What are Radio Frequency bands and its uses?

What are Radio Frequency bands and its uses?

What is Radio Frequency?RF is the lowest portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, familiar as amedium of analog and modern digital wireless communication systems. Itspreads in the range between 3 kHz and 300 GHz. All known transmissionsystems work in the RF spectrum range, including analog radio, aircraftnavigation, marine radio, amateur radio, TV broadcasting, mobile networks,and satellite systems. Let’s take a look at each of the Radio Frequencybands and their uses.

Extremely Low Frequency (ELF)Frequency starting from 3Hz to 3 kHz is known as Extremely LowFrequency or ELF range in the electromagnetic spectrum. According toIEEE band designation, these ranges are divided into three sub-bands:ELF – Extremely Low Frequency, ranging from 3Hz to 30Hz.SLF– Super Low Frequency, ranges from 30 to 300Hz.ULF – Ultra Low Frequency, ranging from 300 to 3000Hz (3 KHz).This range is highly vulnerable to disturbance and easily distorted byatmospheric changes. Designing a system in this range is challengingbecause the larger wavelengths require long antennas, which arepractically impossible to achieve.Scientists use this frequency band in seismic studies to understand naturalactivities in the Earth’s atmosphere and communication with submarines.

Very Low Frequency (VLF)

Very Low Frequency is the starting range of RF and practical radiotransmission systems which span from 3 kHz to 30 kHz. However, thedesign and implementation of the antenna system are extremelycomplicated due to the wavelength.It has been used in submarines and still using in time radio stations whichsynchronizes clock signals between two remote locations.

Low Frequency (LF)Low frequency is in the range of 30 kHz to 300 kHz. One of the importantproperties of LF signals is that they will get reflected by the earth’sionosphere and thus, it is suitable for long-distance communication. Sinceit’s a long wavelength and less attenuation from big terrains like mountains,it is generally called a ground wave.Amateur radio operators use low-frequency signals; it is one of the mostimportant sources of information transfer when another kind ofcommunication source fails during some situations like natural disasters.Other areas are military applications like submarines, RFID tags in near-field communication, and some low-frequency radio broadcasting.

Medium Frequency (MF)Medium frequency was one of the most popular frequency bands since thebeginning of wireless radio transmission in the early nineteenth century. MFoperates in the range of 300 kHz to 3 MHz.  The transmitters, receivers,and antenna design is relatively less complex than other high-frequencytransmission bands.Medium Frequency has been widely used in AM radio transmission,navigation systems for ships and aircraft, emergency distress signals, coastguards, and other experimental applications.

High Frequency (HF)

High-frequency signals range between 3 MHz and 30 MHz. This frequencyband is also known as a short wave. It also gets reflected by the earth’sionosphere, and it is one of the suitable bands for long-distancecommunication.

ConclusionRF is a broad spectrum, and many of its characteristics have not beenexperimented with yet. It has a lot of possibilities in medical applicationslike MRI technology (even up to 12 Tesla for medical research),seismography, and oceanic studies. RF transceivers are significantcomponents in interplanetary missions such as the Mars exploration. Ourfuture digital communication systems may rely on high-frequency bands ofthe RF spectrum since they can support higher bandwidth