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Networking & Telecommunications vocabulary · Telecom Operators and Services

Spectrum

Meaning in networking & telecommunications, with examples

/ˈspektrəm/nounAdvanced term

In networking & telecommunications, spectrum means: The range of radio frequencies that can be used for wireless communication; mobile operators need licences from the national regulator to use particular parts of it.

In Turkish: spektrum, frekans spektrumu, frekans bandı

How it is used

Used in telecom business, regulation and radio planning. Regulators allocate and auction spectrum; operators acquire it, hold it and refarm it, which means moving it from an older technology to a newer one. Spectrum is described in bands, such as the 700 MHz or 3.5 GHz band.

Example sentences

  1. The operator bought extra spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band for its 5G network.

  2. Spectrum is expensive, so we have to use every megahertz efficiently.

Common collocations

  • spectrum auction
  • licensed spectrum
  • spectrum allocation
  • unlicensed spectrum
  • spectrum band
  • 5GThe fifth generation of mobile network technology, designed to offer much higher speeds, lower latency and support for far more connected devices than 4G.
  • base stationThe radio equipment and antennas, usually on a mast or rooftop, that connect mobile phones and other devices in a particular area to an operator's mobile network.
  • carrierA telecommunications company that owns or operates a network and carries voice and data traffic for customers or for other operators.
  • interferenceUnwanted radio signals that disturb a wireless connection, coming from other access points, neighbouring networks, microwave ovens or other devices that use the same frequencies.

More terms: Telecom Operators and Services

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