We introduce the asymptotic spectrum of graphs and apply the theory of
asymptotic spectra of Strassen (J. Reine Angew. Math. 1988) to obtain a new
dual characterisation of the Shannon capacity of graphs. Elements in the
asymptotic spectrum of graphs include the Lov\'asz theta number, the fractional
clique cover number, the complement of the fractional orthogonal rank and the
fractional Haemers bounds