Negative feedback
Negative feedback occurs when some function of the output of a system, process, or machine is fed back in a manner that tends to reduce the fluctuations in the output, whether caused by changes in the input or by other disturbances.
Description
Negative feedback tends to promote a settling to equilibrium, and reduces the effects of perturbations.
Negative feedback loops in which just the right amount of correction is applied with optimum timing can be very stable, accurate, and responsive.
Negative feedback is widely used in mechanical engineering and electronic engineering, but it also occurs naturally within living organisms, and can be seen in many other fields from chemistry and economics to physical systems such as the climate.
General negative feedback systems are studied in control systems engineering.
Positive feedback
By contrast, positive feedback tends to lead to instability via exponential growth or oscillation.
See also
External links
- Negative feedback @ Wikipedia
