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Maximum Data Rate

Maximum data rate depends on whether the channel is noiseless or noisy.

Noiseless Channel


  1. Nyquist Bit Rate Formula

For a noiseless channel with bandwidth B Hz and using V signal levels.

$Maximum Data Rate = 2B\log_2(10) bits/s$

Noise Channel


  1. Shannon Capacity Formula

For a channel with bandwidth B Hz and signal-to-noise ratio (S/N):

$Maximum Data Rate = B\log_2(1 + \frac{S}{N})$

$SNR = 10\log_{10}(\frac{S}{N})$

$\implies \frac{S}{N} = 10 ^ \frac{SNR}{10}$

  • S/N -> Signal to Noise Ratio