040: Evolution in network cables

Network cable are used for connecting the networkable devices such as computers, routers and switches for transferring data and information.

We select the type of the network cable according to our requirement in the project. There are different types of network cables in the market from various network equipment suppliers as following:

1- Coaxial cable (thin and thick / single and multi-core)

Note: RG stands for Radio Guide (Radio Frequency cable (RF)) and the number after the letter indicates the diameter in inches.

• RG
  • RG-6 (75 ohm)
  • RG-8 (50 ohm )
  • RG-11 (75 ohm)
  • RG-58 (50 ohm )
  • RG-59 (75 ohm)
• LMR
  • LMR-100
  • LMR-195
  • LMR-200
  • LMR-240
  • LMR-400
  • LMR-600

2- Twisted Pair (TP) or Ethernet cable

2.1- Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)

2.2- Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)

• • CAT1
  • CAT2
  • CAT3
  • CAT4
  • CAT5
  • CAT5e
  • CAT6
  • CAT6e
  • CAT7
  • CAT8

3- Fiber optic cable

• • SMF (Single Mode Fiber-optic)
  • MMF (Multi Mode Fiber-optic)

Note: The effect of noise and interferences on the electronic signal transmitted through network cables is very important.
Noise sources: e.g. electrical machines (motors & pumps), fluorescent lights, adjacent electronic and computer equipment etc.

Note: On fiber-optic cable we transmit lights instead of electronic signals and that's why we don't worry about interferences anymore.

Note: Ethernet types are as below:

• Ethernet: 10 Mbps
• Fast Ethernet: 100 Mbps
• Gigabit Ethernet: 1 Gbps