7.2. Leakage

Try these first

1. 1.

   What is leakage in frequency analysis?

   Hint

   Think about how frequency peaks might be changed.

2. 2.

   Name a common windowing function.

   Hint

   Consider functions used to smooth signals.

3. 3.

   What is the main cause of leakage in frequency analysis?

   • Signal frequencies aligning perfectly
   • Signal frequencies not matching FFT bin centers
   • Smoothing the signal

   Hint

   Focus on how alignment affects the representation.

4. 4.

   True or False: Applying a windowing function before FFT can help to reduce leakage.

   • True
   • False

   Hint

   Think about how changing a signal can impact its analysis.

5. 5.

   A signal shows two distinct frequency peaks at 10 Hz and 50 Hz, but due to leakage, only a peak at 40 Hz is observed in the spectrum. Discuss how this misrepresentation can critically impact the application in monitoring.

   Hint

   Consider what happens when frequencies that signify problems are masked.

6. 6.

   Given a signal sampled over a short duration with a specified sampling rate, calculate the expected frequency resolution and discuss the potential impact of leakage in this context.

   Hint

   Relate the sampling and duration terms back to resolution in frequency analysis.