National Association of Broadcasters Engineering Handbook, 11th Edition

Chapter1.1

The Electromagnetic Spectrum

John Norgard

Air Force Research Laboratory

Rome, New York

Updated for the 11th Edition by

Gregory L. Best, P.E.

Greg Best Consulting, Inc.

Stilwell, KS

Introduction

The electromagnetic (EM) spectrum consists of all forms of EM radiation, from DC to light to gamma rays. A chart of the EM spectrum can be arranged in order of frequency or wavelength into a number of regions,¹ usually wide in extent, within which the EM waves have some specified common characteristics (e.g., those characteristics relating to the production or detection of the radiation). A common example is the spectrum of the radiant energy in the region referred to as white light, which when dispersed by a prism will produce a rainbow of ...