5kHz

5kHz is a frequency of 5,000 hertz, a standard unit of oscillation used in physics, engineering, and electronics. The term arises from the definition of a hertz as one cycle per second, so a 5kHz signal completes five thousand cycles each second. In the context of alternating current (AC) power, 5kHz is much higher than the typical mains frequencies of 50 or 60 Hz and is commonly encountered in radio, telecommunications, and audio applications.

In audio engineering, 5kHz lies within the mid‑high frequency range of the human hearing spectrum. It is often used as a reference tone for loudness calibration in broadcasting and audio production. Many radio subcarriers, such as the 5kHz pilot tone on FM broadcasts, provide a synchronization signal that allows receivers to lock onto the modulation envelope and recover the stereo audio channels. The 5kHz pilot tone also eliminates intermodulation distortion in certain AM and FM station specifications.

In digital electronics, a 5kHz clock rate may be used for low‑speed microcontrollers when low power consumption is a priority. Some embedded systems rely on a 5kHz square wave to trigger periodic tasks without burdening the main processor. In the realm of analog video, modulation formats such as 5kHz amplitude‑modulated subcarriers serve as key components in analog television and radio data systems.

Because 5kHz lies within the usable bandwidth for many consumer devices, its applications span from simple tone generation to intricate synchronization signals in communication networks.