A single pole transfer function has the general from of
\[ H(s) = \dfrac{1}{1 + \frac{s}{p}} \]
Since H(s) has no roots in the numerator, the transfer function H(s) has no zeros. H(s) does have one root in the denominator, at
\[ s = -p \]
H(s) is said to have one pole at -p in the left-hand plane. As will be seen in the following sections, there are some important attributes for the magnitude and phase of a transfer function which can be generalized around the pole location.