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Outline
■ Analog and digital data/signals
■ Time and frequency domain views of signals
■ Bandwidth and bit rate
■ Transmitting digital signals as analog
■ Theoretical data rate
■ Signal impairment
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Analog vs. Digital Data
■ To be transmitted, data must be
transformed to electromagnetic signals
■ Data can be analog or digital.
■ The term analog data refers to information
that is continuous;
■ digital data refers to information that has
discrete states.
■ Analog data take on continuous values.
Digital data take on discrete values
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Analog vs. Digital Data
■ Analog data
■ Data take on continuous values
■ E.g., human voice
■ Digital data
■ Data take on discrete values
■ E.g., text, integers
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Analog vs. Digital Signals
To be transmitted, data must be
transformed to electromagnetic signals
■ Analog signals value
■ have an infinite number of
values in a range time
■ Digital signals value
■ Have a limited number of
values
time
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Data and Signals
Analog Data Analog Signal
Telephone
Digital Data Analog Signal
Modem
Analog Data Digital Signal
Codec
Digital Data Digital Signal
Digital
transmitter
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Periodic Signals
■ A periodic signal completes a pattern
within a timeframe, called a period
■ The completion of one full pattern is called
a cycle.
■ A non-periodic signal changes without
exhibiting the pattern or cycle that repeats
over time. value
period
time
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PERIODIC ANALOG SIGNALS
In data communications, we commonly use
periodic analog signals and nonperiodic digital
signals.
Periodic analog signals can be classified as
simple or composite.
A simple periodic analog signal, a sine wave,
cannot be decomposed into simpler signals.
A composite periodic analog signal is
composed of multiple sine waves.
3.9
Sine Waves
■ Simplest form of periodic analog signal
signal strength
period
T = 1/f
peak
amplitude
time
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Peak Amplitude
■ The peak amplitude of a signal is the
absolute value of its highest intensity
proportional to the energy it carries.
■ Is measured in volts.
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Figure 3.3 Two signals with the same phase and
frequency,
but different amplitudes
3.12
Frequency and period are the inverse of
each other.
Period and Frequency
■ Period refers to the amount of time, in
seconds, a signal needs to complete one
cycle.
■ Frequency refers to the number of
periods in 1s.
■ Period is expressed in seconds.
■ Frequency is expressed in Hertz.
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Phase and Amplitude
■ Phase describes the position of the
waveform relative to time 0.
■ Phase denotes the particular point in the
cycle of a waveform, measured as an
angle in degrees or radians.
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Figure 3.4 Two signals with the same amplitude and
phase,
but different frequencies
3.16
Table 3.1 Units of period and
frequency
Example 3.3
The power we use at home has a frequency
of 60 Hz. The period of this sine wave can be
determined as follows:
3.18
Example 3.4
The period of a signal is 100 ms. What is its
frequency in kilohertz?
Solution
First we change 100 ms to seconds, and then we
calculate the frequency from the period (1 Hz = 10−3
kHz).
3.19
Frequency
• Frequency is the rate of change with
respect to time.
• Change in a short span of time means
high frequency.
• Change over a long span of
time means low frequency.
Note
If a signal does not change at all, its
frequency is zero.
If a signal changes instantaneously, its
frequency is infinite.
3.21
Phase
■ Phase describes the position of the
waveform relative to time 0.
■ Phase denotes the particular point in the
cycle of a waveform, measured as an
angle in degrees or radians.
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Figure 3.5 Three sine waves with the same amplitude and
frequency,
but different phases
3.23
Example
3.3
A sine wave is offset 1/6 cycle with respect to time
0. What is its phase in degrees and radians?
Solution
We know that 1 complete cycle is 360°. Therefore,
1/6 cycle is
Wavelength
■ Wavelength is another characteristic of a
signal travelling through a transmission
medium.
■ Wavelength binds the period or the
frequency of a sine wave to the
propagation speed of the medium.
■ Wavelength=(propagation speed)*period
■ Wavelength=propagation speed/frequency
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Figure 3.6 Wavelength and
period
Figure 3.7 The time-domain and frequency-domain plots of a sine
wave
A complete sine wave in the time domain can be represented by one single spike in the frequency
domain.
Time vs. Frequency Domains
signal strength signal strength
1 1
0 0
2 4 time 2 4 frequency
-1 -1
Time Domain Representation Frequency Domain Representation
plots amplitude as a function plots each sine wave’s peak
of time amplitude against its frequency
Demo: Equalizer 28
Frequency and Time Domain
■ The frequency domain is more compact
and useful when we are dealing with more
than one sine wave. For example, Figure
shows three sine waves, each with
different amplitude and frequency. All can
be represented by three spikes in the
frequency domain.
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Figure 3.8 The time domain and frequency domain of three sine
waves
3.30
Signals and Communication
■ A single-frequency sine wave is not
useful in data communications
■ We need to send a composite
signal, a signal made of many
simple sine waves.
■ According to Fourier analysis, any
composite signal is a combination of
simple sine waves with different
frequencies, amplitudes, and
3.31 phases.
Composite Signals and
Periodicity
■ If the composite signal is periodic, the
decomposition gives a series of signals
with discrete frequencies.
■ If the composite signal is nonperiodic,
the decomposition gives a
combination of sine waves with
continuous frequencies.
3.32
Example
3.4
Figure 3.9 shows a periodic composite signal with
frequency f. This type of signal is not typical of those
found in data communications. We can consider it to
be three alarm systems, each with a different
frequency. The analysis of this signal can give us a
good understanding of how to decompose signals.
3.33
Figure 3.9 A composite periodic
signal
3.34
Figure 3.10 Decomposition of a composite periodic signal in the
time and
frequency domains
3.35
Figure 3.11 The time and frequency domains of a nonperiodic
signal
3.36
Bandwidth
■ A property of a medium
■ Indicates the difference between the highest and the
lowest frequencies allowed to pass
■ <highest freq allowed> – <lowest freq allowed>
Cutoff frequency
(half of power is lost)
■ Also a property of a single spectrum
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Bandwidth and Signal
Frequency
■ The bandwidth of a composite signal
is the difference between the highest
and the lowest frequencies contained
in that signal.
3.38
Figure 3.12 The bandwidth of periodic and nonperiodic composite
signals
3.39
Example
3.6
If a periodic signal is decomposed into five sine waves with
frequencies of 100, 300, 500, 700, and 900 Hz, what is its
bandwidth? Draw the spectrum, assuming all components
have a maximum amplitude of 10 V.
Solution
Let fh be the highest frequency, fl the lowest frequency, and
B the bandwidth. Then
The spectrum has only five spikes, at 100, 300, 500,
700, and 900 Hz (see Figure 3.13).
3.40
Figure 3.13 The bandwidth for Example
3.6
3.41
Example
3.7
A periodic signal has a bandwidth of 20 Hz. The
highest frequency is 60 Hz. What is the lowest
frequency? Draw the spectrum if the signal contains
all frequencies of the same amplitude.
Solution
Let fh be the highest frequency, fl the lowest
frequency, and B the bandwidth. Then
The spectrum contains all integer frequencies. We show this by a series of spikes
(see Figure 3.14).
3.42
Figure 3.14 The bandwidth for Example
3.7
3.43
3-3 DIGITAL SIGNALS
In addition to being represented by an analog
signal, information can also be represented by a
digital signal. For example, a 1 can be encoded as a
positive voltage and a 0 as zero voltage. A digital
signal can have more than two levels. In this case,
we can send more than 1 bit for each level.
3.44
Digital Signals
■ Properties:
■ Bit rate – number of bits per second
■ Bit interval – duration of 1 bit
amplitude
1 0 0 1 0 1 1 0
...
time
bit interval
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Two digital signals: one with two signal levels and the other
with four signal levels
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Example 3.16
A digital signal has eight levels. How many bits are
needed per level? We calculate the number of bits from
the formula
Each signal level is represented by 3 bits.
3.47
Bit Length
■ The Bit Length is the distance one bit
occupies on the transmission medium
■ Bit length=propagation speed * bit
duration
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The time and frequency domains of periodic and nonperiodic
digital signals
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Transmission of Digital Signals
■ Baseband Transmission
■ Broadband Transmission
■ Baseband Transmission by low-pass
channel
■ Broadband Transmission by bandpass
channel
■ Low pass channel BW starts from zero
■ Bandpass channel BW doesnot start from
zero
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Baseband transmission
■ Baseband transmission
→ Sending a digital signal over a channel
without changing it to an analog signal
■ Baseband transmission requires a low-pass
channel
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Baseband transmission using a dedicated medium
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Digital vs. Analog Bandwidth
■ Digital bandwidth
■ Expressed in bits per second (bps)
■ Analog bandwidth
■ Expressed in Hertz (Hz)
Bit rate and bandwidth are proportional to each other
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Figure 3.23 Bandwidth of a bandpass channel
3.54
Broadband Transmission
■ Broadband Transmission or modulation
means changing the digital signal to an
analog signal for transmission
■ Modulation allows us to use a bandpass
channel
■ A channel with a bandwidth that does not
start from zero.
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Low-Pass and Band-Pass Channels
■ Low-pass channel
gain
f1 frequency
■ Band-pass channel
gain
f1 f2 frequency
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Modulation
■ Modulation is the process of varying one
or more properties of a periodic waveform,
called the carrier signal, with
a modulating signal that typically
contains information to be transmitted.
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Modulation of a digital signal for transmission on a bandpass channel
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Example
Sometimes the decibel is used to measure signal power
in milliwatts. In this case, it is referred to as dBm and is
calculated as dBm = 10 log10 Pm , where Pm is the power
in milliwatts. Calculate the power of a signal with dBm =
−30.
Solution
We can calculate the power in the signal as
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Example
The loss in a cable is usually defined in decibels per
kilometer (dB/km). If the signal at the beginning of a
cable with −0.3 dB/km has a power of 2 mW, what is the
power of the signal at 5 km?
Solution
The loss in the cable in decibels is 5 × (−0.3) = −1.5 dB.
We can calculate the power as
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3-4 TRANSMISSION IMPAIRMENT
Signals travel through transmission media, which are
not perfect. The imperfection causes signal
impairment. This means that the signal at the
beginning of the medium is not the same as the
signal at the end of the medium. What is sent is not
what is received. Three causes of impairment are
attenuation, distortion, and noise.
3.61
Figure 3.25 Causes of
impairment
3.62
Attenuation
■ Means loss of energy -> weaker signal
■ When a signal travels through a
medium it loses energy overcoming the
resistance of the medium
■ Amplifiers are used to compensate for
this loss of energy by amplifying the
signal.
3.63
Figure 3.26
Attenuation
3.64
Signal Attenuation
■ Attenuation ⇨ Loss of energy
■ Signal strength falls off with distance
Transmission medium
■ Attenuation depends on medium
■ Attenuation is an increasing function of
frequency
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Measurement of Attenuation
■ To show the loss or gain of energy the
unit “decibel” is used.
dB = 10log10P2/P1
P1 - input signal
P2 - output signal
3.66
Relative Signal Strength
■ Measured in Decibel (dB)
dB = 10 log10 (P2/P1)
■ P1 and P2 are signal powers at points 1 and 2,
respectively
Point 1 Point 2
■ Positive dB signal is amplified (gains strength)
■ Negative dB signal is attenuated (loses strength)
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Example
3.26
Suppose a signal travels through a transmission
medium and its power is reduced to one-half. This
means that P2 is (1/2)P1. In this case, the
attenuation (loss of power) can be calculated as
3.68
Example
3.27
A signal travels through an amplifier, and its power
is increased 10 times. This means that P2 = 10P1 . In
this case, the amplification (gain of power) can be
calculated as
3.69
Example
3.28
One reason that engineers use the decibel to
measure the changes in the strength of a signal is
that decibel numbers can be added (or subtracted)
when we are measuring several points (cascading)
instead of just two. In Figure 3.27 a signal travels
from point 1 to point 4. In this case, the decibel
value can be calculated as
3.70
Figure 3.27 Decibels for Example
3.28
3.71
Distortion
■ Means that the signal changes its form or
shape
■ Distortion occurs in composite signals
3.72
Figure 3.28
Distortion
3.73
Signal Distortion
■ Distortion ⇨ Change in signal shape
■ Only happens in guided media
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Guided
■ The types of Guided Transmission are
as below:
■ 1) Twisted pair cable.
■ 2) Co-axial Cable.
■ 3) Fiber-optic.
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Figure 3.29
Noise
3.76
Noise
■ Noise ⇨ Undesirable signals added
between the transmitter and the receiver
■ Types of noise
■ Thermal
■ Due to random motion of electrons in a wire
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Noise
■ Types of noise (cont’d)
■ Crosstalk
■ Signal from one line picked up by another
Wire 1
Wire 2
■ Impulse
■ Irregular pulses or spikes
■ E.g., lightning
■ Short duration
■ High amplitude
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Noise
■ There are different types of noise
■ Thermal - random noise of electrons in the
wire creates an extra signal
■ Induced - from motors and appliances,
devices act are transmitter antenna and
medium as receiving antenna.
■ Crosstalk - same as above but between
two wires.
■ Impulse - Spikes that result from power
lines, lighning, etc.
3.79
Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR)
■ To measure the quality of a system the
SNR is often used. It indicates the
strength of the signal wrt the noise
power in the system.
■ It is the ratio between two powers.
■ It is usually given in dB and referred to
as SNRdB.
3.80
Signal-to-Noise Ratio
■ Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR)
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Example
The power of a signal is 10 mW and the power of the
noise is 1 μW; what are the values of SNR and SNRdB ?
Solution
The values of SNR and SNRdB can be calculated as
follows:
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Data Rate: Noiseless Channels
■ Nyquist Theorem
Bit Rate = 2 × Bandwidth × log2L
Harry Nyquist
■ Bit rate in bps (1889-1976)
■ Bandwidth in Hz
■ L – number of signal levels
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Example
We need to send 265 kbps over a noiseless channel with
a bandwidth of 20 kHz. How many signal levels do we
need?
Solution
We can use the Nyquist formula as shown:
Since this result is not a power of 2, we need to either
increase the number of levels or reduce the bit rate. If we
have 128 levels, the bit rate is 280 kbps. If we have 64
levels, the bit rate is 240 kbps.
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Data Rate: Noisy Channels
■ Shannon Capacity
Capacity = Bandwidth × log2(1+SNR)
■ Capacity (maximum bit rate) in bps
■ Bandwidth in Hz
■ SNR – Signal-to-Noise Ratio Claude Elwood Shannon
(1916-2001)
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Example
A telephone line normally has a bandwidth of 3000. The
signal-to-noise ratio is usually 3162. Calculate the
theoretical highest bit rate of a regular telephone line.
This means that the highest bit rate for a telephone line
is 34.860 kbps. If we want to send data faster than this,
we can either increase the bandwidth of the line or
improve the signal-to-noise ratio.
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Example
We have a channel with a 1-MHz bandwidth. The SNR
for this channel is 63. What are the appropriate bit rate
and signal level?
Solution
First, use the Shannon capacity
followed by the Nyquist formula
6 8
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Note
The Shannon capacity gives us the
upper limit; the Nyquist formula tells us
how many signal levels we need.
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Network Performance
■ Bandwidth
■ Hertz
■ Bits per second (bps)
■ Throughput
■ Actual data rate
■ Latency (delay)
■ Time it takes for an entire message to
completely arrive at the destination
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Latency
■ Composed of
■ Propagation time
■ Transmission time
■ Queuing time
■ Processing time
Entire
message
propagation
time
transmission
time
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Summary
■ Data need to take form of signal to be
transmitted
■ Frequency domain representation of signal
allows easier analysis
■ Fourier analysis
■ Medium's bandwidth limits certain
frequencies to pass
■ Bit rate is proportional to bandwidth
■ Signals get impaired by attenuation,
distortion, and noise
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