What is G/T?
G/T (gain-to-noise-temperature ratio, the "figure of merit") summarises a receiving
system's sensitivity in a single number: the antenna gain divided by the total system noise temperature,
expressed in dB/K. Higher is better. It feeds directly into the carrier-to-noise
calculation: C/N₀ = EIRP − path loss + G/T − k.
Formulas used
Noise temperature from noise figure: T = (10^(NF/10) − 1) · 290 K
System noise temp referred to the antenna aperture (Friis cascade):
T_sys = T_A + (L−1)·T_phys + L·T_LNA + L·T_rx / G_LNA
where L is the linear feed loss before the LNA. Because the loss sits ahead of the LNA, it both adds
its own noise and attenuates the signal — which is why keeping pre-LNA loss tiny matters
so much. Finally: G/T = G_antenna(dBi) − 10·log₁₀(T_sys).
Plug the resulting G/T straight into the link budget calculator. All computation runs locally in your browser.