  Coronal loops form the basic building blocks of the magnetically closed solar
corona yet much is still to be determined concerning their possible fine-scale
structuring and the rate of heat deposition within them. Using an improved
multi-stranded loop model to better approximate the numerically challenging
transition region, this paper examines synthetic NASA Solar Dynamics
Observatory's (SDO) Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) emission simulated in
response to a series of prescribed spatially and temporally random, impulsive
and localised heating events across numerous sub-loop elements with a strong
weighting towards the base of the structure; the nanoflare heating scenario.
The total number of strands and nanoflare repetition times are varied
systematically in such a way that the total energy content remains
approximately constant across all the cases analysed. Repeated time lag
detection during an emission time series provides a good approximation for the
nanoflare repetition time for low-frequency heating. Furthermore, using a
combination of AIA 171/193 and 193/211 channel ratios in combination with
spectroscopic determination of the standard deviation of the loop apex
temperature over several hours alongside simulations from the outlined
multi-stranded loop model, it is demonstrated that both the imposed heating
rate and number of strands can be realised.
