L band

IEEE L band

L band (20-cm radar long-band) is a portion of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum ranging roughly from 0.39 to 1.55 GHz. It is used by some communications satellites, and by terrestrial Eureka 147 digital audio broadcasting (DAB). In the United States, the L band is held by the military for telemetry, thereby forcing digital radio to in-band on-channel (IBOC) solutions. DAB is typically done in the 1452–1492-MHz range as in Canada, but other countries also use VHF and UHF bands.

The Global Positioning System carriers are in the L band, centered at 1176.45 MHz (L5), 1227.60 MHz (L2), 1381.05 MHz (L3), and 1575.42 MHz (L1) frequencies.

WorldSpace satellite radio broadcasts in the 1467–1492 MHz L sub-band.

Mobile phones operate at frequencies between 800 and 1900 MHz.

NATO L band

The different NATO L band is defined as frequency band between 40–60 GHz (5–7.5 mm).

The band also contains the hyperfine transition of neutral hydrogen (the hydrogen line), which is of great astronomical interest as a means of imaging the normally invisible neutral atomic hydrogen in interstellar space.

L band is also used in optical communications to refer to the wavelength range 1570nm to 1610nm.