Telecom & Networking

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Shannon Channel Capacity

Maximum error-free data rate of a channel given bandwidth and signal-to-noise ratio.

Formula

C = B \log_2(1 + SNR)

Variables

CCapacity (bps)

BBandwidth (Hz)

SNRSignal-to-noise ratio

Example

B=1 MHz, SNR=1000: C = 10⁶×9.97 ≈ 9.97 Mbps

Did You Know?

Shannon's 1948 limit tells engineers the absolute ceiling no clever coding can ever beat.

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