Xref: utzoo rec.ham-radio:5875 sci.electronics:3763
Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!mailrus!cornell!uw-beaver!tektronix!tekcae!vice!keithl
From: keithl@vice.ICO.TEK.COM (Keith Lofstrom)
Newsgroups: rec.ham-radio,sci.electronics
Subject: Re: Radio Wavicles
Message-ID: <2812@vice.ICO.TEK.COM>
Date: 4 Sep 88 16:42:07 GMT
References: <805@ns.UUCP>
Reply-To: keithl@vice.ICO.TEK.COM (Keith Lofstrom)
Organization: Tektronix, Inc., Beaverton,  OR.
Lines: 10

"Continuous" frequency change, as in swept frequencies or FM, is a reasonably
accurate *approximation*.  At radio frequencies of 1 GHz, an energy quanta
is 6.6E-25 Joules.  Thermal noise at 300 Kelvin is around 4e-21 Joules,
about 6000 times larger.  We can't see the quanta; they are buried in noise.
It's easier just to ignore the quantum effects unless the frequencies are
higher or the temperatures are lower.

-- 
Keith Lofstrom   ...!tektronix!vice!keithl   keithl@vice.TEK.COM
MS 59-316, Tektronix, PO 500, Beaverton OR 97077  (503)-627-4052