Link Characteristics and Performance

Telecommunications
Satellite Communications
Link Characteristics and Performance

Courseware Sample
86312-F0
Order no.:
86312-10
First Edition
Revision level: 07/2015
By the staff of Festo Didactic
Festo Didactic Lte/Ltd, Quebec, Canada 2014
Internet: www.festo-didactic.com
e-mail: did@de.festo.com
Printed in Canada
All rights reserved
ISBN 978-2-89640-419-3 (Printed version)
ISBN 978-2-89747-103-3 (CD-ROM)
Legal Deposit Bibliothque et Archives nationales du Qubec, 2014
Legal Deposit Library and Archives Canada, 2014
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Safety and Common Symbols

The following safety and common symbols may be used in this manual and on
the equipment:
Symbol
Description
DANGER indicates a hazard with a high level of risk which, if not
avoided, will result in death or serious injury.
WARNING indicates a hazard with a medium level of risk which,
if not avoided, could result in death or serious injury.
CAUTION indicates a hazard with a low level of risk which, if not
avoided, could result in minor or moderate injury.
CAUTION used without the Caution, risk of danger sign ,
indicates a hazard with a potentially hazardous situation which,
if not avoided, may result in property damage.
Caution, risk of electric shock
Caution, hot surface
Caution, risk of danger
Caution, lifting hazard
Caution, hand entanglement hazard
Notice, non-ionizing radiation
Direct current
Alternating current
Both direct and alternating current
Three-phase alternating current
Earth (ground) terminal
Festo Didactic 86312-10
III
Safety and Common Symbols

Symbol
Description
Protective conductor terminal
Frame or chassis terminal
Equipotentiality
On (supply)
Off (supply)
Equipment protected throughout by double insulation or
reinforced insulation
In position of a bi-stable push control
Out position of a bi-stable push control
IV
Table of Contents
Preface .................................................................................................................. XI
About This Manual .............................................................................................. XIII
To the Instructor .................................................................................................. XV
List of Equipment Required ............................................................................... XVII
Introduction Characterizing a Communications Link ..................................... 1
DISCUSSION OF FUNDAMENTALS ....................................................... 1
Communications inks ............................................................... 1
Measurements and sources of error ........................................ 1
Instrument uncertainties ............................................................. 2
Measurement inaccuracies ......................................................... 2
Environmental factors ................................................................. 2
Exercise 1
Power Gain and Antenna Parameters ........................................ 3

DISCUSSION ..................................................................................... 3
Power gain ............................................................................... 3
Antennas .................................................................................. 5
Field regions ............................................................................... 8
Solid angles ................................................................................ 8
Radiation intensity .................................................................... 10
Directive gain and directivity .................................................. 11
Power density and the inverse-square law ............................ 12
Radiation pattern and beamwidth .......................................... 14
Beam solid angle ...................................................................... 19
Shortcut for calculating the beam solid angle ........................... 20
Efficiency ................................................................................ 20
Effective aperture ................................................................... 21
Antenna gain .......................................................................... 22
Gain of a pyramidal horn antenna ............................................ 23
Electrical size ........................................................................... 25
Gain of a parabolic antenna ..................................................... 26
Shortcut for calculating the gain of a dish antenna from the
frequency and the diameter ...................................................... 26
The relationship between gain and beamwidth ........................ 28
Shortcut for calculating the beamwidth of a dish antenna ........ 28
Shortcut for calculating the gain of a dish antenna from the
beamwidth ................................................................................ 28
General rules for aperture antennas ......................................... 28
Measuring antenna gain ........................................................... 29
Polarization ............................................................................ 29

The Satellite Communications Training System .................... 30
Horn antenna polarization ........................................................ 30
Frequencies used in the system ............................................... 32
Power Sensors ......................................................................... 32
Power measurements............................................................... 33
Table of Contents
PROCEDURE ................................................................................... 34
System startup ....................................................................... 34
Connection Diagrams ............................................................... 35
Power gain ............................................................................. 36
Aligning the antennas ............................................................... 38
Feed-line loss ........................................................................... 39
Gain of the repeater .................................................................. 44
Gain of Down Converter 2 ........................................................ 49
Antenna gain .......................................................................... 50
Gain of the large-aperture horn antenna at the uplink
frequency .................................................................................. 51
Gain of the small-aperture horn antenna versus downlink
frequency .................................................................................. 54
Gain of the large-aperture horn antenna versus downlink
frequency .................................................................................. 58
Effective aperture and efficiency ............................................... 62
Beamwidth and radiation pattern ........................................... 62

3 dB beamwidth ........................................................................ 64
Radiation pattern ...................................................................... 65
Polarization isolation .............................................................. 69
Exercise 2
Losses, Radiated Power and Receiver Input Power ............... 71

DISCUSSION ................................................................................... 71
Effective isotropic radiated power of a directional antenna ... 71
Friis transmission equation .................................................... 72
Free-space loss...................................................................... 73
Notes on free-space loss .......................................................... 73
Atmospheric attenuation and path loss .................................. 75
Feeder loss ............................................................................ 75
Pointing loss ........................................................................... 76
Polarization mismatch loss .................................................... 76
Receiver input power ............................................................. 77
PROCEDURE ................................................................................... 78
System startup ....................................................................... 78
Preliminary measurements .................................................... 79
Free-space loss...................................................................... 79
Set up for measuring free-space loss ....................................... 80
Notes on measuring the transmitted and received power ......... 82
Determining the effective isotropic radiated power ................... 82
Measuring the receiver input power .......................................... 84
Calculating the free-space loss ................................................. 86
Receiver input power ............................................................. 92
Polarization mismatch loss .................................................... 94
VI
Table of Contents
Exercise 3
Noise and the Link Budget ...................................................... 101

DISCUSSION ................................................................................. 101
Noise in communications systems ....................................... 101
Thermal noise characteristics .............................................. 102
Amplitude distribution ............................................................. 103
Frequency distribution ............................................................ 105
Half-power and equivalent noise bandwidths ...................... 107
Additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) .............................. 108
Thermal noise power ........................................................... 109
Noise power example ............................................................. 111
Signal-to-noise ratio ............................................................. 111
Noise figure .......................................................................... 112
Noise figure example .............................................................. 114
Noise temperature ............................................................... 117
Noise figure versus noise temperature ................................... 119
Composite noise figure and noise temperature of
cascaded elements .............................................................. 120
Noise figure and noise temperature example ......................... 121
Noise figure and noise temperature of an attenuator or a
feed line .................................................................................. 126
Antenna noise temperature.................................................. 127

System noise temperature ................................................... 128
Composite temperature of the antenna and feed line ............. 130
Link performance and receiver figure of merit ..................... 131
Link budget........................................................................... 132
Link budget example .............................................................. 132
Analog and digital figures of merit .......................................... 135
PROCEDURE ................................................................................. 136
System startup ..................................................................... 136
Noise figure .......................................................................... 137
Set up for measuring noise figure ........................................... 137
Measuring received carrier power and RF front end gain ....... 138
Measuring the gain of the preamplifier ................................... 139
Measuring the receiver output noise power ............................ 141
Calculating the receiver noise figure and effective input
noise temperature................................................................... 143
System noise temperature ................................................... 143

Link budget........................................................................... 145
Appendix A Glossary of New Terms............................................................ 153
VII
Table of Contents
Appendix B Setting Up the Satellite Communications Training System . 157
Set up the modules .............................................................. 158
Align the antennas ............................................................... 162
Connect the power supplies................................................. 162
USB connections to the Telemetry and Instrumentation
Add-On ................................................................................. 163
Appendix C Care of Microwave Cables ....................................................... 165
Appendix D Using the Telemetry and Instrumentation Add-On ............... 167
Virtual Instruments ............................................................... 167
Data Generation/Acquisition Interface ................................. 167
Spectrum Analyzer Interface...................................................168
Digital Inputs ...........................................................................169
Digital Outputs ........................................................................169
USB Connectors .....................................................................169
Virtual Instrument package .................................................. 170
Using the Binary Sequence Generators .............................. 171
Symbols used in the manuals .................................................171
Generator Settings..................................................................172
Digital Output Settings and connections .................................173
Using the Waveform Generator ........................................... 175
Symbol used in the manuals ...................................................175
Settings and connections ........................................................175
Using the Oscilloscope ........................................................ 176
Using the Spectrum Analyzer .............................................. 178
Using the True RMS Voltmeter / Power Meter .................... 181
Using the Bit Error Ratio Tester ........................................... 182
Appendix E Using Conventional Instruments ............................................ 185
Instrument symbols and terms ............................................. 185
Signal levels in the Satellite Communications Training
System ................................................................................. 185
Power Sensors ..................................................................... 187
Spectrum analyzer ............................................................... 188
VIII
Table of Contents
Appendix F Noise Measurement Using a Spectrometer ........................... 189
How a spectrum analyzer works .......................................... 189
Sensitivity ............................................................................. 189
Detector mode...................................................................... 190
Trace averaging ................................................................... 192
Resolution bandwidth ........................................................... 193
Corrections to the measured noise level ............................. 194
Averaging ............................................................................... 194
Equivalent noise bandwidth .................................................... 195
Preamplifier gain .................................................................... 195
Summary ................................................................................ 195
Index of New Terms ........................................................................................... 197
Bibliography ....................................................................................................... 201
IX
Preface
Since the Soviet Union shocked the western world by launching the first artificial
satellite, SPUTNIK I, on October 4, 1957, the science of satellites and satellite
communications has undergone an amazing evolution. Today satellites play an
essential role in global communications including telephony, data networking,
video transporting and distribution, as well as television and radio broadcasting
directly to the consumer. They fulfill critical missions for governments, the military
and other organizations that require reliable communications links throughout the
world, and generate billions of dollars annually in revenue for private enterprise.
Communications satellites offer several important advantages over other types of
long-range communications systems: the capability of direct communication
between two points on earth with only one intermediate relay (the satellite), the
ability to broadcast or collect signals and data to or from any area ranging up to
the entire surface of the world, and the ability to provide services to remote
regions where ground-based, point-to-point communications would be impractical
or impossible.
One of the greatest advantages of satellite communications systems is the ratio
of capacity versus cost. Although satellites are expensive to develop, launch and
maintain, their tremendous capacity makes them very attractive for many
applications. INTELSAT I, launched in 1965, had a capacity of only 240 two-way
telephone channels or one two-way television channel, and an annual cost of
$32 500 per channel. Since then, the capacity and lifetime of communication
satellites have increased tremendously resulting in a drastic reduction in the cost
per channel. Communications satellites now have capacities sufficient for several
hundred video channels or tens of thousands of voice or data links.
In addition to applications designed specifically for communications purposes,
satellites are used extensively for navigation systems, scientific research,
mapping, remote sensing, military reconnaissance, disaster detection and relief
and for many other applications. All of these applications, however, require at
least one communications link between the satellite and one or more earth
stations.
The Satellite Communications Training System is a state-of-the-art training
system for the field of satellite communications. Specifically designed for handson training, the system covers modern satellite communication technologies
including analog and digital modulation. It is designed to use realistic satellite
uplink and downlink frequencies at safe power levels and to reflect the standards
commonly used in modern satellite communications systems.
The Orbit Simulator provides interactive visualization of satellite orbital
mechanics and coverage, and the theory behind antenna alignment with
geostationary satellites. The optional Dish Antenna and Accessories provides
hands-on experience in aligning a typical antenna with real geostationary
satellites.
XI
Preface
We invite readers of this manual to send us their tips, feedback, and

suggestions for improving the book.
Please send these to did@de.festo.com.
The authors and Festo Didactic look forward to your comments.
XII
About This Manual

Manual Objective
When you have completed this manual, you will be familiar with the main
concepts and parameters that characterize microwave links and link
performance. These concepts and parameters apply to both terrestrial and
satellite RF links.
You will be familiar with the parameters that characterize antennas and with the
different losses in a microwave link. You will also be familiar with the origins and
characteristics of noise and with the noise parameters used to characterize
components and systems.
Finally, you will be familiar with the analysis of an RF link known as a link budget,
a mathematical model of the link that predicts its performance.
a
b
The objective of this manual is to demonstrate the concepts that determine link
performance and not to make precise measurements, since precise
measurements require specialized equipment and ideal conditions.
Many calculations will be required as you carry out the exercise procedures.
Although tables are provided to facilitate these calculations, you are
encouraged to use a spreadsheet program or a mathematics application such
as Matlab or Scilab for these calculations.
Description
This Student Manual is divided into several units each of which covers one topic.
Each unit begins with an Introduction presenting important background
information. Following this are a number of exercises designed to present the
subject matter in convenient instructional segments. In each exercise, principles
and concepts are presented first followed by a step-by-step, hands-on procedure
to complete the learning process.
Each exercise contains:
x
A clearly defined Exercise Objective
A Discussion Outline listing the main points presented in the Discussion
A Discussion of the theory involved
A Procedure Outline listing the main sections in the Procedure
A step-by-step Procedure in which the student observes and measures

the important phenomena, including questions to help in understanding
the important principles.
A Conclusion
Review Questions
In this manual, all New Terms are defined in the Glossary of New Terms. In
addition, an Index of New Terms is provided at the end of the manual.
XIII
About This Manual

Prerequisite
As a prerequisite to this course, you should have performed the exercises in the
manual Principles of Satellite Communications, part number 86311-00. This
manual contains many tips on using the Satellite Communications Training
System and the optional Telemetry and Instrumentation Add-On. Most of these
tips are not repeated in the present manual.
Systems of units
Units are expressed using the SI system of units.
Safety considerations
Safety symbols that may be used in this manual and on the equipment are listed
in the Safety Symbols table at the beginning of the manual.
Safety procedures related to the tasks that you will be asked to perform are
indicated in each exercise.
Make sure that you are wearing appropriate protective equipment when
performing the tasks. You should never perform a task if you have any reason to
think that a manipulation could be dangerous for you or your teammates.
When studying communications systems, it is very important to develop good
safety habits. Although microwaves are invisible, they can be dangerous at high
levels or for long exposure times. The most important safety rule when working
with microwave equipment is to avoid exposure to dangerous radiation levels.
The radiation levels in the Satellite Communications Training System are too low
to be dangerous. The highest power level in the system is at the RF OUTPUT of
the Earth Station Transmitter and is typically 5 dBm (approximately 3.2 mW) at
11 GHz. The maximum power density that can be produced by the Satellite
Communications Training System using the supplied equipment is approximately
0.13 mW/cm2, well below all Canadian, American, and European standards for
both microwave exposed workers and the general public.
XIV
For more detailed information, refer to Safety with RF fields in Exercise 1-1 of
the manual Principles of Satellite Communications, part number 86311-00.
To the Instructor
You will find in this Instructor Guide all the elements included in the Student
Manual together with the answers to all questions, results of measurements,
graphs, explanations, suggestions, and, in some cases, instructions to help you
guide the students through their learning process. All the information that applies
to you is placed between markers and appears in red.
Accuracy of measurements
The numerical results of the hands-on exercises may differ from one student to
another. For this reason, the results and answers given in this manual should be
considered as a guide. Students who correctly performed the exercises should
expect to demonstrate the principles involved and make observations and
measurements similar to those given as answers.
XV
Sample Exercise
Extracted from
the Student Manual
and the Instructor Guide
Exercise
Noise and the Link Budget

EXERCISE OBJECTIVE
When you have completed this exercise, you will be familiar with noise in
communications systems and with the characteristics of noise. You will also be
familiar with various parameters concerning noise and how they are calculated.
You will see how a link budget is calculated to include all the gains, losses and
noise in the system.
DISCUSSION OUTLINE
The Discussion of this exercise covers the following points:
Noise in communications systems

Thermal noise characteristics
Half-power and equivalent noise bandwidths

Additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN)
Thermal noise power
Signal-to-noise ratio
Noise figure
Noise temperature
Composite noise figure and noise temperature of cascaded elements
Amplitude distribution. Frequency distribution.
Noise power example.
Noise figure example.

Noise figure versus noise temperature.
Noise figure and noise temperature example. Noise figure and noise
temperature of an attenuator or a feed line.
Antenna noise temperature

System noise temperature
Link performance and receiver figure of merit

Link budget
Composite temperature of the antenna and feed line.
Link budget example. Analog and digital figures of merit.
DISCUSSION
Noise in communications systems

Unwanted electrical signals are present in every electrical system. These
unwanted signals are referred to as noise.
Noise arises from a variety of sources. Man-made sources of noise include
carriers from transmitters other than those you wish to receive. This noise is
referred to as interference. Natural sources of noise include the atmosphere, the
sun, and the ground around a receiving antenna.
Noise limits the performance of a communications system because it tends to
mask the desired signal. In an analog system, noise reduces the quality of the
receiver output signal. In a digital system, noise limits the ability of the
demodulator to make correct symbol decisions, which leads to errors in the
received bits. For this reason, the ratio of signal power to noise power (or a
101
Exercise 3 Noise and the Link Budget Discussion

similar measurement) is an important factor in evaluating the performance of a
communications link.
Much of the potential noise in a communication system can be reduced or
eliminated by careful design. However, there is one natural source of noise that
can never be eliminated. This is called thermal noise, Johnson noise, or
Johnson-Nyquist noise and is caused by the random, thermal agitation of an
extremely large number of charged carriers (electrons) in electrical conductors.
John Bertrand Johnson was

a Swedish-born American
electrical engineer and
physicist. Johnson first
measured thermal noise at
Bell Telephone Laboratories
in 1926. He concluded that
thermal noise is intrinsic to
all electrical components,
even in the absence of an
applied voltage.
Not all random noise in a system is thermal noise. Shot noise, for example arises
from the quantized nature of current flow. This and other random phenomena
produce noise whose characteristics are similar to thermal noise. The combined
effect of all these random phenomena is often treated as if it were all caused by
thermal noise.
Harry Nyquist, another

Swedish-born American
electrical engineer, also
worked as Bell Labs. In
1927, Nyquist provided a
mathematical explanation of
thermal noise.
Thermal noise characteristics

Figure 43 shows an example of thermal noise as it could be displayed on an
oscilloscope.
4
3
Amplitude (V)
2
1
0
Time
1
2
3
4
Figure 43. Noise trace (time-domain representation) of 1 V rms thermal noise.
Because thermal noise is a random process, its instantaneous value (voltage or

current) is constantly changing and it is impossible to predict what the value will
be at a given time. Nonetheless, several properties of the noise are stable over
time and these can be used to characterize the noise.
Amplitude distribution
From one instant to the next, the amplitude of unfiltered thermal noise may
change very little or it may swing widely from one extreme value to another.
These values can be analyzed statistically. If the noise is sampled (that is, the
instantaneous noise amplitude is measured at regular intervals) and the
observed range of amplitudes is divided into small ranges, it is possible to
102

determine how many samples fall within each of the ranges. The results can be
plotted as a histogram. This histogram gives an idea of the statistical distribution
of different amplitudes in the noise.
Figure 44 shows the same noise trace as Figure 43 but rotated 90. The sampled
amplitudes are shown as dots. The vertical lines divide the possible amplitudes
into a number of equally-spaced ranges. The histogram below the trace shows
the relative number samples that fall within each amplitude range.
Amplitude
Number of samples
Time
Amplitudes ranges
Figure 44. Noise trace and amplitude histogram of 1 V rms thermal noise.
103

Although this histogram was generated from a small number of samples, it
reveals some important characteristics of thermal noise. Amplitudes near 0 V
occur more frequently than amplitudes with a large positive or negative voltage.
We can say that small amplitudes are more probable than large amplitudes. In
addition the histogram seems to be relatively symmetrical and is centered on 0 V.
The standard deviation

indicates how much the
values deviate from the
mean value. For thermal
noise, the standard deviation is equal to the rms
value. Figure 45 represents
the amplitude distribution of
a 1 V rms noise signal with
no dc offset, as shown in
Figure 43 and Figure 44.
In a normal distribution,
approximately 68% of the
values are within one
standard deviation from the
mean; approximately 95%
of the values lie within two
standard deviations; and
99.7% of the values within
three standard deviations
from the mean.
Probability density
If an extremely large number of samples are taken of the noise, and if the
amplitude interval of the histogram is made extremely small, the histogram tends
toward a continuous curve called the probability density function. In the case
of thermal noise, the probability density function has the familiar bell-curve shape
of the Gaussian, or normal, probability density function shown in Figure 45.
Thermal noise results from contributions of an almost infinite number of
independent sources. For this reason, it can be described as a Gaussian
random process.
Value (e.g. amplitude in V)

Figure 45. Gaussian (normal) probability density function ( , ).
In theory, the domain of a probability density function ranges from to .

However, the function approaches zero for values far from the mean value.
The probability density function shows the relative likelihood for a random
variable, such as a voltage, to take on a given value. The probability that the
variable will fall within a particular range is given by the area under the density
function between the limits of the specified range. For example, in Figure 45, the
probability that a single voltage sample will fall between -1 V and +1 V is equal to
the area under the curve between -1 and +1. In Figure 45, this area is
approximately 0.68. Since the probability that any value will lie somewhere under
the curve is 1.0 (100%), the total area under the curve is equal to one.
Frequency distribution
Johnson showed that thermal noise power is constant throughout the frequency
spectrum. For this reason, thermal noise is referred to as white noise. Just as
white light contains equal amounts of all frequencies within the visible band of
electromagnetic radiation, white noise contains equal amounts of all frequencies.
More precisely, thermal noise contains an equal amount of noise power per unit
bandwidth at all frequencies from dc to about 1000 GHz. For this reason, its
power spectrum can be represented as a straight, horizontal line, as shown in
Figure 46a extending from 0 Hz to a very high frequency.
104
Spectral density
Frequency
a) White noise spectrum
Magnitude
Frequency
Spectral Density
b) Brickwall band-pass filter transfer function
Frequency
0
c) Filtered noise spectrum
Figure 46. Power spectrum of unfiltered and filtered white noise.
The symbol for noise power

spectral density (N-zero)
should not be confused with
the symbol for output noise
power (N-o).
The noise power per unit bandwidth is referred to as the noise power spectral
density (N-zero). Its units are W/Hz or dBm/Hz.
Although white noise contains a vast range of frequencies, harmful noise power
is that which occurs in the bandwidth of the communications channel or the
bandwidth of the receiver. The channel along with the receiver input stage (as
well as the IF stage of a spectrum analyzer) limit the bandwidth, that is, they act
as a band-pass filter.
Figure 46b shows the magnitude transfer function of an ideal band-pass filter.
This ideal filter is called a brickwall filter because it allows all frequencies within
its bandwidth to pass unaffected and completely blocks all other frequencies.
If white noise is applied to the input of the brickwall filter, the spectrum of the
noise at the output resembles Figure 46c. This is essentially a rectangular slice
of the input noise power with power spectral density within the filter bandwidth
and zero elsewhere.
105
Regardless of whether the

device in question is a component, a cascade of components, or an entire system, we will refer to the
device as a network.
The symbols , and

are often used for bandwidth.
If at the input of a network (an electrical component, circuit, or

communications channel) is known, and if the network acts as an ideal (brickwall)
filter with bandwidth , then the noise power at the output is simply the power
spectral density multiplied by the bandwidth:

where
(43)
is the output noise power

is the noise power spectral density
is the (ideal rectangular) bandwidth
Half-power and equivalent noise bandwidths

An ideal rectangular filter has uniform frequency response within its bandwidth
and zero response outside its bandwidth, as shown in Figure 46b. Unfortunately,
this ideal response is unattainable in real systems. Instead of stopping abruptly,
the frequency response rolls off gradually. For this reason, many different
definitions of bandwidth are used, the most common of which is the familiar halfpower bandwidth or 3 dB bandwidth. This is the interval between frequencies
at which the gain of the system has dropped to half power (3 dB below) the peak
value.
The 3 dB bandwidth of a practical filter is shown in blue in Figure 47. Since the
power is proportional to the square of the voltage, the half-power point occurs at
of the peak amplitude.
The equivalent noise bandwidth also called the noise
equivalent bandwidth, the
noise-power equivalent
bandwidth, or simply the
noise bandwidth.
Amplitude [V]
Common symbols for

equivalent noise bandwidth
are , , and
1.1
1
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
Although the 3 dB bandwidth is very useful when dealing with signals, it does not
give accurate values when dealing with noise. This is due to the fact that there is
no direct relationship between the amount of noise power a filter passes and its
3 dB bandwidth.
Instead, the equivalent noise bandwidth is used. This is defined as the
bandwidth of a fictitious, ideal rectangular filter (brickwall filter) with the same
band-center gain as the actual system, which would pass exactly as much white
noise power as the actual system does. Both of these bandwidths are illustrated
in Figure 47.
3 dB
(half-power)
bandwidth
0.707
Practical filter
Ideal Filter
Equivalent
noise
bandwidth
Figure 47. Half-power bandwidth and equivalent noise bandwidth.
106

For most analog filters and band-limited circuits, the equivalent noise bandwidth
is slightly larger than the half-power bandwidth. Since a spectrum analyzer uses
a narrow band-pass filter, the difference between equivalent noise bandwidth and
half-power bandwidth must be taken into consideration when measuring noise
power with this type of instrument.
Since the narrow band-pass filter in a spectrum analyzer allows the instrument
to resolve closely-spaced frequency components, its 3 dB bandwidth is
referred to as the resolution bandwidth. The ENB of this filter may be greater
than its 3 dB bandwidth. This is explained in Appendix F Noise Measurement
Using a Spectrometer. It is important to read this appendix before beginning
the Procedure of this exercise.
The mathematical definition of equivalent noise bandwidth is:

where
(44)
is the equivalent noise bandwidth

is the maximum value of the power transfer function
is the area under the curve of the power transfer function
Additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN)

The generally accepted model for thermal noise in communication channels is
described as follows:
The noise is additive. The noise adds positive and negative random values to
the amplitude of the signal.
Transmitted
signal
Received
Signal
Channel
Noise
The noise is white, that is, its power spectral density is flat. In theory, white
noise has unlimited bandwidth and all frequencies are represented equally.
In practice, white noise has a uniform spectral density within the bandwidth of
interest.
The noise has a Gaussian, or normal probability density because it results

from the agitation of a very large number of independent atomic particles.
This distribution arises when a large number of independent sources
contribute additively to the end result, as long as the contribution of each is
small compared to the sum. With this type of distribution, instantaneous
noise voltages near the mean value are more probable than voltages much
higher or lower than the mean value.
This model for thermal noise is often referred to as additive white Gaussian
noise (AWGN).
107
Thermal noise power

As previously mentioned, all components and circuits generate thermal noise. As
its name implies, the amount of thermal noise generated depends on the
temperature of the device. A representation, or electrical model, of a thermal
noise source is shown in Figure 48a. The source (a resistor) is shown connected
to a load (the input of an amplifier).
Thermal noise
source
(resistance)
Matched
load
(amplifier)
a) Thermal noise source

and matched load
Noiseless
resistor
Noise source
with no
resistance
b) Equivalent circuit
Figure 48. Network consisting of a matched noise source and load (an amplifier).
Since the resistor has two terminals, where the current into one is identical to the
current out of the other, it referred to as a one-port element.
The RMS thermal noise voltage produced by the resistor of resistance at
a temperature (in kelvin) is:
(45)

where
is Boltzmanns constant

108
is the temperature in kelvin (

is the system equivalent noise bandwidth in Hz
is the resistance in ohms.

Figure 48b shows an electrically equivalent model of the circuit in Figure 48a. It
consists of a noiseless resister in series with an ideal noise source which as no
resistance.
Maximum power is delivered when the impedance of the source and of the load
are matched (in this case, when the resistance of the load equals that of the
source). The input noise voltage delivered to the impedance-matched load is one
half the source noise voltage. The input noise power delivered to the amplifier,
expressed in watts and in dBm, is given by:

(46)

where
is the temperature in K
is the system equivalent noise bandwidth in Hz
All logarithms in this manual are base 10 logarithms.
Equation (46) shows that the power delivered by a thermal noise source to the
impedance-matched load depends only on the temperature and the bandwidth. It
is independent of the impedance. The input noise power spectral density is
therefore:
(47)
The noise power spectral density at any point in a circuit is simply the noise
power contained in a bandwidth of 1 Hz. With white noise, the noise power
spectral density is constant over a vast range of frequencies. The noise power at
any point can be therefore determined from the noise power spectral density and
the bandwidth using Equation (43).
109

Sometimes it is necessary to determine the noise power in some bandwidth
when the noise power in a different bandwidth is known. This is easily done
using Equation (48).

(48)
Expressed in dBm, this gives the very useful formula:

(49)
Noise power example

Thermal noise in a circuit with a bandwidth of has a power of .
What would be the noise power if the bandwidth were reduced to ?

What in the noise power spectral density?

Signal-to-noise ratio
The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR or S/N) is a measure that compares the level of
a signal to the level of background noise. It is defined as the power ratio between
a signal and the background noise. It can be expressed as a ratio or in decibels.

where
110
(50)
is the average power of the signal

is the average power of the noise

Since the noise power is proportional to the bandwidth, the bandwidth is
assumed to be that of the circuit, unless a different bandwidth is specified. A
SNR higher than 1 (> 0 dB) indicates that there is more signal than noise.
An ideal amplifier would amplify the noise and the signal at its input equally
without adding any noise of its own. The signal-to-noise ratio at the output would
therefore be the same as at the input.
Unfortunately, every component and network adds some noise of its own. To
characterize this added noise, it is not sufficient to compare the output noise
power to the input noise power because the network may amplify or attenuate
both the input noise and signal while adding noise of its own. For this reason, the
noise figure is used.
Noise figure
Since a receiving system must process very weak signals in the presence of
noise, it is important to be able to characterize the ability of the system to
process these low-level signals. One very useful parameter is the noise figure,
defined in the 1940s by Harald T. Friis. This parameter is suitable for
characterizing an entire receiving system as well as individual system
components such as amplifiers and mixers. It is also used to characterize any
number of components in cascade. Because the networks shown in Figure 49
have both an input and an output, they are referred to as two-port elements.
Input
Output
Input
a) Two-port element
Output
b) Cascaded two-port elements
Input
Output
c) Earth Station Receiver Down Converters

Figure 49. Examples of networks.
Friis defined the noise figure of a network as the degradation or decrease of

the signal-to-noise ratio as the signal passes through the network:
where
(51)
is the signal-to-noise ratio at the input

is the signal-to-noise ratio of the output
111

Like gain, the noise figure can be expressed either as a unitless ratio or in
decibels. When expressed as a ratio, as in Equation (51), it is sometimes
referred to as the noise factor. When expressed in decibels, the noise figure is
usually written as :

(52)
In this manual, the term noise figure is the term generally used in phrases
referring to the degradation in signal-to-noise ratio with no units being implied.
Where necessary, the term noise factor is used for the ratio and the term
noise figure is used for the value in decibels.
When the gain , the input noise power and the output noise power in
decibels are known, the noise figure in decibels can be calculated directly:

(53)

The noise figure of a system does not depend on the type of modulation used.
Since the noise power is proportional to the bandwidth (Equation (43)), the same
bandwidth must be considered at the input and the output of the network when
determining and . For this reason, the noise figure is independent of
bandwidth.
The noise figure is a parameter that expresses the noisiness of a two-port
network or device (that is, one with an input and an output). Since the noise
figure represents a degradation, or decrease, in signal-to-noise ratio, a low noise
figure is desirable. The higher the noise figure, the more noise is added by the
network in consideration.
112
Noise figure example
Power [dBm]
Power [dBm]
Figure 50 provides an example to illustrate the use of the noise figure.
Frequency [GHz]
Frequency [GHz]
(a) At the input of an amplifier
(b) At the output of an amplifier
Figure 50. Signal and noise levels as seen on a spectrum analyzer.
The signal at the input of the amplifier is at -40 dBm, 30 dB above the noise floor
(-70 dBm), as displayed by a spectrum analyzer with a certain resolution
bandwidth. The gain of the amplifier is 20 dB. The amplifier amplifies both the
input signal and the input noise by 20 dB and adds 5 dB of noise. As a result, the
signal at the output is only 25 dB above the noise floor. The noise figure of this
amplifier is therefore:

Alternatively, using Equation (53):

The noise factor can be written as shown in Equation (54).
where
(54)
is the gain of the network

is the signal power at the input
is the signal power at the output
is the noise power at the input
is the noise power added by the network
is the noise power at the output
113

Equation (54) shows that the noise added by the network can be considered
separately from the input noise . This is illustrated in Figure 51.

(a) Noisy amplifier

Noiseless

(b) Equivalent circuit

Figure 51. Noise in amplifiers.
Instead of a noisy amplifier, as in Figure 51a, the amplifier can be considered to

be ideal (noiseless) but with an additional, equivalent noise source at
the input, as shown in Figure 51b. The two noise sources are uncorrelated and
therefore simply add together. Models a and b are electrically equivalent.
Equation (55) shows the noise factor expressed using .
where
(55)
is the noise power added by the network, referred to the input

( )
An ideal network that contributes no noise would have and a noise factor
of 1 (a 0 dB noise figure).
Equation (54) and Equation (55) show that the noise figure is not an absolute
measure of noise. Rather, it expresses the noisiness of a network relative to the
input noise. The noise added by the network is fixed and does not change with
114

the input signal. As a result, when more noise is present at the input, the
contribution of the added noise to the total noise is less significant.
In order to make comparisons between different devices using the noise figure, a
reference value for the input noise source must be chosen. Friis suggested that
the noise figure be defined for an input noise source at a standard temperature
(16.8C or 62.3F). The suggestion was later adopted by the IEEE as
part of its standard definition of noise figure.
Equation (56) shows that the input noise spectral density from a resistance at
temperature is:

(56)

where
To determine the output noise power under these standard conditions, a

standard matched noise source (resistive load at ) is connected to the
input of the network and the noise power at the output is measured.
The definition of noise factor adopted by the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and
Electronics Engineers) is therefore:
where
(57)
is the noise from a matched resistance at

is the noise added by the network, referred to the output
By substituting for , this can be expressed as:
where
(58)
is the noise power added by the network, referred to the output

is the noise power added by the network, referred to the input
115

Since the noise figure is defined for a reference temperature of 290 K, a different
value is used when the source temperature is not 290 K. This value is called
the operational noise figure (or factor) or effective noise figure (or factor) and
is related to the noise factor by Equation (59).

where
(59)
is the operational noise factor

is the source temperature
is 290 K
is the noise factor
Note, however, that for small deviations in source temperature, the difference
between and may not be significant. For source temperatures between
approximately 260 K and 330 K, the difference between and in decibels is
less than 0.5 dB and it is less than 0.25 dB for source temperatures between
280 K and 300 K.
Noise temperature
Equation (46) showed that the power delivered by a thermal noise source at the
input of an impedance-matched network depends only on the temperature (in
kelvin) and the bandwidth: .
In Equation (55), the noise power added by a network is considered
separately and is expressed as an equivalent input noise .
The definition of noise figure considers an impedance-matched source resistance
at temperature producing an input noise power . Figure 52a
shows a network (an amplifier) where the input noise is produced by a source at
temperature and the noise added by the network is .
Figure 52b shows an electrically equivalent model where the network is
noiseless. The input noise is produced by a source at temperature and an
equivalent input noise is produced by an additional source at temperature .
The two noise sources are uncorrelated and therefore simply add together.
116
Gain
Noise
a) Noisy amplifier
Gain
Noiseless
Figure 52. Equivalent circuits illustrating effective input noise temperature .
The temperature is often

referred to as the effective
noise temperature or just
the noise temperature and
sometimes as simply the
temperature, even though
it is not the physical temperature.
The temperature is called the effective input noise temperature and is

always measured in kelvin. This is defined as the temperature of a fictitious noise
source at the input of a two-port network or amplifier that would result in the
same output noise power, when connected to a noise-free network or amplifier,
as that of the actual network or amplifier connected to a noise-free source.
Note that in Figure 52, if the input noise source temperature was absolute zero
(0 K), then there would be no noise at the input of the amplifier ( ). In this
case, the only noise at the output would be the noise produced by the
amplifier where .
Equation (55) then can be rewritten as:

where
(60)
is the noise factor

is the effective input noise temperature in kelvin
is 290 K
Equation (60) shows that the noisiness of a network can be modeled as if it were
caused by an additional noise source operating at the effective noise
temperature . Powers from uncorrelated sources are additive so noise
temperatures are also additive. A network that adds no noise at all has and
.
117

If the noise figure is known, the effective noise temperature is given by:

(61)
The noise figure and the effective noise temperature both represent the noise
performance of devices. Figure 53 shows the relationship between the noise
figure, the noise factor, and the noise temperature in K.
5.0
4.5
Noise figure or factor
4.0
3.5
3.0
[ dB]
2.5
( noise factor)
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
Effective noise temperature (K)
400
450
500
Figure 53. Noise figure [dB] and (noise factor) versus effective noise temperature .
Noise figure versus noise temperature

Although the noise figure and the effective noise temperature are both
parameters that represent the noisiness of a network, there are cases where one
is easier to use than the other. In terrestrial applications, the physical
temperature is usually close to 290 K (16.85C or 62.33F). Since the noise
figure is defined for this temperature, the noise figure is the parameter usually
used for terrestrial applications. Noise figures for these applications typically fall
in the range of 1 to 10 dB.
For satellite communications however, receivers typically have low noise figures,
typically between 0.5 and 1.5 dB. Comparing two devices with low noise figures
would require specifying the noise figure to several decimal places. In this case,
it is usually more convenient to use the effective noise temperature since the
numbers are larger. Besides, with satellite communications, the reference
temperature of 290 K may not be appropriate. When using the noise
temperature, no reference temperature is required.
Another you reason for using noise temperature instead of noise figure is that
noise figure only applies to two-port devices (devices with both an input and an
output) whereas noise temperature also applies to one-port devices (devices with
only an output), such as antennas.
118
Composite noise figure and noise temperature of cascaded elements

Friis developed formulas for determining the noise factor and the noise
temperature of two-port elements connected in cascade. Each element may be a
single component or a more complex network.
Figure 54. Noise factors and effective input temperatures of elements in cascade.
Equation (62) shows the Friis formula for the noise factor of cascaded elements:

where
(62)
is the composite noise factor of the cascade

is the noise factor of the jth element or stage
is the gain of the jth element or stage
is the number of elements or stages
Friiss formula for effective input noise temperature is similar:

where
(63)
is the composite effective input temperature of the cascade

is the effective input temperature of the jth element or stage
is the gain of the jth element or stage
is the number of elements or stages
These equations show that the first stage in a network is most susceptible to add
noise to the system, since the noise figure and noise temperature of the
subsequent stages are reduced by the product of the gains of the preceding
stages. It is therefore important that the first stage in the receiver have as low
noise figure as possible, as well as high gain. This is why the first active
component in a receiver is a low-noise amplifier (LNA).
119
Noise figure and noise temperature example

Figure 55a shows a network made up of two amplifiers in series. Figure 55b
shows an electrically equivalent circuit. All impedances are matched (those of the
sources, of the amplifiers, and of the load at the output). and are the
noise factors of amplifier 1 and 2, respectively.
Amplifier 1
Signal
Input noise
(Noise source
at )
Amplifier 2
Matched
load
Matched
source
a) Two-stage network
Amplifier 1
Amplifier 2
Signal
Input noise
Added noise
Matched
source
Matched
load
Matched
source
Matched
load
Figure 55. Two-stage network and equivalent circuit for determining noise figure.
The input noise and signal sources are shown in series. As these signals are
uncorrelated, they simply add together.
For this example, we will assign values to each parameter and calculate the
result.
Amplifiers 1 and 2 are identical; each amplifier has a gain and a noise
figure . In linear terms, the gain and the noise factor for
each amplifier. The signal at the input of the network .
We wish to calculate the noise figure of the entire network. The noise source at
the input must therefore be at temperature since this is the
temperature required by the definition of noise figure.
In the equivalent circuit, the first amplifier is represented showing three sources
at its input: , , and .
120
represents the signal:

mW
mW
represents the noise from the source at 290 K (for convenience, we will
calculate noise in units of ):

represents the noise added by amplifier 1, referred to its input. Since the
noise factor , from Equation (55):

The signal at the output of amplifier 1 (and at the input of amplifier 2) is:

The noise at the output of amplifier 1 (and at the input of amplifier 2) is:

The second amplifier can also be represented as having three sources at its
input: , , and the noise added by amplifier 2: .
The noise added by amplifier 2 is the same as the noise added by amplifier
one, since they both have the same noise figure.
The signal at the output of amplifier 2 is:

The noise at the output of amplifier 2 is:

The signal-to-noise ratio at the input of the network is:


121

The signal-to-noise ratio at the output of the network is:

Therefore, the total noise factor of the entire network is:

From Equation (62), the theoretical noise factor for this network is:

The noise figure of the entire network is:

This example illustrates why the noise figure of a network depends mostly on the
noise figure of the first stage of the network. According to the definition of noise
figure, the noise at the input of the network must be equal to in order to
calculate the noise figure of the network. The noise added by this first stage can
be significant in proportion to its input noise. The deterioration of the signal-tonoise ratio in the first stage is therefore significant.
Since the first stage of the network amplifies this noise by its gain, and adds
noise of its own, the noise at the input of the second stage is much greater
than . Hence the noise added by the second stage is less significant, in
proportion to its input noise, than the noise added by the first stage is to its input
noise. Therefore, the deterioration of the signal-to-noise ratio in the second stage
is much less than in the first stage.
With satellite communications, the received signal is very weak because of the
great distance between the transmitter and the receiver. For this reason, the
noise figure of the receiver must be very low. What changes in the circuit of
Figure 55 would be most effective in reducing the total noise figure?
Table 26 shows the effect of certain changes that could be made in the
components of the circuit of this example in an attempt to reduce the total noise
figure. It also shows the effective input noise temperature of the entire network
for each case.
122

Three parameters are shown in the table: , , and . The Example column
shows the values already used in the example and which yield a total noise
figure of 3.22 dB. The various changes and the results of each change are
shown using columns of different colors.
Table 26. Effect of changing noise figure and gain.
Parameter
Example
Changes / Results
Gain
10 dB
Noise figure 1
3 dB
Noise figure 2
3 dB
Total noise
figure
3.22 dB
3.01 dB
3.03 dB
0.86 dB
0.53 dB
Effective
input noise
temperature
319 K
290 K
293 K
64 K
38 K
50 dB
0.5 dB
0.5 dB
0.5 dB
0.5 dB
From Equation (62), we know that the gain of the last stage of the network has
no effect on the total noise figure, so no change in is shown in the table.
In the green column, the gain of the first stage is changed from 10 dB to 50 dB
(a 10 000-fold increase in gain). As a result, the total noise figure of the network
becomes 3.01 dB, a reduction of approximately 0.2 dB. The improvement is
small because increasing the gain of the first stage only reduces the noise
contribution of the second stage.
In the purple column, the noise figure of the second amplifier is reduced from
3 dB to 0.5 dB. As a result, the total noise figure is reduced by approximately
0.2 dB, again a small improvement.
In the blue column, the noise figure of the first amplifier is changed from 3 dB to
0.5 dB. This causes the total noise figure to drop to 0.86 dB, an improvement of
2.36 dB.
The orange column of Table 26 shows the effect of reducing the noise figure of
the second stage as well as that of the first stage. Although this would yield a
small additional improvement of 0.33 dB, this improvement may not be enough to
justify the cost of two low-noise amplifiers.
The bottom row of Table 26 shows the effective input noise temperature that
corresponds to each total noise figure . As already mentioned, for low noise
devices, it is often more convenient to use the effective input noise temperature,
rather than the noise figure.
123

It is only when evaluating the noise figure of a network that the noise source is
considered to be at the standard temperature of 290 K. Once the noise figure is
known and the effective input noise temperature calculated, the noisiness of the
entire network is equal to that of one noise-free amplifier with a resistance
connected to its input whose temperature is equal to the physical temperature
of the source, and an additional resistance whose temperature is equal to the
effective input noise temperature of the network. This is illustrated in Figure 56.
Amplifier 1
Amplifier 2
Signal
Input noise
Matched
Source
Matched
Load
a) Two-stage network
Signal
Input noise
Noiseless
Added noise
Matched
Source
Matched
Load
Figure 56. Network and an equivalent one-stage circuit showing the physical source
temperature and the effective input noise temperature .
124
Noise figure and noise temperature of an attenuator or a feed line

Figure 57 shows networks that include a passive, lossy device, such as an
attenuator or a feed line.
Amplifier
Attenuator
Loss
a) Attenuator
Amplifier
Feed line
Loss
a) Feed line
Figure 57. Networks including an attenuator and a feed line.
Figure 58 shows a typical attenuator circuit with a matched input and output
impedance.
Series resistance
Input shunt
Output shunt
Figure 58. Typical attenuator circuit.
Attenuators and feed lines are both passive, impedance matched devices. The
device loss is defined as:
where
(64)
is the input power

is the output power
is the loss of the attenuator or line ( )
is the gain of the attenuator or line ( )
The noise figure for an attenuator or feed-line is defined the same way as for an
active component, that is, considering an input noise source at the standard
temperature of 290 K. When connected to a matched load, the input noise and
the attenuator or feed-line together appear to the matched load as a simple noise
125

source at 290 K, providing that no components are higher than this temperature.
The noise at the output of the attenuator (or line) is therefore .
If the input signal power to the attenuator or feed-line is , then the noise factor
is:
(65)
where
is the noise figure of the attenuator or feed-line

is the loss of the attenuator or feed-line

Equation (65) shows that noise figure of an attenuator or of a lossy line is equal
to its loss . This is because the signal-to-noise degradation results from the
signal being attenuated while the noise level remains fixed.
Only the noise factor is
defined in reference to a
standard temperature of
290K. The effective input
noise temperature is not
related to a standard temperature.
See also Equation (61).
The effective input noise temperature of a passive, lossy device with loss is
related to its physical temperature:

where
(66)
is the effective input noise temperature of a passive, lossy device

is the physical temperature of the lossy device
is the device loss
Note that, when the temperature of the lossy device is 290 K, the effective
input noise temperature is:

(67)

where
is the noise figure of the lossy device
Antenna noise temperature

Random noise is present at the terminals of a receiving antenna. A small part of
this noise is thermal noise generated due to the antennas ohmic resistance. The
remainder is noise the antenna picks up from other sources, both natural and
man-made. The total amount of this noise can be represented as though it were
thermal noise generated by a fictitious resistance at a temperature known as the
effective antenna noise temperature or antenna noise temperature, or
simply antenna temperature.
126

The antenna noise temperature is the effective temperature such that the
noise at the terminals of the antenna over a bandwidth is:

where
(68)
is the noise produced by the antenna over the bandwidth

is the bandwidth
The amount of noise produced by an antenna depends on what the antenna

sees. An antenna pointed at a clear sky picks up radiation that has been
absorbed and released by molecules in the atmosphere. The antenna
temperature depends on the frequency and the elevation angle of the antenna.
The presence of clouds and especially of rain will increase the antenna
temperature. The noise contribution from the sky is represented by the
temperature .
In addition, the radiation from the ground may be captured by the side lobes of
the antenna and to some extent by the main lobe is the elevation angle is small.
The noise contribution from the ground is represented by the
temperature .
Neglecting the small amount of noise due to the antennas ohmic resistance, the
total antenna noise temperature is given by .

Figure 59 shows a receiving system consisting of an antenna, a feed line, and a
receiver. The antenna noise temperature is . The physical temperature of the
feed line is . The loss of the feed line is equal to the reciprocal of its gain .
The receiver has an effective input noise temperature .
Composite noise temperature

Antenna
Feed line at

System noise
temperature (referred
to antenna output)
Receiver
System noise
temperature (referred
to receiver input)
Figure 59. System noise temperature.
From Equation (66) since the feed line acts as an attenuator with loss , its
effective noise temperature is .
127

The feed line and the receiver can be considered as two cascaded elements.
The composite noise temperature of these two elements is determined by
applying Equation (63):

(69)

where
is the composite noise temperature of the feed line and receiver

is the effective input noise temperature of the receiver
is the effective noise temperature of the feed line
is the loss of the feed-line
The system noise temperature or system temperature is similar in concept

to the effective input noise temperature of a network. It is the temperature in
kelvin of a fictitious resistance, placed at a specified point in a system made up of
ideal (noiseless) components that would result in the same output noise power
as produced by the actual system.
This fictitious resistance is usually considered to be located at the input of the
receiver. One can say in this case that this is the system temperature referred to
the input of the receiver.
Transmitter designers often
prefer to refer the system
noise temperature to the
output of the antenna.
Imagine first of all that this fictitious resistance is placed at the output of the
antenna. In Figure 59, the system noise temperature referred to the output of the
antenna is . Since the antenna acts as an noise source, the noise temperature
of the entire system , referred to the output of the antenna, is simply equal to
the sum :

(70)

where
Receiver designers often

prefer to refer the system
noise temperature to the
input of the receiver.
128
is the system noise temperature referred to the antenna output

is the antenna noise temperature
is the composite noise temperature of the feed line and receiver
is the effective noise temperature of the feed line
is the physical temperature of the feed line (often close to )
is the effective input noise temperature of the receiver
Now imagine that the fictitious resistance is placed at the input of the receiver,
rather than at the output of the antenna. The temperature of this fictitious
resistance is the system temperature referred to the input of the receiver.
How does the system temperature , referred to the receiver input, compare to
the system temperature , referred to the antenna output? Referring to
Figure 52 on page 118, recall that noise added by an amplifier with gain can
be represented by a noise source at the input of a noiseless amplifier where
. The effective noise temperature of the amplifier is
referred to the input of the amplifier. If the noise source was located at the output
of the amplifier, rather than at the input, the added noise could be represented

by , where is the noise temperature referred to the output. It
follows that .
This also holds if the amplifier is replaced by a feed line whose gain .
The system temperature , referred to the output of the feed line (the input of
the receiver) is therefore:

(71)
where
is the system noise temperature referred to the receiver input

is the system noise temperature referred to the antenna output
is the gain of the feed line (less than 1)
is the antenna noise temperature
is the feed-line physical temperature
is the receiver effective noise temperature
Both system noise temperatures and take into account the noise produced
by the antenna, the feed line, and the receiver. The noise temperature is
called the system noise temperature at the receiver input.
Composite temperature of the antenna and feed line
In many terrestrial systems, the antenna temperature and the feed line
physical temperature are both close to 290 K. When , this is also their
composite temperature, regardless of the feed-line loss:

129
Link performance and receiver figure of merit

The performance of an individual link is evaluated as the ratio of the received
carrier power to the noise power spectral density . The ratio has units
of hertz (Hz).
The received carrier power is simply the power received at the input of the
receiver. From Equation (42) on page 77:

(72)
where
is the carrier power (power at receiver input)

is the power at the transmitter output
is the gain of the transmitting antenna
is the transmitting antenna pointing loss
is the transmitter feed-line loss
is the free-space loss
is the atmospheric attenuation
is the gain of the receiving antenna
is the receiving antenna pointing loss
is the receiver feed-line loss
is the antenna polarization mismatch loss
is the effective isotropic radiated power
is the path loss
is the composite receiving gain
The noise power spectral density at the receiver input is proportional to the
system noise temperature referred to the receiver input:

where
(73)
Therefore, the carrier power to the noise power spectral density at the receiver
input is:
(74)
The carrier power to the noise power spectral density is the key parameter
in evaluating the performance of a link.
130

Although Equation (74) was derived by determining the values at the receiver
input, the ratio is independent of the point chosen in the receiving chain as
long as the carrier power and the system noise power spectral density are
calculated (not measured) at the same point. This is because the system
temperature is calculated as though all components are ideal (noiseless) and
all of the noise in the system results from a single, fictitious noise source at the
receiver input.
Because the components of the receiver are not ideal, each component adds
noise. For this reason, the ratio can only be directly measured at the output
of the RF front end (at the input of the demodulator).
The ratio of the composite receiving gain to the system noise temperature is
called the figure of merit of the receiving equipment.
Link budget
The objective of link performance analysis is to determine whether the
communication system will provide the expected performance. The link budget
compares the actual ratio to the ratio required to give the expected
performance. The actual ratio should exceed the required ratio by a
certain margin.
Performance analysis is carried out by calculating each of the terms of
Equation (74) separately.
Link budget example

The following example analyzes the performance of the downlink between a
satellite repeater (the transmitter) in a geostationary satellite and an earth-station
receiver. The values used in this example are given in the tables below.
First, the is calculated:

The transmitter power in this example is 10 W. The earth station is within the
3 dB beamwidth of the downlink antenna. The values for this example are shown
in Table 27.
131

Table 27. Calculating the EIRP.
Item
Symbol
Value
Value (dB)
Transmitter power
10 W
40 dBm
Transmitter antenna gain
35 dBi
Maximum transmitter antenna pointing loss
3 dB
Transmitter antenna feed-line loss
1 dB
Effective isotropic radiated power
(12 589 W)
71 dBm
When necessary, both the absolute value and the value in decibels are given
in the example tables. Values in parentheses are shown for information only;
conversion into these values is not necessary for the calculations.
The path loss is calculated for a range of 40 000 km, a downlink frequency of
11 GHz, and an atmospheric attenuation of 0.3 dB.

Table 28. Calculating the path loss.
Item
Symbol
Value
Value (dB)
Distance
40 000 km
Frequency
11 GHz
Free-space loss
3.4 x 1020
Atmospheric attenuation
0.3 dB
Path loss
205.6 dB
205.3 dB
The composite receiver gain is calculated using the values in Table 29,
assuming there is no polarization mismatch loss:

132

Table 29. Calculating the composite receiver gain.
Item
Symbol
Value
Value (dB)
Receiver antenna gain
(100 000)
50 dB
Receiver antenna pointing loss
Receiver antenna feed-line loss
Polarization mismatch loss
Composite receiving gain
0.5 dB
1.26
1 dB
0 dB
70 795
48.5 dB
The earth station antenna points to a clear sky; its temperature is 65 K. The
feed line temperature , however, is 290K. The noise figure of the receiver
is 1 dB. The receiver antenna feed-line loss is given in Table 29.
The system noise temperature is calculated using:

Table 30. Calculating system noise temperature.
Item
Symbol
Value
Antenna temperature
65 K
Feed line temperature
290 K
Receiver noise figure
1.26
Receiver noise temperature
75.4 K
186.8 K
Value (dB)
1 dB
The figure of merit of the receiver is . The link performance is characterized

by the value :

133

Table 31. Calculating figure of merit and .
Item
Symbol
Value
Value (dB)
Figure of merit
(380.2 K-1)
25.8 dB K-1
Boltzmanns constant
1.38E-23
W K-1 Hz-1
-198.6 dBm
K-1 Hz-1
Link performance figure
89.8 dBHz
The link budget says a great deal about the overall system design and
performance. When the system is being designed, a minimal value is
calculated that will provide the desired performance, and a link margin is added.
The system is then designed to meet this value while making trade-offs between
the system cost and various other constraints.
For example, if the system described above required a value of 83 dB, then
a system built respecting parameters given in the tables would have a link margin
of 6.8 dB.
Analog and digital figures of merit

An important figure of merit for an analog system is the average signal-to-noise
ratio or at the input of the demodulator.
As mentioned before, the ratio is independent of the point chosen in the
receiving chain as long as the carrier power and the system noise power spectral
density are calculated at the same point. Since is the noise power in the
bandwidth of 1 Hz, the can be converted into a signal-to-noise ratio by
multiplying by the bandwidth of the receiver:

where
(75)
is the signal power at the demodulator input

is the noise power at the demodulator input
is the carrier power at a certain point in the receiver chain
is the noise power spectral density at the same point
is the bandwidth of the receiver
In digital communication systems, the figure of merit is usually used.

Consider a digital signal that conveys information one bit of the time at a bit
rate . Each bit has a duration . The energy per bit is therefore
. The relation between and is:

(76)

where
134
is the energy per bit

is the bit rate
Exercise 3 Noise and the Link Budget Procedure Outline

Equation (76) shows that the ratio is a normalized expression of the
signal-to-noise ratio.
a
PROCEDURE OUTLINE
Measuring the ratio is beyond the scope of this manual.
The Procedure is divided into the following sections:
System startup
Noise figure
Set up for measuring noise figure. Measuring received carrier power and
RF front end gain. Measuring the gain of the preamplifier. Measuring the
receiver output noise power. Calculating the receiver noise figure and
effective input noise temperature.

Link budget
a
PROCEDURE
Before carrying out the following exercise Procedure, be sure to read

Appendix F Noise Measurement Using a Spectrometer on page 187.
System startup
1. If not already done, set up the system and align the antennas visually as
shown in Appendix B.
2. Make sure that no hardware faults have been activated in the Earth Station
Transmitter or the Earth Station Receiver.
Faults in these modules are activated for troubleshooting exercises using DIP
switches located behind a removable panel on the back of these modules. For
normal operation, all fault DIP switches should be in the O position.
3. Turn on each module that has a front panel Power switch (push the switch
into the I position). After a few seconds, the Power LED should light.
4. If you are using the optional Telemetry and Instrumentation Add-On:
x
Make sure there is a USB connection between the Data

Generation/Acquisition Interface, the Virtual Instrument, and the host
computer, as described in Appendix B.
Turn on the Virtual Instrument using the rear panel power switch.
b
x
Start the Telemetry and Instrumentation application. In the Application

Selector, do not select Work in stand-alone mode.
If the TiePieSCOPE drivers need to be installed, this will be done

automatically in Windows 7 and 8. In Windows XP, the Found New
Hardware Wizard will appear (it may appear twice). In this case, do not
connect to Windows Update (select No, not this time and click Next). Then
select Install the software automatically and click Next.
If the Telemetry and Instrumentation application is already running, exit

and restart it. This will ensure that no faults are active in the Satellite
Repeater.
135
Exercise 3 Noise and the Link Budget Procedure
Noise figure
Set up for measuring noise figure
5. Position the Earth Station Receiver, its antenna, and the spectrum analyzer
so that you can easily connect this antenna to either to the RF INPUT of the
Earth Station Receiver or to the input of the spectrum analyzer without
putting tension on the cable.
During this exercise, you will connect the antenna at the Earth Station
Receiver to the RF INPUT of the Earth Station Receiver and then directly to
the input of the spectrum analyzer. It is important to be able to make these
connections without putting tension on the cable as this could move the
antenna or change its orientation.
6. Make the connections shown in Figure 60 (you will require the RF Amplifier
and the spectrum analyzer, but do not connect them now). In this exercise,
the external RF Amplifier will be used as a spectrum analyzer preamplifier
when measuring the noise power, as described in Appendix F. The
RF Amplifier and the spectrum analyzer will be connected later as required.
In this exercise, the RF Amplifier is referred to as the preamplifier.

RF
OUTPUT
Digital
Modulator
I Q
Up Converter
1
Up Converter
2
I Q
Large-Aperture
Horn Antenna
(Uplink)
Earth Station Transmitter

I OUTPUT
to
I INPUT
Q OUTPUT
to
Q INPUT
Small-Aperture
Horn Antenna
(Uplink)
Long cable
Down Converter
2
Satellite
Repeater
RF
OUTPUT
Small-Aperture
Horn Antenna
(Downlink)
Earth Station Receiver

Down Converter
1
Preamplifier
(RF Amplifier)
Large-Aperture
Horn Antenna
(Downlink)
Spectrum
Analyzer
Figure 60. Connections for an unmodulated carrier.
7. On the Earth Station Transmitter and the Earth Station Receiver, select a
Channel not being used by another system in the same laboratory.
136

On the Earth Station Transmitter, make the following adjustments:
Data Source................................................... Sampler
Scrambler ...................................................... Off
Clock & Frame encoder ................................. Off
The signal at the output of the Digital Modulator is an unmodulated carrier.

The RF OUTPUT signal from the transmitter is the same unmodulated carrier
shifted up to the uplink frequency.
8. Align the antennas and optimize the alignment (see Aligning the antennas on
page 38). Make sure the knob on the mast of the antenna at the Earth
Station Receiver is tight.
Adjust the Gain control on the Earth Station Receiver so that the green Level
LED is lit.
Measuring received carrier power and RF front end gain

In this section, you will measure the carrier power at the input of the receiver and
at the output of the RF front end (the IF 1 OUTPUT) with the Gain control set to
maximum. This will allow you to calculate the maximum gain on the RF front end,
which consists of Down Converter 2 and Down Converter 1.
9. Taking care not to change the orientation of the antenna, disconnect the
cable at the RF INPUT of the Earth Station Receiver and connect it to the
input of the spectrum analyzer, as shown in Figure 61. The antenna should
not move at all (i.e. its orientation should not change). If it does move,
reconnect it to the Earth Station Receiver and realign the antennas.
Down Converter
2
Down Converter
1
Preamplifier
(RF Amplifier)
Spectrum
Analyzer
Figure 61. Measuring .
As the signal received by the antenna is very weak, no attenuation will be

required on the spectrum analyzer. Use averaging, if necessary, to reduce
fluctuations. Use a marker or a cursor to read the power of the spectral line.
Enter the measured input carrier power in the first column of Table 32.
137

Table 32. Maximum gain of the receiver RF front end.
[dBm]
[dBm]

[dB]
Table 32. Maximum gain of the receiver RF front end.
[dBm]
[dBm]
-45.5
1.57
47.1
[dB]
You can expect the carrier at the IF 1 OUTPUT of the receiver to be

approximately 45 dB above the signal received by the antenna. On the
spectrum analyzer, select the appropriate scale and input attenuation level
required in order to avoid overloading the instrument (if you are using the
Telemetry and Instrumentation Add-On, connect the 20 dB Attenuator to the
Frequency Converter and add 20 dB to the displayed level).
Being very careful not to move the antenna, disconnect the cable from the
input of the spectrum analyzer and connect it to the RF INPUT of the Earth
Station Receiver, as shown in Figure 62. Use the remaining long cable to
connect the IF 1 OUTPUT to the spectrum analyzer.
Down Converter
2
Down Converter
1
Preamplifier
(RF Amplifier)
Spectrum
Analyzer
On the Earth Station Receiver, turn the Gain control to the maximum
position and measure the carrier power at the IF 1 OUTPUT using the
required settings and attenuation. Enter this value into Table 32.
Calculate the gain of the receiver and enter this into Table 32.
Measuring the gain of the preamplifier

10. The gain of the preamplifier (RF Amplifier) is approximately 20 dB. However,
it is preferable measure its gain more precisely.
On the Earth Station Receiver, reduce the Gain control until the peak on the
spectrum analyzer is approximately -20 dBm (considering any attenuation
used). Do not change the Gain setting for the rest of this section. Note the
power in the first column of Table 33.
138

Table 33. Preamplifier gain calculation.
[dBm]
[dBm]

[dB]
Table 33. Preamplifier gain calculation.
[dBm]
[dBm]
-19.7
-0.1
19.6
[dB]
11. Disconnect the spectrum analyzer from the receiver.

Power off the receiver and disconnect the power cable on the rear panel of
the receiver.
Connect the RF amplifier directly to the IF 1 OUTPUT of the receiver, as
shown in Figure 63, using a male SMA-SMA adapter. Tighten the connectors
so that they are snug but not over tightened. A small wrench for this purpose
is provided in the Accessories.
RF Amplifier
RF Amplifier output
Cable to receiver power

input (on rear panel)
Cable from receiver
power supply
Figure 63. RF Amplifier connected to the IF 1 OUTPUT of the receiver.
The RF Amplifier is powered by the receiver power supply as shown in

Figure 63. Connect the power cable from the receiver power supply to the
connector on the bottom of the RF Amplifier. Plug the power cable from the
RF Amplifier into the power connector on the rear panel of the receiver.
Power on the receiver.
139

12. Connect the spectrum analyzer as shown in Figure 64.
Down Converter
2
Down Converter
1
Preamplifier
(RF Amplifier)
Spectrum
Analyzer
Figure 64. Measuring preamplifier gain.
Note the power of the peak displayed on the spectrum analyzer in the
second column of Table 33. Calculate the gain of the preamplifier.
Measuring the receiver output noise power

13. Disconnect the cable at the RF INPUT of the Earth Station Receiver and
connect a 50 load (a matched load) in its place.
50
Down Converter
2
Down Converter
1
Preamplifier
(RF Amplifier)
Spectrum
Analyzer
Power off the Earth Station Transmitter. This will reduce extraneous noise.
On the Earth Station Receiver, turn the Gain control to the maximum
position and measure the noise level at the output of the preamplifier using
the spectrum analyzer. Enter this value as in Table 34.
As mentioned in Appendix F, it is preferable to use a wide span on the

spectrum analyzer as this collects more noise power.
Fill in the other rows of Table 34 using the appropriate units.
Most spectrum analyzers display the resolution bandwidth corresponding to

the selected span. If this is not the case, consult the users manual of the
spectrum analyzer.
The Averaging correction depends on the type of averaging used on the
spectrum analyzer. For video averaging or video filtering, this is +2.5 dB. For
power (RMS) averaging, it is 0 dB. For FFT spectrum analyzers, it is also 0 dB.
140

For most conventional spectrum analyzers, the Equivalent noise bandwidth
correction required may range from approximately -0.2 dB to -0.5 dB. If this
value is not specified in the user documentation, a value of -0.5 dB is
recommended. For FFT spectrum analyzers, this correction is 0 dB.
The virtual Spectrum Analyzer of the Telemetry and Instrumentation Add-On is
an FFT spectrum analyzer.
Table 34. Measuring noise power at IF 1 OUTPUT.
Measured preamplifier output noise power

Preamplifier gain
Spectrum analyzer Span
Resolution bandwidth for this Span
Averaging correction
Equivalent noise bandwidth correction
Corrected receiver output noise power in RBW

Receiver output noise power spectral density

Table 34. Measuring noise power at IF 1 OUTPUT.
Using the Telemetry and Instrumentation Add-On:

Preamplifier gain
-49.8 dBm
19.6 dB
5 MHz/div.
302 734 Hz
0 dB
0 dB

-69.4

-124.2 dBm/Hz
Using a conventional spectrum analyzer and power averaging (example):

Preamplifier gain
19.6 dB
300 MHz



-39.0 dBm
3 MHz
0
-0.5 dB
-59.1 dBm
-123.9 dBm/Hz
141
Using a conventional spectrum analyzer and video averaging (example):

Preamplifier gain
-41.5 dBm
19.6
300 MHz
3 MHz
2.5 dB



-0.5 dB
-59.1 dBm
-123.9 dBm/Hz
Calculating the receiver noise figure and effective input noise temperature
14. Using the receiver gain from Table 32, the receiver input noise power
spectral density from Equation (56), and the receiver output noise power
spectral density from Table 34 (all in dB), calculate the noise figure
of the Earth Station Receiver.

Calculate the noise factor of the receiver and the equivalent input noise
temperature .


15. Make sure the Earth Station Transmitter is turned off.
While observing the spectrum analyzer display, remove the 50 load at the
RF INPUT of the receiver and connect the antenna. Is the noise level at the
IF 1 OUTPUT different with the antenna connected rather than the 50
load?
No, there was no change in the displayed noise level.
142

What can you conclude about the noise temperature of the antenna and
cable together as compared to the noise temperature of the 50 load?
The noise temperature of the antenna and cable together is the same as that
of the 50 load, that is, .
16. Considering that the antenna temperature and the feed cable
temperature are both 290K, calculate the system temperature referred
to the input of the receiver.

To check your calculation, recall the definition of system temperature . Then
calculate what the output noise power spectral density of the receiver would
be using this system temperature. Compare the results of your calculation
with the receiver output noise power spectral density determined in Table 34.
The system temperature, referred to the input of the receiver, is the
temperature in kelvin of a fictitious resistance, placed at the receiver input in
a system made up of ideal (noiseless) components that would result in the
same output noise power as produced by the actual system.
The output noise power spectral density of such a system with a gain of
47.1 dB is calculated as follows:

This is exactly the same receiver output noise power spectral density
measured in Table 34.
143
Link budget
In this section, you will calculate the figure of merit of the receiver. You will also
value for the downlink and compare this with the measured value.
17. Measure the distance between the downlink antennas and enter this in
Table 35.
Measure the power at the output of the repeater. If you use the Power
Sensor on the repeater (via telemetry), you can measure this power directly.
If you use a spectrum analyze, you must take into consideration the cable
loss. Enter this power in Table 35.
Then fill in the remainder of the table. These values will be used in
subsequent calculations and should be entered in the following tables as
required.
Table 35. Initial values for link budget.
Channel
Downlink frequency
(from Table 1 on page 32)
Distance
Transmitter power

Gain of small-aperture horn antenna
Gain of large-aperture horn antenna
(from Step 14 on page 143)
144
GHz
dBm
dBi
dBi
dB
Table 35. Initial values for link budget.
Channel
Downlink frequency
Distance
(measured)
Transmitter power
or
Gain of small-aperture horn antenna
Gain of large-aperture horn antenna
9.0
GHz
2.01
-12.4
dBm
14.2
dBi
18.4
dBi
2.7
dB
249
18. Fill in Table 36 making the necessary calculations.

Table 36. Calculating downlink EIRP (using the repeater as a transmitter).
Item
Symbol
Transmitter power
Transmitter antenna gain (small horn)
Value
Value (dB)
0 dB
When necessary, both the absolute value and the value in decibels are given
in the example tables. Values in parentheses are shown for information only;
conversion into these values is not necessary for the calculations.
145

Table 36. Calculating downlink EIRP (using the repeater as a transmitter).
Item
Symbol
Value
Value (dB)
Transmitter power
0.058 mW
-12.4 dBm
Transmitter antenna gain (small horn)
14.2 dBi
0 dB
2.4 dB
(0.87 mW)
-0.6 dBm
[dBm] [dB]
19. Calculate the path loss using:

Table 37. Calculating path loss.
Item
Symbol
Distance
Frequency
Free-space loss
Path loss
Value
Value (dB)
0 dB
Table 37. Calculating path loss.
146
Item
Symbol
Value
Value (dB)
Distance
2.01 m
Frequency
9 GHz
Free-space loss
5.74x105
0 dB
Path loss
57.6 dB
57.6 dB

20. The composite receiver gain is calculated using the equation:
When all values are expressed in decibels, the composite receiver gain is:

Table 38. Calculating composite receiver gain.
Item
Symbol
Receiver antenna gain
Value
Value (dB)
0 dB
Table 38. Calculating composite receiver gain.
Item
Symbol
Value
Receiver antenna gain (large horn)
18.4 dB
0 dB
1.58
Value (dB)
2.4 dB
0 dB
39.8
16.0 dB
21. Both the antenna and the feed line are at room temperature (290 K).
The system noise temperature is calculated using:


147

Item
Symbol
Antenna temperature
Value
Value (dB)
Item
Symbol
Value
Antenna temperature
290 K
290 K
1.86
249 K
539 K
Value (dB)
2.7 dB
22. The figure of merit of the receiver is . The link performance is

characterized by the value :

When the values , , , , and are expressed in decibels, the
equation is:
148
Item
Symbol
Figure of merit
Boltzmanns constant
Value
Value (dB)
Item
Symbol
Value
Value (dB)
Figure of merit
0.074 K-1
-11.3 dB/K
Boltzmanns constant
1.38E-23 W K-1 Hz-1
-198.6 dBm K-1 Hz-1
129.1 dBHz
[dB] [all in dB]
23. Use the values measured in Table 32 and Table 34 to determine the link
performance figure at the IF 1 OUTPUT of the receiver.
Table 41. Measured link performance figure.
Carrier power
dBm
Noise power spectral density
dBm/Hz
dBHz
How does the value determined by measurement in Table 41 compare

with the calculated value in Table 40?
Table 42. Measured link performance figure.
Carrier power
Noise power spectral density
1.57
dBm
-124.2
dBm/Hz
125.8
dBHz
The measured value and the calculated value are fairly close.
24. When you have finished using the system, exit any software being used and
turn off the equipment.
149
Exercise 3 Noise and the Link Budget Conclusion
CONCLUSION
In this exercise, you measured the noise figure of the receiver and calculated the
receiver noise temperature. Then you determined the system noise temperature
referred to the input of the receiver and calculated the figure of merit . You
also calculated the value for the system.
REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Describe additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN)

Additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) is a model for noise in
communications channels. It describes noise as additive (adding positive and
negative random values to the amplitude of the signal), white (having equal
noise power per unit bandwidth over all frequencies of interest) and
Gaussian (having a normal amplitude probability distribution).
2. What is the noise figure of a device?

The noise figure is the degradation or decrease of the signal-to-noise ratio as
the signal passes through the device.
3. What is the noise temperature of a device?

The noise temperature, or more precisely, the effective input noise
temperature of a device, is the source noise temperature in kelvin in a device
that will result in the same output noise power, when connected to a noisefree device, as that of the actual device connected to a noise-free source
4. Define the system noise temperature.

The system noise temperature is the temperature in kelvin of a fictitious
resistance, placed at a specified point in a system made up of ideal
(noiseless) components that would result in the same output noise power as
produced by the actual system.
5. What is the importance of the ratio of a communications link?

The ratio (carrier power to the noise power spectral density) determines
the performance of a link.
150
Bibliography
Agilent Technologies, Spectrum Analysis Basics, Application Note 150 (59520292.pdf).
Agilent Technologies, Spectrum and Signal Analyzer Measurements and Noise,
Application Note (5966-4008E.pdf).
Antenna-theory.com, http://www.antenna-theory.com.
Chartrand, Mark R., Satellite Communications for the Nonspecialist, Bellingham,
SPIE Press, 2004, ISBN 0-8194-5185-1.
Haslett, Christopher, Essentials of Radio Wave Propagation, Cambridge,
Cambridge University Press, 2008, ISBN 978-0-511-37112-7.
Hewlett Packard, Spectrum Analysis noise figure measurements, Application
Note 150-9 (5952-9229.pdf).
Maral, Grard and Bousquet, Michel, Satellite Communications Systems, Fourth
Edition, Chichester, John Wiley & Sons, 2002, ISBN 978-0-471-49654-0.
Miller Technology, Inc., Equivalent Noise Bandwidth (ENB), Technical Note
TN129.
SKLAR, Bernard. Digital Communications Fundamentals and Applications,
Second Edition, Upper Saddle River, N.J., Prentice Hall Inc., 2001
ISBN 978-0-13084-788-7
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Link Characteristics and Performance

Safety and Common Symbols

Caution, hot surface

Caution, risk of danger

Caution, lifting hazard

Caution, hand entanglement hazard

Notice, non-ionizing radiation

Both direct and alternating current

Three-phase alternating current

Earth (ground) terminal

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Safety and Common Symbols

Frame or chassis terminal

Out position of a bi-stable push control

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Power Gain and Antenna Parameters ........................................ 3

Polarization ............................................................................ 29

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Beamwidth and radiation pattern ........................................... 62

Losses, Radiated Power and Receiver Input Power ............... 71

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Noise and the Link Budget ...................................................... 101

Antenna noise temperature.................................................. 127

System noise temperature ................................................... 143

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Festo Didactic 86312-10

We invite readers of this manual to send us their tips, feedback, and

Festo Didactic 86312-10

About This Manual

A clearly defined Exercise Objective

A Discussion Outline listing the main points presented in the Discussion

A Discussion of the theory involved

A Procedure Outline listing the main sections in the Procedure

A step-by-step Procedure in which the student observes and measures

Festo Didactic 86312-10

About This Manual

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Noise and the Link Budget

The Discussion of this exercise covers the following points:

Noise in communications systems

Half-power and equivalent noise bandwidths

Composite noise figure and noise temperature of cascaded elements

Amplitude distribution. Frequency distribution.

Noise power example.

Noise figure example.

Antenna noise temperature

Link performance and receiver figure of merit

Composite temperature of the antenna and feed line.

Link budget example. Analog and digital figures of merit.

Noise in communications systems

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Exercise 3 Noise and the Link Budget Discussion

John Bertrand Johnson was

Harry Nyquist, another

Thermal noise characteristics

Because thermal noise is a random process, its instantaneous value (voltage or

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Exercise 3 Noise and the Link Budget Discussion

Festo Didactic 86312-10

Exercise 3 Noise and the Link Budget Discussion

is the temperature in kelvin (