A-F | G-L | M-R | S-Z

• Gasket - also called a grommet; a component that forms an environmental seal by surrounding a connector interface with an elastic polymer.
• Giga - numerical prefix denoting one billion (10^9)
• Graded Index Fiber - also called a gradient index fiber; a multimode, optical fiber whose core refractive index increases as the radial distance from the fiber axis decreases and matches the cladding refractive index at the core - clad interface; has a greater bandwidth than step index fiber, but less bandwidth than single mode fiber.
• Ground - electrical term for connecting to the earth or other large conducting body at zero voltage to make a complete electrical circuit.
• Hard Clad Silica (HCS) - fiber optic structure with hard plastic cladding around the glass core.
• Heat Shrinkable Sleeve - also called a shrink sleeve; plastic coating that protects against corrosion by shrinking to insulate connections, splices, terminations and other configurations.
• Hermetic Seal - airtight seal created by fusing or soldering to prevent the entrance of air, moisture vapor, and other gases or environmental factors.
• Hertz (Hz) - base unit of frequency equal to one cycle per second.
• Hi - pot - test used to determine the highest potential level of voltage that can be applied to a conductor without allowing current to escape through the insulation.
• High Voltage - electrical circuit, wire or cable whose voltage is a cause of safety concerns, usually operating at over 600 volts.
• Holding Strength - connector’s ability to remain assembled to a cable under tension.
• Housing - main component of a connector, to which other portions are attached or enclosed.
• Impedance (Z) - measure of opposition that a circuit offers to the flow of alternating current (AC).
• Infrared - wave of light longer than that of visible light (felt as heat, rather than seen), with wavelengths 750 - 1000 nm.
• Inner Conductor - central conductive structure in a coaxial structure, such as the center contact in a coaxial connector.
• Insert - connector part that holds the contacts in the proper arrangement and insulates them from each other and from the outer shell.
• Insert Retention - axial load in either direction that an insert must withstand without being dislocated from its normal position in the connector shell.
• Insertion Loss - loss of load power due to cable or component insertion; expressed in decibels as the ratio of power received at the load before insertion to the power received at the load after insertion.
• Insertion Tool - tool for inserting contacts into a connector.
• Insulation - material(s) of high electrical resistance used to cover components and wires to prevent the flow of electric current and protect against short circuits.
• Insulation Resistance - ratio of applied voltage to total current between two electrodes in contact with a specific insulator.
• Interface - the shared boundary where two materials meet, or the two adjacent surfaces on the contact side of both halves of a multiple - contact connector that face each other when the connector is assembled.
• International Organization for Standardization (ISO) - international organization responsible for setting industrial and commercial standards.
• Jacket - outer layer of non - metallic protective covering applied over an insulated wire or cable.
• Key - short pin that slides in a mating slot or groove to guide two parts during assembly; generally used in round, shell - enclosed connectors to prevent mating wrong connectors and to assist in polarization.
• Keyway - slot or groove in which a key (see above) slides.
• Kilo - metric prefix denoting 1000 (10³)
• Laser - "Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation;" an electronic - optical device that generates narrow, intense beams of light with a well-defined wavelength; often a source of light in fiber optic systems.
• Light - electromagnetic radiation in a wavelength range usually visible to the human eye.
• Lightguide - fiber or flexible bundle of fibers used to transmit light.
• Loose Buffer - protective tube loosely surrounding a cabled fiber, often filled with gel.
• Loss - energy dissipated without accomplishing useful work, usually expressed in dB.
• Lug - mechanical termination attached to a conductor by crimping or soldering that allows for threading on to a terminal.