Litz Wire

The term "Litz wire" is derived from the German word "litzendraht" meaning woven wire. They are constructed of individually insulated magnet wires either twisted or braided into a uniform pattern. Litz wire construction is designed to minimize the power losses exhibited in solid conductors due to "skin effect." Skin effect is the tendency of radio frequency current to be concentrated at the surface of the conductor. Litz constructions counteract this effect by increasing the amount of surface area without significantly increasing the size of the conductor. Generally speaking, constructions composed of many strands of finer wires are best for the higher frequency applications.