Stator
Stator is the stationary electromagnetic part of a motor, surrounding or facing the rotor across the motor air gap.
How it works
In most EV traction motors, the stator contains a laminated electrical-steel core with teeth and slots. Insulated copper conductors in those slots form phase windings. When the inverter supplies controlled current, the windings create a rotating or sequential magnetic field that produces torque with the rotor.
What the term includes
The word can refer narrowly to the active core and windings or more broadly to the stationary motor assembly. A complete stator design also depends on slot liners, impregnation, end turns, terminals, temperature sensing, cooling contact, and the housing that holds the core.
Thin steel laminations limit eddy-current loss. Slot geometry balances copper area, magnetic flux, insulation, cooling, harmonics, and manufacturing. Winding layout and conductor form are separate choices: a winding may be distributed or concentrated, while hairpin describes a formed-conductor manufacturing method.
The stator is not the motor housing, although the two may be tightly integrated. It is also not the fixed half of every electrical device; this glossary meaning concerns rotating electric machines.
For construction details, see EV Motor Construction and Windings.