PhoneGap is an open-source framework that allows developers to build mobile apps using standard web technologies like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. It works by wrapping web applications so they can be deployed and run as native mobile applications across multiple platforms. The PhoneGap architecture uses a user interface built with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript that communicates with native device functions through JavaScript PhoneGap APIs. This allows apps to be developed quickly for multiple platforms like Android, iOS, and Windows from a single codebase. Common uses of PhoneGap include mobile apps that need access to device features like the camera, contacts, file system and more.