A composite material made of two different metals bonded together, often used in thermostats and temperature-sensing devices.
From Latin 'bi-' meaning two, combined with 'metal' from Latin 'metallum.' The term became common in the 19th century as industrial use of composite metal strips increased.
Bimetal strips are hidden in almost every old thermostat in existence—when one metal expands faster than the other from heat, they bend and flip a switch, which is pure elegance of physics solving an engineering problem.
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