TDMA
Technology & Computing abbreviation · Telecom
| Stands for | Time-division multiple access |
|---|---|
| Categories | Technology & Computing |
TDMA stands for Time-division multiple access, a telecom abbreviation.
Channel-sharing method that divides a radio frequency into repeating time slots assigned to different users; GSM uses it with eight slots per channel. In North America, "TDMA" also named the IS-136 digital network used in the late 1990s and 2000s.
Example: AT&T Wireless customers on the old TDMA network had to switch phones before it shut down.
Usage notes
TDMA allows several calls on one frequency because each phone transmits in short bursts. The buzzing heard near speakers from GSM phones comes from these bursts at 217 times per second. IS-136 networks in the US were shut down around 2008. Satellite systems and DECT cordless phones also use TDMA.
Related abbreviations
More telecom abbreviations
- SAR – Specific absorption rate
- SDR – Software-defined radio
- SIM – Subscriber Identity Module
- SMS – Short Message Service
- T1 – Transmission System 1
- TDD – Time-division duplex
- TTY – Teletypewriter (Unix terminal)
- UC – Unified communications
- UMTS – Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
- USSD – Unstructured Supplementary Service Data
- UWB – Ultra-wideband
- VDSL – Very-high-bit-rate digital subscriber line