Amplitude Modulation – Part 1

Instructor: Prof. Farshad Lahouti

January 20, 2003

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 1

Analog Communication System

Information Signal Propagation Signal Information

Source Modulator Channel Demodulator Destination

• Analog signals may be transmitted directly via carrier modulation over

the propagation channel and to be carrier-demodulated at the receiver.

Transmitter à Modulator
Receiver à Demodulator

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 2

1
 Modulation: The process by which some characteristics of a carrier
signal (i.e. modulated signal) is varied in accordance with message
signal (i.e. modulating signal)

• f(t): message signal

A bandlimited signal whose frequency content is in the neighbourhood
of f=0 (DC) baseband signal

• c(t): the carrier signal, independent of f(t)

c(t ) = Ac cos(ωc t + θc )
Ac : Carrier amplitude
fc : Carrier frequency, ω c = 2πf c (radian frequency)
θc : Carrier phase

f(t) modulates c(t) in either amplitude, frequency or phase. In effect,

modulation converts f(t) to a bandpass form, in the neighborhood of the
center frequency fc.

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 3

Why is Modulation Required?

• To achieve easy radiation: If the communication channel consists of

free space, antennas are required to radiate and receive the signal.
Dimension of the antennas is limited by the corresponding wavelength.

Example: Voice signal bandwidth f=3kHz

c 3 ⋅ 10 8
λ= = = 10 5 m
f 3 ⋅ 10 3
λ 4 = 25000 m

If we modulate a carrier wave @ fc = 100MHz with the voice signal

c 3 ⋅ 10 8
λ= = = 3m
f 100 ⋅ 10 6
λ 4 = 75 cm

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 4

2
 Why is Modulation Required? (Cont’d)

• To accommodate for simultaneous transmission of several signals

s1

f
fc
1
s2

f
fc
2

s3

f
fc 3

Example: Radio/TV broadcasting

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 5

Why is Modulation Required? (Cont’d)

• To expand the bandwidth of the transmitted signal for better

transmission quality (to reduce noise and interference)

C = B ⋅ log 2 (1 + SNR )

Channel capacity Bandwidth Signal-to-noise ratio

Channel capacity: Maximum achievable information rate that can be

transmitted over the channel
C

SNR = 2 B − 1

B The required SNR (for fixed noise level, corresponding signal

power) decreases
Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 6

3
 Amplitude Modulation (AM)
(Ch. 5 in Textbook)

Objectives:
• To study different amplitude modulation scheme
• To study generation and detection of AM signals
• To study application of AM

We will study
• Double Sideband Suppressed Carrier (DSB -SC) Modulation
• Double Sideband Large Carrier (DSB -LC) Modulation: Commercial
broadcast stations use this type and it is commonly known as just
amplitude modulation (AM).
• Single Sideband (SSB) Modulation
• Vestigial Sideband (VSB) Modulation

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 7

Double Side Band Supressed Carrier (DSB-SC)

(5.1 in Textbook)

f(t) × φ(t ) = Ac f (t ) cos(ωc t)

c(t ) = Ac cos(ωc t )

F (ω) = F{ f (t )} Φ(ω) = F{φ(t )}

Φ(ω) = F[ Ac f (t) cos(ωc t)]

cos ωc t =
2
(
1 jω t
e c
+ e − jω t c
)
A 
= F c f (t )e jω t + c f (t )e− jω t 
c
A c

 2 2 
F (ω − ωc ) + F (ω + ωc )
Ac Ac
=
2 2

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 8

4
 f(t) F (ω ) = F{ f (t)}

F(0) baseband

t ω
-2πB 2πB

Ac f (t ) cos(ωc t ) F [Ac f (t ) cos (ω c t )]

passband
Ac F(0)/2

t ω
-ωc ωc ωc +2πB
ωc -2πB

Observations:
• φ(t) undergoes a phase reversal whenever f(t) crosses zero. The
envelope of φ(t) is different from f(t). Both amplitude and phase of φ(t)
carry information of f(t).
• The transmission bandwidth required by DSB-SC is β T=2B.

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 9

Demodulation of DSB-SC signals

Given φ(t), how will be the message signal f(t) be recovered?

φ(t)
x(t) Lowpass
× z(t)
filter

Ac' cos(ωct ): Locally generated carrier signal

x(t ) = φ(t) Ac' cos(ωct ) = Ac' Ac f (t ) cos2 (ωc t)

1 ' 1
= Ac Ac f (t ) + Ac' Ac f (t ) cos(2ωc t )
2 2
Let X (ω) = F{x(t)}
1 1
X (ω) = Ac Ac' F (ω) + Ac Ac' [F (ω − 2ωc ) + F (ω + 2ωc )]
2 4
Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 10

5
 F (ω ) = F { f (t)}
F(0)

ω
-2πB 2πB

X (ω ) = F{x (t)} LPF only allows this component,

others are rejected
(1 2 )A c Ac' F (0 )
(1 4 )A c Ac' F (0 ) (1 4 )A c Ac' F (0 )
ω
-2ωc -2πB 2πB 2ωc

Z (ω ) = F{z (t )}
Just a scaled version of f(t)
(1 2 )A c Ac' F (0 )

ω
-2πB 2πB

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 11

Effect of error in phase and frequency at the receiver

Now assume a frequency error and a phase error in the locally generated
signal at the receiver.

φ(t)
x(t) Lowpass
× z(t)
filter

Ac' cos[(ωc + ∆ω)t + θ0 ]

x(t ) = φ(t )Ac' cos[(ωc + ∆ω)t + θ0 ]

= Ac Ac' f (t ) cos(ωc t ) cos[(ωc + ∆ω)t + θ0 ]

1 1
= Ac Ac' f (t ) cos(∆ωt + θ0 ) + Ac Ac' f (t ) cos[(2ωc + ∆ω)t + θ0 ]
2 2
Only this term goes through LPF

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 12

6
 1
z(t) = Ac Ac' f (t ) cos(∆ωt + θ0 )
2

• If ∆ω=0 and θ0 = 0, the output is z(t) = 1 Ac Ac' f (t ) no distortion

2

1
• If ∆ω =0, the output is z(t ) = Ac Ac' f (t ) cos(θ0 )
2
The phase error introduces a variable attenuation factor. For small fixed
phase errors, this is quite tolerable. If θ0 = ±90º, the received signal is
wiped out.

1
• If θ0 = 0, the output is z(t) = Ac Ac' f (t ) cos(∆ωt )
2

To recover f(t) accurately from φ(t), we need to use a synchronized oscillator

Coherent detection (synchronous detection) is required.
Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 13

Generation of DSB-SC signals: A practical implementation

Circuitry aspects of this topic will not be in any examination, mathematical aspects may be tested.

Ring Modulator
a

b s(t)
f(t) Bandpass
Filter z(t)
@ ωc
c

transformer d

c(t)
c(t) T=2π/ω c
t
Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 14

7
 The diodes are controlled by a square-wave carrier c(t) of frequency ωc,
assuming |c(t)|>>|f(t)|
c(t ) > 0 Diodes a and d conduct s (t ) = f (t )
c(t ) < 0 Diodes b and c conduct s(t ) = − f (t )

Expressing in terms
c(t) of Fourier Series

c(t ) =
4 ∞
(− 1)n −1 cos[ωc t(2 n − 1)]
t
π
∑
n =1 2n − 1

s (t ) = c(t) f (t)

4 ∞ (− 1)n −1
s (t ) = f (t )
∑ cos[ωc t (2n − 1)]
π n =1 2 n − 1
4
Output of BPF z(t ) = f (t ) cos(ωct )
π
Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 15

Demodulation of DSB-SC Signals: A Practical Implementation

Costas Receiver
The content of this page will not be asked in any examination.

Product Low pass (1/2) Accos(θ0 ) f(t)

modulator filter

in-phase cos(ωc t+θ0 )

φ (t ) = A c f (t ) cos (ω c t )
-90º phase Voltage controlled f(t)
shifter Phase
Oscillator (VCO) discriminator
quadrature
sin(ωc t+θ0 )
-phase

Product Low pass

modulator filter (1/2) Acsin(θ0 ) f(t)

Winter 2003 UW, ECE 318 Lecture Notes 16