The low-frequency band is the radio-frequency (RF) band in
the range 30-300 kHz. LF suffers from the same difficulties
associated with ELF: small bandwidths are available; and antennas are
large and inefficient, leading to low radiated powers. However, LF
has similar advantages to ELF and has low attenuation through
the atmosphere and through seawater and is therefore used for
some submarine communications and maritime radio navigation systems. The band
has more use for communications than ELF since it has
a bandwidth that is large enough to provide reliable communications.
Propagation is primarily by surface wave and has little seasonal
or diurnal variation. However, communications are prone to static and
to interference from other radio frequencies.
Other topics in our resources on Communications Systems related to LF include: