Areas where cell phones cannot transmit to a nearby cell site, base station, or repeater are known as dead zones. In these areas, the cell phone is said to be in a state of outage. Dead zones are usually areas where cell phone service is not available because the signal between the handset and cell site antennas is blocked, usually by hilly terrain, excessive foliage, or physical distance.
A number of factors can create dead zones which may exist even in locations in which a wireless carrier offers coverage, due to limitations in cellular network architecture (the locations of antennas), limited network density, interference with other cell sites, and topography. Since cell phones rely on radio waves, and radio waves travel though the air and are easily attenuated, cell phones may be unreliable at times. Like other radio transmissions, cell phone calls can be interrupted by large buildings, terrain, trees, or other objects between the phone and the nearest base station antennas.
Many wireless service providers work continually to improve and upgrade their networks in order to minimize dropped calls, access failures, and dead zones (which they call "coverage holes" or "no-service areas").
Read more about this topic: Mobile Phone Signal
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