Saturation

Saturation The condition in which the partial pressure of any fluid constituent (water in the atmospheric air) is equal to its maximum possible partial pressure under the existing environmental conditions, such that any increase in the amount of that constituent will initiate within it a change to a more condensed state. Evaporation ceases under such conditions.

In a communications system, the condition in which a component of the system has reached its maximum traffic handling capacity. Note: Saturation is equivalent to one erlang per circuit. 2. The point at which the output of a linear device, such as a linear amplifier, deviates significantly from being a linear function of the input when the input signal is increased. Note: Modulation often requires that amplifiers operate below saturation.