Shannon–Hartley Theorem

Shannon-Hartley theorem defines the maximum data rate (or channel capacity) that can be achieved over a communication channel with a specified bandwidth in the presence of noise.

• Channel Capacity  -  The maximum achievable rate of information transmission over a given communication channel without errors.
• Bandwidth  -  The range of frequencies over which the signal is transmitted.
• Signal-to-Noise Ratio  -  The ratio of the power of the signal to the power of the noise.
• The theorem shows that the channel capacity increases with both the bandwidth and the SNR.
• It provides the upper bound on how much information can be reliably transmitted over a channel, regardless of the coding and modulation schemes used.

The Shannon-Hartley theorem calculator computes the theoretical upper limit data rate of a channel based on the bandwidth, receiver strength and channel noise.

 

Shannon-Hartley theorem formula
\( C \;=\; B\; log_2 \; [\; 1 + ( S \;/\; N )\;] \)
Symbol	English	Metric
\( C \) = Channel Capacity	-	\(bits\;/\;s\)
\( B \) = Bandwidth of the Channel	-	\(MHz\)
\( S \) = Average Signal Power	-	\(W\)
\( N \) = Average Noise Power	-	\(W\)