In hub-based Ethernet segments, network devices compete for the medium, because devices must take turns when transmitting. The network segments that share the same bandwidth between devices are known as collision domains, because when two or more devices within that segment try to communicate at the same time, collisions may occur.
It is possible, however, to use a switch device, operating the OSI data link layer, to divide a network into segments and reduce the number of devices that compete for bandwidth. When a switch is used, each port represents a new segment. Each new segment is a new collision domain. More bandwidth is available to the devices on the segment, and collisions in one collision domain do not interfere with the other segments. This is also known as microsegmentation.
As shown in the figure, each switch port connects to a single PC or server, and each switch port represents a separate collision domain.