal of an electrical outlet and then stick the other side of the copper wire into the earth, will current flow??
  46. C

    4 sides of the wire can produce a B-field

    http://upload.lsforum.net/users/public/m28175Untitledw43.jpg Q 21 why the is not downward?? it gains weight! Q22 why the direction is not out of paper, by right hand grip rule, 4 sides of the wire can produce a B-field which is out of paper!?
  47. Roodles01

    Long straight wire: Ampere/Biot Savart

    Homework Statement A long straight wire carries a current of 2.0A. An electron moves parallel to it at a distance of 0.01m (I'm assuming id doesn't matter which way it moves) at a velocity, v = 100ms-1 Calculate magnitude & direction of force acting on it.Homework Equations B = μ0 L / 2∏r F =...
  48. AJKing

    Inductance and Magnetic Energy of a Straight Wire

    Homework Statement A long wire carries a current i uniformly distributed over a cross section of the wire. Show that the magnetic energy of a length l equals μ_0 i2 l / 16π. Describe why this doesn't depend on diameter. Show that the inductance for a length of the wire l associated with the...
  49. E

    Find the tension in the wire - Heat and thermodynamics

    consider a horizontal cylindrical tube of cross sectional area A fitted with two frictionless pistons. The piston are connected to each other by an inextensible wire. Initially, the temperature of the gas is To and its pressure is Po which equals the atmospheric pressure. Find the tension in the...
  50. C

    Resistance Wire Cut and Splice - Too Much Current Now

    Hey Guys - Long time reader, first time poster. I am attempting to develop a prototype of a new product. Part of this product will involve a good length of resitive wire that will generate heat. To accomplish this I cannibalized an electric blanket for the resistive wire and power controller...
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