Electrical devices are capable of creating emissions that can interfere with the external environment. These emissions have the potential to interfere with the electrical grid and other local electrical devices. There are two main types of electrical emissions--conducted emission and radiated emission.

Conducted emissions are electromagnetic energy created by a device and transmitted in the form of an electrical current through its power cord. This can potentially cause problems since power cords are connected to the entire power distribution network.

Radiated emissions are electromagnetic energy created by a device and released as electromagnetic fields that propagate through air, away from the device. Electric devices that create radiated emissions have the potential to interfere with other nearby electrical products.