Bandwidth (signal processing)

Bandwidth is the difference between the upper and lower frequencies in a continuous band of frequencies. It is typically measured in unit of hertz (symbol Hz).

This article is about the concept in signal theory and processing measured in hertz. For use in computing and networking expressed in bits per second, see Bandwidth (computing). For other uses, see Bandwidth (disambiguation).

It may refer more specifically to two subcategories: Passband bandwidth is the difference between the upper and lower cutoff frequencies of, for example, a band-pass filter, a communication channel, or a signal spectrum. Baseband bandwidth is equal to the upper cutoff frequency of a low-pass filter or baseband signal, which includes a zero frequency.

Bandwidth in hertz is a central concept in many fields, including electronics, information theory, digital communications, radio communications, signal processing, and spectroscopy and is one of the determinants of the capacity of a given communication channel.

A key characteristic of bandwidth is that any band of a given width can carry the same amount of information, regardless of where that band is located in the frequency spectrum. For example, a 3 kHz band can carry a telephone conversation whether that band is at baseband (as in a POTS telephone line) or modulated to some higher frequency. However, wide bandwidths are easier to obtain and process at higher frequencies because the ยง Fractional bandwidth is smaller.

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