Carrier sense multiple access (CSMA) is a method for stations to access a shared data transmission channel. There are two variants: CSMA/CD used in wired networks, and CSMA/CA used in wireless networks. CSMA/CD uses collision detection, where a station monitors the channel after transmitting and resends if a collision is detected. CSMA/CA avoids collision using inter-frame spacing, contention windows and acknowledgements since collision is difficult to detect in wireless transmissions. Both aim to reduce collisions by having stations check if the channel is idle before transmitting.