Coaxial Cable and Its Different Types

A coaxial cable is cylindrical and is composed of an inner metal conductor and surrounded by a tubular insulating dielectric material. The tubular insulating material is again surrounded by a protective tubular conducting shield and covered by an overall jacket. This cable is commonly used in video equipment, computer networks and cable TV. A coaxial cable is also used to run data from television, and serves as a transmission line for radio frequencies. There are different types of coaxial cables. The following is a brief of the different types:

Twin-axial Cable: This type of cable has two central conductors instead of one and is covered by a shield. A twin-axial cable is commonly used for high-speed, short-range signalling applications, including network hardware with SFP+ interfaces.

Tri-axial cable: Commonly known as “triax, this cable has as an extra layer or an outer jacket that covers an outer braid. A tri-axial cable provides greater bandwidth and prevents data loss. It is commonly used in the broadcasting industry.

Semi-rigid coaxial cable: This cable comes with a solid outer copper sheath and is perfect for microwave transmission. A semi-rigid cable provides better dielectric properties for enhanced performance at high frequencies but is limited in size and frequency transmission.

Hard line coaxial cable: This cable is a heavy-duty coaxial cable and comes with a rigid outer shield. A hard line cable is perfect for radio transmitters requiring high signal strength.

Rigid cable: A rigid cable contains two copper tubes and a PTFE dielectric buffer supported at its ends. It has the capacity to operate TV and FM frequencies with multi-channel transmission.