The Nyquist Frequency, a concept in signal processing, is pronounced /'naɪkwɪst frɛkwənsi/. The first syllable "Ny" is pronounced as "nai" with a long "i" sound, followed by "quist" pronounced as "kwist" with a short "i" sound. The stress is on the first syllable. "Frequency" is pronounced as "freh-kwuhn-see" with the stress on the second syllable. The term refers to the maximum frequency that can be accurately measured in a digitized signal and plays a crucial role in digital audio and video.
The Nyquist Frequency is a concept derived from the Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem, which is a fundamental principle in digital signal processing. It refers to the highest frequency that can be accurately represented or reconstructed from a discrete set of samples taken from an analog signal.
According to the Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem, in order to accurately capture an analog signal, it must be sampled at a rate that is at least twice the highest frequency present in the signal. This is the minimum requirement to prevent aliasing, a phenomenon that occurs when frequencies beyond the Nyquist Frequency fold back and interfere with the original signal during the reconstruction process.
The Nyquist Frequency itself is exactly half of the sampling rate. For example, if a signal is sampled at 44.1 kHz (which is the standard sampling rate for audio CDs), the Nyquist Frequency would be 22.05 kHz. This means that any frequency components above 22.05 kHz will not be faithfully represented in the digital signal.
Understanding the Nyquist Frequency is crucial in various fields like audio engineering, telecommunications, and digital image processing. It helps determine the necessary sampling rate for capturing and reproducing signals accurately without distortion or information loss. By obeying the Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem and ensuring the sampling rate is at least double the highest frequency, high-quality digital representations of analog signals can be achieved.
The term "Nyquist frequency" is derived from the name of its creator, Harry Nyquist, who was a Swedish-born American engineer and physicist. Harry Nyquist made significant contributions to the field of telecommunications and information theory, particularly in the area of sampling and quantization. He worked at the Bell Telephone Laboratories in the early 20th century, where he developed the concept of the Nyquist frequency, also known as the Nyquist rate or Nyquist limit. The Nyquist frequency refers to the highest frequency that can be accurately represented or sampled in a digital signal without causing aliasing or distortion.