REVEALED: Source Of Low-Frequency 1/f Noise
Although 1/f (or “pink” or “flicker”) noise was first discovered in vacuum tubes in 1925, it has been found everywhere from human heart rates to electrical currents in materials and devices. In most material systems, however, its origin has remained a mystery. In electronics in particular, the question was whether 1/f noise was generated on the surface of conductors or inside them. At the University of California, Riverside Bourns College of Engineering, a professor and a team of researchers claim to have solved the 1/f noise problem.
This noise is actually a signal or process—one with a power spectral density that is inversely proportional to the frequency. It is a key factor in electronics, impacting electronic device size and more. In a radar or communication device like a smartphone, for example, the signal’s phase noise is largely determined by the 1/f noise level in the transistors used.
Full article by Nancy Friedrich, Editor in Chief, MicroWaves & RF
About the Author
Roger Chu is the Marketing Coordinator at GSAmart, the leading GSA sales and marketing partner for technology companies.
