frequency modulation

noun

, Electronics, Radio.

1. FM.

frequency modulation

noun

1. a method of transmitting information using a radio-frequency carrier wave. The frequency of the carrier wave is varied in accordance with the amplitude and polarity of the input signal, the amplitude of the carrier remaining unchanged FM Compare amplitude modulation

frequency modulation

1. A method of transmitting signals, especially in radio broadcasting, in which the value of the signal is given by the frequency of a high frequency carrier wave. In FM radio transmission, for example, the signal to be carried is a sound wave, and its increasing and decreasing value is reflected in the increasing and decreasing frequency of a radio frequency carrier wave.
2. Compare amplitude modulation

frequency modulation

1. A type of radio signal in which the frequency of the radio wave is varied to carry information from the transmitter to the receiver. ( Compare amplitude modulation (AM).)

Word History and Origins

Origin of frequency modulation¹

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

The difference between AM, or amplitude modulation, and FM, or frequency modulation, involves how sound waves are encoded into a signal that can be picked up by receivers.

From Washington Times

In his “Bird Concerto,” sampled birdsong mingles with music that mimics the sonic signatures of our feathered friends, but also the “quasi-electronic frequency modulation” of their cries.

From Washington Post

One signal unravelled into a sensible pattern associated with frequency modulation in the thousands of kilohertz — sound, I surmised.

From Nature

This identity is encoded in a specific frequency modulation pattern that the dolphin learns as a calf and keeps throughout its life.

From New York Times

Utilities typically leveraged one-way paging frequency modulation communications to send signals to these switches to turn off for a short time to reduce load.

From Forbes