This tool converts from dBµV (deciBel microvolt) to µV (microvolt)
Formula
µV = 10dBµV/20
Example Calculations
0 dBµV = 1 µV
10 dBµV = 3.162 µV
100 dBµV = 100000 µV
Background
Volt is a unit of potential difference and of electromotive force. It is defined as:
“the potential difference between two points of a conducting wire carrying a constant current of 1 ampere, when the power dissipated between these points is equal to 1 watt.” – Reference Bureau International des Poids et Mesures
1 µV or microvolt = 10-6 Volt = 0.000001 Volt
also
1 Volt = 106 microvolt = 1000000 microvolt
1 microvolt is a small number, but it’s not unusual to encounter voltage levels of this magnitude in real life. For instance, the power at the input to your Ring doorbell (also known as RSSI) can be -90 dBm. This is equivalent to 7 uV. Use the dBm to µV calculator.
The dB or deciBel scale is used to represent a ratio of power or voltage. For instance an amplifier with 50 dB gain has an output power that is 100,000 times the input.
dBuV (like dBm) is an absolute quantity. It is the voltage level in dB referenced to 1 microvolt.
Where are µV and dBµV used?
Both uV and dBuV are used by EMC engineers in the field of Electromagnetic Compatibility in the measurement of conducted emissions. Conducted emissions refers to noise generated by an electronic device and transferred to another electronic device via cables, PCB traces, power and ground planes, or parasitic capacitance.
Conducted emissions must be kept low or they can propagate through cables causing electromagnetic interference to other devices. This can cause them to malfunction.
FCC specifies limits on these emissions as shown in the table below. The frequency range varies from 150 kHz to 30 MHz.
The picture below shows a plot of emissions from a power amplifier module. The red line indicates the limits while the black plot represents the actual measurement.
The y-axis of the plot shows dBuV values ranging from 20 to 80 dBuV.
On a linear scale (using this calculator) that would be 10 uV to 10000 uV – a large range of values. Representing this range is much easier on a dB scale. Hence the reason to use dBuV.