The integer k has units of cycles/sample, and 1/T is the sample-rate, fs (samples/sec). So X1/T(f) comprises exact copies of X(f) that are shifted by multiples of fs hertz and combined by addition. For sufficiently large fs the k=0 term can be observed in the region [−fs/2, fs/2] with little or no distortion (aliasing) from the other terms. In Fig.1, the extremities of the distribution in the upper left corner are masked by aliasing in the periodic summation (lower left).
We also note that e^{-i 2pi f T n} is the Fourier transform of scriptstyle delta(t-nT). Therefore, an alternative definition of DTFT is:[note 1]
X_{1/T}(f) = mathcal{F}left {sum_{n=-infty}^{infty} x[n] cdot delta(t-nT)
ight }
(Eq.3)
The modulated Dirac comb function is a mathematical abstraction sometimes referred to as impulse sampling.[1]