Balanced Line -- A cable having two identical conductors with the same electromagnetic characteristics in relation to other conductors and to ground.

Band Marking -- A continuous circumferential band applied to a conductor at regular intervals for identification.

Bare Conductor -- A conductor not covered with any material.

Baud -- Unit of data transmission speed, meaning bits per second (500 baud = 500 bps).

Bel -- A unit that represents the logarithm of the ratio of two levels.

Bell Wire -- An 18 AWG insulated copper wire used for making doorbell and thermostat connections in homes.

Belt -- Number of layers of insulation on a conductor or number of layers of jacket on a cable.

Bend Loss -- A form of increased attenuation caused by (a) having an optical fiber curved around a restrictive radius of curvature or (b) microbends caused by minute distortions in the fiber imposed by externally induced perturbations.

Bend Radius -- A radius of curvature that a fiber optic or metallic cable can bend without any adverse effects.

BEV -- One billion electron volts.

Bit -- One binary digit.

Bond Strength -- The amount of adhesion between bonded surfaces.

Bonding Braid -- A group of metallic filaments interwoven together to form the electrical equivalent of #6 AWG copper wire. Bonding braid is used to bond to cable sheaths or to provide a ground connection.

Booster -- A device used to increase voltage on DC lines.

Boot -- (1) Protective covering over any portion of a cable, wire or connector in addition to the normal jacketing or insulation. (2) A form placed around wire termination of a multiple contact connector to contain the liquid potting compound before it hardens. (3) A protective housing usually made from a resilient material to prevent entry of moisture into a connector.

Braid -- A fibrous or metallic interwoven cylinder covering a conductor or cable providing some mechanical strength and serving as a means of polarity identification. A braid may be composed of any filamentary material as cotton, glass, nylon, tinned copper, silver or asbestos. Woven bare metallic or tinned copper wire is used as shielding for wires and cables and as ground wires for batteries of heavy industrial equipment.

Braid Angle -- A term used in the determination of the braid configuration relating to the angle of the braided filaments or fibers in relationship to the axis of the cable core being braided.

Braid Ends -- The number of strands used to make up one carrier. The strands are wound side by side on the carrier bobbin and lay parallel in the finished braid.

Brazing -- The joining of ends of two wires, rods or groups of wires with a non-ferrous filler metal at temperatures above 800°F (427°C).

Breakdown (Puncture) -- A disruptive discharge through the insulation in a wire.

Breakdown Voltage -- The voltage at which the insulation between two conductors will break down.

Breakout -- The point at which a conductor or conductors break out from a multi-conductor cable to complete circuits at various points along the main cable. This point is usually harnessed or sealed with some synthetic rubber compound.

Buffer (Fiber Optic) -- A soft material which mechanically isolates individual fibers in a fiber optic cable or bundle from small geometrical irregularities, distortions or roughness of adjacent surfaces.

Building Wire -- Insulated wires used in buildings for light and power rated at 600V or less. They are usually not exposed to outdoor environments.

Buna Rubber -- A synthetic rubber made by polymerization of butadiene. Buna-N is a copolymer of butadiene and acrylonitrile. Buna-S is a copolymer of butadiene and styrene. Commonly a man-made rubber used as a replacement for natural rubber.

Bunched Lay or Stranding -- A bunched strand is a collection of strands all twisted in the same direction without regard to geometrical arrangement.

Bundle (Fiber Optic) -- A number of fibers grouped together, usually carrying a common signal.

Bus Bar Wire -- Uninsulated tinned copper wire used as a common lead.

Bushings -- A mechanical device used as a lining for an opening to prevent abrasion to wire and cable. Also used as a low cost method of insulating, anchoring, cushioning and positioning. Usually a non-metallic material is preferred.

Butt -- Joining of two conductors end-to-end, with no overlap and with their axes in line.

Butt Wrap -- A spirally wrapped tape over a cable core where the trailing edge of one wrap just meets the leading edge of the preceding wrap with neither overlap nor spacing.

Butyl Rubber -- A man-made rubber used for special applications. It has excellent resistance to heat, sunlight, weather, aging and ozone and is normally rated for 90°C.

Byte -- A group of adjacent binary digits (8 digits).