Peak envelope power (PEP) is the average power supplied to the antenna transmission line by a transmitter during one radio frequency cycle at the crest of the modulation envelope, under normal operating conditions. The United States Federal Communications Commission uses PEP to set maximum power standards for amateur radio transmitters. The PEP output of an AM transmitter at full modulation is four times its carrier PEP; in other words, a sold-state, 100-watt amateur transceiver is usually rated for no more than 25 watts carrier output when operating in AM.
PEP was often used in non-broadcast AM applications because it most accurately described the potential of mobile transmitters to interfere with each other. Its use is now somewhat deprecated, with the average transmitter power output (or sometimes effective radiated power) now typically being preferred.
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