RLC Circuit Calculator
Analyse a series RLC circuit for resonance, bandwidth and damping.
About RLC Circuit Calculator
At resonance the reactances cancel and impedance drops to the resistance alone. The Q factor sets how sharp that resonance is, and bandwidth is the resonant frequency divided by Q. High Q gives narrow selectivity — good for tuning, bad for transient response, since a high-Q circuit rings for many cycles after a disturbance.
Formula
RLC Circuit
f₀ = 1 ÷ (2π√(LC)); Q = √(L/C) ÷ R; bandwidth = f₀ ÷ Q
- Q
- Quality factor, sharpness of the resonance
- damping ratio
- Below 1 the circuit is underdamped and rings
Worked example
With the default values below, RLC Circuit Calculator returns Resonant Frequency of 15,915.494. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.
Inputs used
- Resistanceminimum 0.01 ohm
- 10 ohm
- Inductanceminimum 0 H
- 0.001 H
- Capacitanceminimum 0 F
- 0 F
- Operating frequencyminimum 0.01 Hz
- 16,000 Hz
Results
- Resonant Frequency
- 15,915.494 Hz
- Impedance at the Operating Frequency
- 10.0559 ohm
- Quality Factor
- 10.0000
- Bandwidth
- 1,591.549 Hz
- Damping Ratio
- 0.05000
Step by step
- 1Values used
- 2RLC Circuit
- 3Resonant Frequency= 15,915.494 Hz
- 4Impedance at the Operating Frequency= 10.0559 ohm
- 5Quality Factor= 10.0000
- 6Bandwidth= 1,591.549 Hz
- 7Damping Ratio= 0.05000
Assumptions and limits
- The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
- In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax or fees or charges into account.
- Figures are rounded for display to 5 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.
How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is RLC Circuit calculated?
f₀ = 1 ÷ (2π√(LC)); Q = √(L/C) ÷ R; bandwidth = f₀ ÷ Q At resonance the reactances cancel and impedance drops to the resistance alone. The Q factor sets how sharp that resonance is, and bandwidth is the resonant frequency divided by Q.
Why does RLC Circuit matter?
High Q gives narrow selectivity — good for tuning, bad for transient response, since a high-Q circuit rings for many cycles after a disturbance.
What values do I need to enter?
This calculator takes 4 inputs: Resistance, Inductance, Capacitance, Operating frequency. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.