bit error ratio (BER)
1. The number of erroneous bits divided by the total number of bits transmitted, received, or processed over some stipulated period.
Note 1: Examples of bit error ratio are (a) transmission BER, i.e., the number of erroneous bits received divided by the total number of bits transmitted; and (b) information BER, i.e., the number of erroneous decoded (corrected) bits divided by the total number of decoded (corrected) bits.
Note 2: The BER is usually expressed as a coefficient and a power of 10; for example,
2. 5 erroneous bits out of 100,000 bits transmitted would be
2. 5 out of 105 or
2. 5 × 10-5.