In
telecommunication,
attack time is the
time between (a) the instant that a
signal at the
input of a device or
circuit exceeds the activation
threshold of the device or circuit and (b) the instant that the device or circuit reacts in a specified manner, or to a specified degree, to the input.
Note: Attack time occurs in devices such as clippers, peak limiters, compressors, and voxes.
Source: from Federal Standard 1037C