Frequency stability.

  1. Law
  2. CFR 47
  3. Telecommunication
  4. Federal Communications Commission
  5. Safety and Special Radio Services
  6. Private Land Mobile Radio Services
  7. General Technical Standards
  8. Frequency stability.

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§ 90.213 Frequency stability.

(a) Unless noted elsewhere, transmitters used in the services governed by this part must have a minimum frequency stability as specified in the following table.

Expand Table

Table 1 to § 90.213(a) - Minimum Frequency Stability

[Parts per million (ppm)]

Frequency range (MHz) Fixed and base stations Mobile stations
Over 2 watts output power 2 watts or less output power
Below 25 1 2 3 100 100 200
25-50 20 20 50
72-76 5 50
150-174 5 11 5 6 5 4 6 50
216-220 1.0 1.0
220-22212 0.1 1.5 1.5
421-512 7 11 14 2.5 8 5 8 5
806-809 14 1.0 1.5 1.5
809-824 14 1.5 2.5 2.5
851-854 1.0 1.5 1.5
854-869 1.5 2.5 2.5
896-901 14 0.1 1.5 1.5
902-928 2.5 2.5 2.5
902-92813 2.5 2.5 2.5
929-930 1.5
935-940 0.1 1.5 1.5
1427-1435 9 300 300 300
Above 245010

1 Fixed and base stations with over 200 watts transmitter power must have a frequency stability of 50 ppm except for equipment used in the Public Safety Pool where the frequency stability is 100 ppm.

2 For single sideband operations below 25 MHz, the carrier frequency must be maintained within 50 Hz of the authorized carrier frequency.

3 Travelers information station transmitters operating from 530-1700 kHz and transmitters exceeding 200 watts peak envelope power used for disaster communications and long distance circuit operations pursuant to §§ 90.242 and 90.264 must maintain the carrier frequency to within 20 Hz of the authorized frequency.

4 Stations operating in the 154.45 to 154.49 MHz or the 173.2 to 173.4 MHz bands must have a frequency stability of 5 ppm.

5 In the 150-174 MHz band, fixed and base stations with a 12.5 kHz channel bandwidth must have a frequency stability of 2.5 ppm. Fixed and base stations with a 6.25 kHz channel bandwidth must have a frequency stability of 1.0 ppm.

6 In the 150-174 MHz band, mobile stations designed to operate with a 12.5 kHz channel bandwidth or designed to operate on a frequency specifically designated for itinerant use or designed for low-power operation of two watts or less, must have a frequency stability of 5.0 ppm. Mobile stations designed to operate with a 6.25 kHz channel bandwidth must have a frequency stability of 2.0 ppm.

7 In the 421-512 MHz band, fixed and base stations with a 12.5 kHz channel bandwidth must have a frequency stability of 1.5 ppm. Fixed and base stations with a 6.25 kHz channel bandwidth must have a frequency stability of 0.5 ppm.

8 In the 421-512 MHz band, mobile stations designed to operate with a 12.5 kHz channel bandwidth must have a frequency stability of 2.5 ppm. Mobile stations designed to operate with a 6.25 kHz channel bandwidth must have a frequency stability of 1.0 ppm.

9 Fixed stations with output powers above 120 watts and necessary bandwidth less than 3 kHz must operate with a frequency stability of 100 ppm. Fixed stations with output powers less than 120 watts and using time-division multiplex, must operate with a frequency stability of 500 ppm.

10 Frequency stability for DSRCS equipment in the 5895-5925 MHz band is specified in subpart M of this part. For all other equipment, frequency stability is to be specified in the station authorization.

11 Paging transmitters operating on paging-only frequencies must operate with frequency stability of 5 ppm in the 150-174 MHz band and 2.5 ppm in the 421-512 MHz band.

12 Mobile units may utilize synchronizing signals from associated base stations to achieve the specified carrier stability.

13 Fixed non-multilateration transmitters with an authorized bandwidth that is more than 40 kHz from the band edge, intermittently operated hand-held readers, and mobile transponders are not subject to frequency tolerance restrictions.

14 Control stations may operate with the frequency tolerance specified for associated mobile frequencies.

(b) For the purpose of determining the frequency stability limits, the power of a transmitter is considered to be the maximum rated output power as specified by the manufacturer.

[60 FR 37266, July 19, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 4235, Feb. 5, 1996; 61 FR 18986, Apr. 30, 1996; 61 FR 38403, July 24, 1996; 62 FR 2040, Jan. 15, 1997; 62 FR 18927, Apr. 17, 1997; 67 FR 41860, June 20, 2002; 69 FR 46443, Aug. 3, 2004; 69 FR 67838, Nov. 22, 2004; 85 FR 43139, July 15, 2020; 86 FR 23297, May 3, 2021]

Editorial Note

Editorial Note:

At 85 FR 43139, July 16, 2020, § 90.613 was amended in the table by adding entries in numerical order for “896-901” and “935-940”, however due to an inaccurate amendatory instruction, this amendment could not be incorporated.


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