The Decibel - dB

Power in

Power
Amplifier

Power out

The decibel (dB) is a logarithmic unit of measurement

that expresses the magnitude of power or amplitude
relative to a specified reference level and is commonly
used in the measurement of sound or power when
investigating electronic systems.
A decibel is one tenth of a bel, a seldom-used unit.

Decibel - Power Gain

Amplifier
Pi

Po
Ap

The power gain (Ap) of an amplifier is the logarithmic

ratio between input power (Pi ) and output power (Po )

Ap 10 log10

Po
Pi

dB

Decibel - Power Gain

Pi 100mW

Amplifier
Ap

Po 200mW

Po 200
AP
2
Pi 100
200
Ap 10 log10
3dB
100
A 3dB gain is a doubling of power.

Decibel - Attenuation
Pi 100mW

Amplifier
Ap

Po 1mW

It is also possible to express a reduction of power in

decibels this is known as attenuation and the result
takes a negative sign indicating a reduction.

0.001
Ap 10 log10
20dB
0.10
A reduction of one hundred times is expressed as -20dB

Power Gain - Activity

Input

Power
Amplifier

Output

A power amplifier is required to drive a 100 watt speaker

system from a 5 watt signal source. Determine the gain
of the amplifier in dB.
It is required to double the output power to 200 watts,
determine the new gain of the amplifier assuming the
source signal is the same.

Multi-stage Power Gain

Pi

1st Stage
(Pre-Amp)
Ap1=10

2nd Stage
(Power-Amp)
Ap2=100

Po

System Gain (Ap) is the sum of the individual stage

gains.

Ap = Ap1 + Ap2 = 10 + 100 = 110dB

Multi-stage Power Gain - Activity

Pi

1st Stage
(Pre-Amp)
Ap1

2nd Stage
(Power-Amp)
Ap2

Po

A hi-fi system is made up of a pre-amplifier and a power

amplifier. To drive a 400W speaker system the power amplifier
requires 2W.
Determine the system power gain in dB if the pre-amp draws
20mW (0.02W) from a signal source when operating at full power.

Decibel - Amplitude Gain

Input

Vi

Ri

Signal
Amplifier
Av

Ro Vo

Output

It is also common to express the ratio of

voltage or current in decibels

Vo
Av 20 log10
Vi

dB

The output resistance (Ro ) must be equal to the input resistance (Ri ),
ie the condition for maximum power transfer.

Decibel - Amplitude Gain

Vi 20mV

Signal
Amplifier

Vo 200mV

Vo 200

10
Vi
20
200
Av 20 log10
20dB
20
A voltage gain of ten times is equal to +20dB

Amplitude Gain - Activity

Input

Signal
Amplifier
Av

Output

A signal amplifier provides a 12 volt output when a 2 volt

signal is applied to its input. Determine the gain of the
amplifier in dB.
If the gain control is adjusted to provide a 24 volt signal
at the output for the same input signal, determine the
new gain of the amplifier.

Gain and Loss Ratios

To get a feel for power gain and loss expressed in dB
the following shows the corresponding ratios,
A gain of 10,000 = 40dB
1000 = 30dB
100 = 20dB
10 = 10dB
1 = 0dB
A loss (attenuation) of 0.5 = -3dB
0.1 = -10dB
0.01 = -20dB
0.001 = -30dB
0.0001 = -40dB

dB Ratios
dBm is an abbreviation for the power ratio in decibels (dB)
of the measured power referenced to one milliwatt (mW). It is used
in radio, microwave and fibre optic networks as a convenient
measure of absolute.

dBW is referenced to one watt (1000 mW) and is an absolute unit,

used when measuring absolute power.
In audio dBm is typically referenced relative to a 600 ohm
impedance, while in radio frequency work dBm is typically
referenced relative to a 50 ohm impedance.