Electronic Cigarette Glossary

An atomiser on an electronic cigarette is where the nicotine solution is converted from a liquid to a vapour. Inside the atomiser is a heating coil that gets hot when power from the battery is supplied to it, either by inhaling or pressing a switch. As the coil gets hot it vaporises some of the nicotine solution that comes into contact with it, either from a cartridge or by directly dripping liquid on to it.. It is this vapour that simulates the smoke effect you will see.

A cartomiser is simply the combination of the atomiser and cartridge into one single unit, making the electronic a simpler two piece system. Originally designed to be a single use unit means that they are relatively cheap compared to a separate atomiser and cartridge system. They are sold either pre-filled or empty so you can fill with your favourite e-liquid. Although designed to a single use unit, most cartomisers can be re-filled multiple times before they start to degrade and need replacing.

They contain a type of polyester wool, wrapped around a central airflow tube, that holds the nicotine liquid. Below this there is a heating coil, as this coil gets hot it vaporises some of the nicotine solution which then travels up the central column as vapour when you inhale on the cartomiser producing a smoke like effect.

This refers to the resistance of an atomiser or cartomiser and is measured in ohms. A High resistance atomiser or cartomiser will have a rating of 3 ohms and above.

This type of atomiser was designed for electronic cigarettes that run on higher voltages, such as 5 or 6v models. These higher voltages will cause a lot of lower resistance atomisers and cartomisers to run to hot and produce a burnt taste. On a 3.7v or lower battery a High Resistance atomiser or cartomiser will produce a low volume of cool vapour and almost no feeling at the back of the throat when inhaled.

This refers to the resistance of an atomiser or cartomiser and is measured in ohms. A low resistance atomiser or cartomiser will have an ohm rating between 1.5 and 2.4ohms.

This type of atomiser or cartomiser tends to produce a warmer vapour with more volume and stronger hit at the back of the throat than a standard resistance one would. They were designed to more closely simulate the effect of tobacco smoke on batteries running at 3.7v or below.

Note: Low Resistance atomisers or cartomisers shouldn't be used on batteris below 450mah as they will put to much strain on the smaller batteries.

This relates to the capacity or amount of energy stored in a battery. As a rule of thumb, the higher the mah rating, the longer the battery will last before needing a recharge.

A portable charging case will allow you to charge your electronic cigarette batteries whilst on the move and away from a pc or mains power source. Inside the PCC is an internal battery that is capable of recharging your cigarette battery multiple times.

All you need to do is fully charge the PCC, then screw in your cigarette battery and it will begin to charge. Once your your cigarette battery is fully charged it will switch off. When you want to use your electronic cigarette you simply remove the battery and use as normal, then when finished replace the battery back into the PCC and it will recharge ready for the next time you want to use it.

This refers to the resistance of an atomiser or cartomiser and is measured in ohms. A standard resistance atomiser or cartomiser will have a rating between 2.5 and 2.8 ohms.

This type of atomiser or cartomiser tends to produce a moderate vapour with a mild hit at the back of the throat, what I would call a smooth vape. They were designed to be used on batteries running at 3.7v.

There are presently 2 types of tank system in use for electronic cigarettes:

One is cartridge and atomiser type design, where a clear plastic tank filled with nicotine liquid slots inside a specially designed atomiser. These were designed to improve on the old style of cartridge that contained polyester wool which could impede the flow of liquid to the atomiser. The tank is also cleaner in use as you don't have any wool to keep clean or replace. They also allow you to easily see how much liquid is left in the tank cartridge.

The other style of tank uses a cartomiser with a small hole in the side housed in a larger tank that is filled with nicotine liquid. The idea here is to increase the amount of time between refilling the cartomiser. The cartomisers used in these tanks hold between 1-1.5ml of liquid, and the surrounding tank then holds a further 1.5 to 6ml of liquid, depending on the version used. The liquid in the tank then seeps into the cartomiser through the small hole in it's side ensuring it stays wet for extended periods.

Vegetable Glycerine is a clear, sticky, viscous, odourless liquid with a sweet taste, which is widely used in pharmaceutical formulations. It is used in electronic cigarette liquids mainly to produce extra vapour. It is usually mixed with Propylene Glycol, as Vegetable Glycerine is a much thicker liquid and can cause wicking problems with some atomisers and cartridge / cartomiser designs.

There are some nicotine liquids available though that are Vegetable Glycerine based. These tend to use 10 to 15% deionised water to thin them slightly, as some people prefer Vegetable Glycerine liquids to Propylene Glycol ones, as they produce a smoother and slightly sweeter vapour.

This term refers to an electronic cigarette that is able to deliver multiple voltages to an atomiser.

As electronic cigarettes tend to be powered by lion batteries, the majority are fixed at the voltage that the battery is designed to deliver, normally around 3.7v. Fresh from the charger they deliver 4.2v and then gradually work down to 3.2v as they discharge, and the user will notice a drop in performance as they do so. Some, like the ego, fix the voltage with a bit of electronics at a lower voltage of around 3.4v from start to finish so that this drop in performance isn’t noticeable. In either case there is nothing you can do to control the voltage.

With a Variable Voltage (VV) electronic cigarette you are able to choose the voltage that you want to use it at. On some devices you may only have 3 or 4 settings to choose from, on others you can choose any voltage between about 3.4v and 6v, in 0.1v increments. The voltage will then stay at that setting until the battery can no longer supply enough current and switches itself off.

This ability to alter the voltage allows you to fine tune the user experience to suit yourself. Higher voltages result in a warmer vapour and tends to generate more of a hit in the back of the throat, while lower voltages give a cooler and smoother smoking experience. You also get a consistent performance from full to exhausted battery.