How does an e-cigarette work?

A fully set up e-cigarette has a charged battery, a tank full of juice and a coil. When you press the button (or take a puff, with the cheapest models) the battery starts feeding power to the coil. Because this is made of thin metal it quickly heats up, and so does the liquid in contact with it. Almost instantly, the coil is surrounded with a small, but dense, cloud of vapour.

When the vaper takes a puff air is drawn in through the air holes and over the coil. This pulls the vapour up to the mouthpiece, allowing more liquid to evaporate. The coil will carry on creating vapour until the airflow stops or it overtakes the wick’s ability to feed it liquid. Most vapers inhale for up to five or six seconds, and with a modern e-cig that can create a lot of vapour.