Hz - Hertz

By: Preethi Ramkumar

Meaning of Hz - "Hertz", is a unit of frequency (of change in state or cycle in a sound wave, alternating current, or other cyclical waveform) of one cycle per second. It replaces the earlier term of "cycle per second (cps)." For example, in the United States, common house electrical supply is at 60 hertz (meaning the current changes direction or polarity 120 times, or 60 cycles, a second). (In Europe, line frequency is 50 hertz, or 50 cycles per second.) Broadcast transmission is at much higher frequency rates, usually expressed in kilohertz (KHz) or megahertz (MHz).

In acoustic sound, the range of human hearing is from 0 Hz to roughly 20 KHz (depending on many factors, including age and how loud the drummer in your high school rock band played!). The pitch of Middle C on a piano is 263 Hz. Hertz is also used frequently when describing the individual bands of an audio equalizer. To make that Middle C louder, you could boost other frequencies to around 263 Hz with an equalizer. The unit of measure is named after Heinrich Hertz, German physicist.

The name hertz was adopted by the CGPM (Conférence générale des poids et mesures) in 1960, replacing the previous name for the unit, cycles per second (cps), along with its related multiples (kilocycles, megacycles, and so forth). Hertz replaced cycles in common use by 1970.

Other Related Definitions:

“…The frequency of electrical vibrations (cycles) per second. Abbreviated "Hz," one Hz is equal to one cycle per second. In 1883, Heinrich Hertz detected electromagnetic waves.” [Wikipedia]

“…Hertz (hűrts) [for Heinrich R. Hertz], abbr. Hz, unit of frequency, equal to 1 cycle per second. The term is combined with metric prefixes to denote multiple units such as the kilohertz (1,000 Hz), megahertz (1,000,000 Hz), and gigahertz (1,000,000,000 Hz).” [Columbia University ]

“…Short for Hertz, a unit of frequency of electrical vibrations equal to one cycle per second. The Hertz is named after Heinrich Hertz, who first detected electromagnetic waves. ” [Jupitermedia Corporation ]

“…Hertz (Hz): 1. The SI unit of frequency, equal to one cycle per second. Note: A periodic phenomenon that has a period of one second has a frequency of one hertz. 2. A unit of frequency which is equivalent to one cycle per second.” [ Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS)]

Related Links:

Ray Tomes - Cycles Definition of Terms
Magnetic Resonance - Technology Information Portal - Artifact Information
Musical Math - Scaling Hertz frequency values by equal tempered amounts
Tom Henderson - Frequency and Period of a Wave
Tyler Gruber, Ph.D., Adjunct Professor of Physics, Louisiana Tech U. - What are the frequencies of musical notes like G and G# in k-hertz?
Cnmat - CAST Transforms: Rectangular EQ Regions
Linux - How to know HZ from userspace
Trumpet - Elements of Music

Technical Resources:

Algebra - Explanation About Hertz

Products and Solutions:

Acoustics
Macmusic
Spacewx

Blogs, News, feeds…

http://www.cooldictionary.com/words/Talk%3AHertz.wikipedia
http://www.mr-tip.com/serv1.php?type=fo
http://boinc-doc.net/site-common/glossary/letter-g.php5

Books:

60-Hertz electric and magnetic fields from transmission lines by T. Dan Bracken
Everybody Hertz:The 10000 Hz. Legend by Air Cdcdis Asw11833

See Also:

Hertz Resources

 

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