For two conductors with identical cross-sectional area, one solid and one stranded, the DC resistance will be:

For two conductors with identical cross-sectional area, one solid and one stranded, the DC resistance will be:

• A. Significantly higher in solid
• B. About the same
• C. Significantly higher in stranded
• D. Dependent on insulation type

Answer: (B)

DC resistance is set by the material’s resistivity, the length, and the total cross-sectional area of conducting material, not by whether the conductor is solid or made of strands. For identical cross-sectional area and the same material, a stranded conductor simply bundles multiple strands in parallel. The current splits among the strands, so the overall resistance becomes R = ρL/A_total, exactly the same as a solid conductor with that total area. In practice, this holds well because the strands are designed to be well connected along the length; any extra contact resistance between strands is typically negligible at DC. Insulation type doesn’t affect DC resistance either. So the DC resistance is about the same.

DC resistance is set by the material’s resistivity, the length, and the total cross-sectional area of conducting material, not by whether the conductor is solid or made of strands. For identical cross-sectional area and the same material, a stranded conductor simply bundles multiple strands in parallel. The current splits among the strands, so the overall resistance becomes R = ρL/A_total, exactly the same as a solid conductor with that total area. In practice, this holds well because the strands are designed to be well connected along the length; any extra contact resistance between strands is typically negligible at DC. Insulation type doesn’t affect DC resistance either. So the DC resistance is about the same.