Frequency

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Frequency is the number of occurrences

of a repeating event per unit of time.[1] It is
also referred to as temporal frequency,
which emphasizes the contrast to spatial
frequency and angular frequency. The
period is the duration of time of one cycle
in a repeating event, so the period is the
reciprocal of the frequency.[2] For example,
if a newborn baby's heart beats at a
frequency of 120 times a minute, its period
the time interval between beatsis half a
second (that is, 60seconds divided by 120
beats). Frequency is an important
parameter used in science and
engineering to specify the rate of
oscillatory and vibratory phenomena, such
as mechanical vibrations, audio (sound)
signals, radio waves, and light.

frequency
Common f,
symbols

SIunit hertz

In SIbase s1
units

SIdimension T^{-1}
These three dots are flashing, or cycling, periodically
from lowest frequency (0.5 hertz) to highest frequency
(2.0 hertz), top to bottom. For each flashing dot: "f" is
the frequency in hertz, (Hz)or the number of events
per second (i.e., cycles per second)that the dot
flashes; while "T" is the period, or time, in seconds (s)
of each cycle, (i.e., the number of seconds per cycle).
Note T and f are reciprocal values to each other.
Definitions

As time elapseshere moving left to right on the

horizontal axisthe ve sinusoidal waves vary, or
cycle, regularly at different rates. The red wave (top)
has the lowest frequency (i.e., cycles at the slowest
rate) while the purple wave (bottom) has the highest
frequency (cycles at the fastest rate).

For cyclical processes, such as rotation,

oscillations, or waves, frequency is dened
as a number of cycles per unit time. In
physics and engineering disciplines, such
as optics, acoustics, and radio, frequency
is usually denoted by a Latin letter f or by
the Greek letter or (nu) (see e.g.
Planck's formula).

The relation between the frequency and

the period of a repeating event or
oscillation is given by

Units
The SI unit of frequency is the hertz (Hz),
named after the German physicist Heinrich
Hertz; one hertz means that an event
repeats once per second. A previous name
for this unit was cycles per second (cps).
The SI unit for period is the second.
A traditional unit of measure used with
rotating mechanical devices is revolutions
per minute, abbreviated r/min or rpm.
60rpm equals one hertz.[3]

Period versus frequency

As a matter of convenience, longer and
slower waves, such as ocean surface
waves, tend to be described by wave
period rather than frequency. Short and
fast waves, like audio and radio, are
usually described by their frequency
instead of period. These commonly used
conversions are listed below:
 1mHz 1Hz 1kHz 1MHz 1GHz 1THz
Frequency
(103Hz) (100Hz) (103Hz) (106Hz) (109Hz) (1012Hz)

1ms
Period 1ks (103s) 1s (100s) 1s (106s) 1ns (109s) 1ps (1012s)
(103s)

Related types of frequency

Diagram of the relationship between the different

types of frequency and other wave properties.
Angular frequency, usually denoted by
the Greek letter (omega), is dened as
the rate of change of angular
displacement, , (during rotation), or the
rate of change of the phase of a
sinusoidal waveform (e.g. in oscillations
and waves), or as the rate of change of
the argument to the sine function:

Angular frequency is commonly

measured in radians per second (rad/s)
but, for discrete-time signals, can also
be expressed as radians per sample
time, which is a dimensionless quantity.
Angular frequency (in radians) is larger
than regular frequency (in Hz) by a
factor of 2.
Spatial frequency is analogous to
temporal frequency, but the time axis is
replaced by one or more spatial
displacement axes. E.g.:

Wavenumber, k, is the spatial frequency

analogue of angular temporal frequency
and is measured in radians per meter. In
the case of more than one spatial
dimension, wavenumber is a vector
quantity.
In wave propagation
For periodic waves in nondispersive media
(that is, media in which the wave speed is
independent of frequency), frequency has
an inverse relationship to the wavelength,
(lambda). Even in dispersive media, the
frequency f of a sinusoidal wave is equal
to the phase velocity v of the wave divided
by the wavelength of the wave:

In the special case of electromagnetic

waves moving through a vacuum, then v =
c, where c is the speed of light in a
vacuum, and this expression becomes:


When waves from a monochrome source

travel from one medium to another, their
frequency remains the sameonly their
wavelength and speed change.

Measurement
Measurement of frequency can done in the
following ways,

Counting

Calculating the frequency of a repeating

event is accomplished by counting the
number of times that event occurs within a
specic time period, then dividing the
count by the length of the time period. For
example, if 71 events occur within 15
seconds the frequency is:

If the number of counts is not very large, it

is more accurate to measure the time
interval for a predetermined number of
occurrences, rather than the number of
occurrences within a specied time.[4] The
latter method introduces a random error
into the count of between zero and one
count, so on average half a count. This is
called gating error and causes an average
error in the calculated frequency of
f=1/(2Tm), or a fractional error of
f/f=1/(2fTm) where Tm is the timing
interval and f is the measured frequency.
This error decreases with frequency, so it
is a problem at low frequencies where the
number of counts N is small.

A resonant-reed frequency meter, an obsolete device

used from about 1900 to the 1940s for measuring the
frequency of alternating current. It consists of a strip
of metal with reeds of graduated lengths, vibrated by
an electromagnet. When the unknown frequency is
applied to the electromagnet, the reed which is
resonant at that frequency will vibrate with large
amplitude, visible next to the scale.

Stroboscope

An older method of measuring the

frequency of rotating or vibrating objects
is to use a stroboscope. This is an intense
repetitively flashing light (strobe light)
whose frequency can be adjusted with a
calibrated timing circuit. The strobe light is
pointed at the rotating object and the
frequency adjusted up and down. When
the frequency of the strobe equals the
frequency of the rotating or vibrating
object, the object completes one cycle of
oscillation and returns to its original
position between the flashes of light, so
when illuminated by the strobe the object
appears stationary. Then the frequency
can be read from the calibrated readout on
the stroboscope. A downside of this
method is that an object rotating at an
integral multiple of the strobing frequency
will also appear stationary.

Frequency counter

Modern frequency counter

Higher frequencies are usually measured
with a frequency counter. This is an
electronic instrument which measures the
frequency of an applied repetitive
electronic signal and displays the result in
hertz on a digital display. It uses digital
logic to count the number of cycles during
a time interval established by a precision
quartz time base. Cyclic processes that
are not electrical in nature, such as the
rotation rate of a shaft, mechanical
vibrations, or sound waves, can be
converted to a repetitive electronic signal
by transducers and the signal applied to a
frequency counter. Frequency counters
can currently cover the range up to about
100GHz. This represents the limit of direct
counting methods; frequencies above this
must be measured by indirect methods.

Heterodyne methods

Above the range of frequency counters,

frequencies of electromagnetic signals are
often measured indirectly by means of
heterodyning (frequency conversion). A
reference signal of a known frequency
near the unknown frequency is mixed with
the unknown frequency in a nonlinear
mixing device such as a diode. This
creates a heterodyne or "beat" signal at the
difference between the two frequencies. If
the two signals are close together in
frequency the heterodyne is low enough to
be measured by a frequency counter. This
process only measures the difference
between the unknown frequency and the
reference frequency. To reach higher
frequencies, several stages of
heterodyning can be used. Current
research is extending this method to
infrared and light frequencies (optical
heterodyne detection).

Examples
Light


Complete spectrum of electromagnetic radiation with

the visible portion highlighted

Visible light is an electromagnetic wave,

consisting of oscillating electric and
magnetic elds traveling through space.
The frequency of the wave determines its
color: 4 1014Hz is red light, 8 1014Hz is
violet light, and between these (in the
range 4-8 1014Hz) are all the other
colors of the visible spectrum. An
electromagnetic wave can have a
frequency less than 4 1014Hz, but it will
be invisible to the human eye; such waves
are called infrared (IR) radiation. At even
lower frequency, the wave is called a
microwave, and at still lower frequencies it
is called a radio wave. Likewise, an
electromagnetic wave can have a
frequency higher than 8 1014Hz, but it
will be invisible to the human eye; such
waves are called ultraviolet (UV) radiation.
Even higher-frequency waves are called X-
rays, and higher still are gamma rays.

All of these waves, from the lowest-

frequency radio waves to the highest-
frequency gamma rays, are fundamentally
the same, and they are all called
electromagnetic radiation. They all travel
through a vacuum at the same speed (the
speed of light), giving them wavelengths
inversely proportional to their frequencies.

where c is the speed of light (c in a

vacuum, or less in other media), f is the
frequency and is the wavelength.

In dispersive media, such as glass, the

speed depends somewhat on frequency,
so the wavelength is not quite inversely
proportional to frequency.

Sound
Sound propagates as mechanical vibration
waves of pressure and displacement, in air
or other substances.[5] Frequency is the
property of sound that most determines
pitch.[6]

The frequencies an ear can hear are

limited to a specic range of frequencies.
The audible frequency range for humans is
typically given as being between about
20Hz and 20,000Hz (20kHz), though the
high frequency limit usually reduces with
age. Other species have different hearing
ranges. For example, some dog breeds
can perceive vibrations up to 60,000Hz.[7]
In many media, such as air, the speed of
sound is approximately independent of
frequency, so the wavelength of the sound
waves (distance between repetitions) is
approximately inversely proportional to
frequency.

Line current

In Europe, Africa, Australia, Southern South

America, most of Asia, and Russia, the
frequency of the alternating current in
household electrical outlets is 50Hz
(close to the tone G), whereas in North
America and Northern South America, the
frequency of the alternating current in
household electrical outlets is 60Hz
(between the tones B and B; that is, a
minor third above the European
frequency). The frequency of the 'hum' in
an audio recording can show where the
recording was made, in countries using a
European, or an American, grid frequency.

See also
Audio frequency
Bandwidth (signal processing)
Cutoff frequency
Downsampling
Electronic lter
Frequency band
Frequency converter
Frequency domain
Frequency distribution
Frequency extender
Frequency grid
Frequency modulation
Frequency spectrum
Interaction frequency
Natural frequency
Negative frequency
Periodicity (disambiguation)
Pink noise
Preselector
Radar signal characteristics
 Signaling (telecommunications)
Spread spectrum
Spectral component
Transverter
Upsampling

Notes and references

1. "Denition of FREQUENCY" . Retrieved
3 October 2016.
2. "Denition of PERIOD" . Retrieved
3 October 2016.
3. Davies, A. (1997). Handbook of
Condition Monitoring: Techniques and
Methodology . New York: Springer.
ISBN978-0-412-61320-3.
4. Bakshi, K.A.; A.V. Bakshi; U.A. Bakshi
(2008). Electronic Measurement Systems .
US: Technical Publications. pp.414.
ISBN978-81-8431-206-5.
5. "Denition of SOUND" . Retrieved
3 October 2016.
6. Pilhofer, Michael (2007). Music Theory
for Dummies . For Dummies. p.97.
ISBN9780470167946.
7. Elert, Glenn; Timothy Condon (2003).
"Frequency Range of Dog Hearing" . The
Physics Factbook. Retrieved 2008-10-22.

Further reading
 Giancoli, D.C. (1988). Physics for
Scientists and Engineers (2nd ed.).
Prentice Hall. ISBN0-13-669201-X.

External links
Look up frequencyor often in

Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Conversion: frequency to wavelength

and back
Conversion: period, cycle duration,
periodic time to frequency
Keyboard frequencies = naming of notes
- The English and American system
versus the German system
 Teaching resource for 14-16yrs on
sound including frequency
A simple tutorial on how to build a
frequency meter
Frequency - diracdelta.co.uk
JavaScript calculation.
A frequency generator with sound,
useful for hearing tests

Retrieved from
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title=Frequency&oldid=813391367"

Last edited 3 days ago by Tvishi

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