Potentiometers are essentially variable resistors. Due to their role in circuits of producing an output voltage that is related to the input voltage (external voltage), they are referred to as potentiometers.

The dynamic noise of a potentiometer refers to the electrical noise generated when the moving contact point of a potentiometer slides over the resistor body under the influence of an applied voltage. Dynamic noise is one of the main parameters of sliding noise, and its magnitude is related to the rotational speed of the shaft, the contact resistance between the contact point and the resistor body, the uneven variation of the resistivity of the resistor body, the number of moving contact points, and the magnitude of the applied voltage.

Sliding noise is a characteristic noise of potentiometers. When changing the resistance value, due to improper distribution of the potentiometer's resistance, miscoordination of the rotating system, and the presence of contact resistance, the moving contact point, as it moves across the resistor surface, generates noise in addition to the useful signal at the output. For wirewound potentiometers, in addition to the noise caused by the moving contact point's contact with the winding, there is also resolution noise and short-circuit noise. Resolution noise is caused by the stepped nature of the resistance change, while short-circuit noise occurs when the moving contact point shorts adjacent windings as it moves along the winding, and it is proportional to the current flowing through the winding, the resistance of the windings, and the contact resistance between the moving contact point and the winding.