Electromagnetic Spectrum and Radio Waves

Radio waves are electromagnetic waves that have wavelengths longer than infrared radiations. The range of radio waves is between 30 kHz and 300 GHz in an electromagnetic spectrum.

Radio waves have the best use in communication systems like television, mobile phones, radios, etc.

Natural radio waves occur or emit by lightning, astronomical objects, while artificial radio waves are produced with the help of transmitters, and radio receives it by using antennas. These signals are transformed into mechanical vibrations in speakers to generate sound.

Radio waves have many real-life applications. In this article, we will learn about the radio electromagnetic spectrum and its uses.

Radio Waves Uses

Radio waves in the electromagnetic spectrum are located in the low range frequencies. The wavelength of these waves ranges from 30 cm to 1 km and Radio electromagnetic spectrum is a part of the electromagnetic spectrum with frequencies from 30 Hz to 300 GHz. These waves have great use in communication systems.

In the air, radio wave communication signals traverse a straight path, emit clouds/layers of the ionosphere, or are relayed by satellites in space.

Radio Waves Are Employed in Various Places; These Are:

• Standard broadcast and television

• Navigation of aircraft

• Airplane traffic control (ATC)

• Cellular telephony,

• Shortwave radio

• Remote-controlled toys

Radio Wave Frequency Spectrum

A radio band is a continuous series of the radio wave frequency spectrum. These bands are called the channels and each channel has its specific purpose. To overcome the interference and the overlapping of bands and allow for the efficient use of the radio wave spectrum, similar services are allocated in bands.

For each channel, ITU (International Telecommunication Union) has a band plan that indicates how each channel has to be used and shared, to prevent interference, overlapping and to set protocol for the affinity of transmitters and receivers.

What Does ITU Do?

ITU radio bands are specified in the ITU Radio Regulations. It divides the radio frequency spectrum into 12 bands, each of which begins at a wavelength with a power of 10n, with the respective frequency of 3 x 10^8-n Hz.

The table mentioned below discusses the radio wave frequency bands with their respective ITU band numbers and functions. These recommendations were approved by the International Radio Conference held at Atlantic City, New Jersey, in 1947. Let’s look at these:

From the above table, we can see the descending order of frequency and wavelengths. Also, the electromagnetic waves radio waves specifically designate a section of the electromagnetic spectrum having frequencies ranging between 300 GHz and 3 kHz and wavelengths ranging from 1 millimeter to 100 kilometers.