FAKULTI TEKNOLOGI KEJURUTERAAN

ELEKTRIK DAN ELEKTRONIK

UNIVERSITI TEKNIKAL MALAYSIA MELAKA

DIGITAL COMMUNICATION

BEET3403 SEMESTER 2 SESI 2019/2020

LAB 5: AMPLITUDE SHIFT KEYING (ASK)

MODULATION AND DEMODULATION SIMULATIONS
NO
STUDENTS' NAME MATRIC. NO.
.

1.

2.

3.

PROGRAMME 3 BEET

SECTION /
GROUP

DATE

1. Dr. Muhammad Inam Abbasi

NAME OF
INSTRUCTOR(S)

EXAMINER’S COMMENT(S) TOTAL MARKS

Page 1 of 10
1.0 OBJECTIVES
1. To understand the operation theory of ASK modulation and demodulation.
2. To understand the ASK modulated and demodlated signal waveforms.
3. To design and implement ASK modulation and demodulation circuit in Multisim.

2.0 EQUIPMENT

1. Multisim Circuit Simulator.

3.0 SYNOPSIS & THEORY

What is Signal Modulation?

A message carrying signal has to get transmitted over a distance and for it to establish a reliable
communication; it needs to take the help of a high frequency signal which should not affect the
original characteristics of the message signal.

The characteristics of the message signal, if changed, the message contained in it also alters.
Hence it is a must to take care of the message signal. A high frequency signal can travel up to a
longer distance, without getting affected by external disturbances. We take the help of such high
frequency signal which is called as a carrier signal to transmit our message signal. Such a
process is simply called as Modulation.

Modulation is the process of changing the parameters of the carrier signal, in accordance with the
instantaneous values of the modulating signal.

Need for Modulation

The baseband signals are incompatible for direct transmission. For such a signal, to travel longer
distances, its strength has to be increased by modulating with a high frequency carrier wave,
which doesn’t affect the parameters of the modulating signal.

Advantages of Modulation
The antenna used for transmission, had to be very large, if modulation was not introduced. The
range of communication gets limited as the wave cannot travel to a distance without getting
distorted.

Following are some of the advantages for implementing modulation in the communication
systems.

 Antenna size gets reduced.

 No signal mixing occurs.
 Communication range increases.
 Multiplexing of signals occur.
 Adjustments in the bandwidth are allowed.
 Reception quality improves.
 Signals in the Modulation Process
 Following are the three types of signals in the modulation process.

Message or Modulating Signal

The signal which contains a message to be transmitted is called as a message signal. It is a
baseband signal, which has to undergo the process of modulation, to get transmitted. Hence, it is
also called as the modulating signal.

Carrier Signal
The high frequency signal which has a certain phase, frequency, and amplitude but contains no
information is called a carrier signal. It is an empty signal. It is just used to carry the signal to the
receiver after modulation.

Page 2 of 10
Modulated Signal
The resultant signal after the process of modulation is called as the modulated signal. This signal
is a combination of the modulating signal and the carrier signal.

Types of Modulation
There are many types of modulations. Depending upon the modulation techniques used, they are
classified as shown in the following figure.

Figure 1. Types of Modulation

Digital Modulation Techniques

Digital Modulation provides more information capacity, high data security, quicker system
availability with great quality communication. Hence, digital modulation techniques have a
greater demand, for their capacity to convey larger amounts of data than analog modulation
techniques.
There are many types of digital modulation techniques and also their combinations, depending
upon the need. Some of the common digital modulation techniques are:
ASK – Amplitude Shift Keying
The amplitude of the resultant output depends upon the input data whether it should be a zero
level or a variation of positive and negative, depending upon the carrier frequency.
FSK – Frequency Shift Keying
The frequency of the output signal will be either high or low, depending upon the input data
applied.
PSK – Phase Shift Keying
The phase of the output signal gets shifted depending upon the input. These are mainly of two
types, namely Binary Phase Shift Keying BPSK and Quadrature Phase Shift Keying QPSK,
according to the number of phase shifts. The other one is Differential Phase Shift
Keying DPSK which changes the phase according to the previous value.

Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK) is a type of Amplitude Modulation which represents the binary
data in the form of variations in the amplitude of a signal.

Page 3 of 10
Any modulated signal has a high frequency carrier. The binary signal when ASK modulated, gives
a zero value for Low input while it gives the carrier output for High input. Figure 2 represents ASK
modulated waveform along with its input.

Figure 2. ASK modulation output for the given input and carrier signal

ASK Modulator
The ASK modulator block diagram comprises of the carrier signal generator, the binary sequence
from the message signal and the band-limited filter. Figure 3 shows the block diagram of the ASK
Modulator.

Figure 3. ASK generation block diagram

The carrier generator, sends a continuous high-frequency carrier. The binary sequence from the
message signal makes the unipolar input to be either High or Low. The high signal closes the
switch, allowing a carrier wave. Hence, the output will be the carrier signal at high input. When
there is low input, the switch opens, allowing no voltage to appear. Hence, the output will be low.
The band-limiting filter, shapes the pulse depending upon the amplitude and phase
characteristics of the band-limiting filter or the pulse-shaping filter.

Page 4 of 10
ASK Demodulator
There are two types of ASK Demodulation techniques. They are :

 Asynchronous ASK Demodulation/detection

 Synchronous ASK Demodulation/detection
The clock frequency at the transmitter when matches with the clock frequency at the receiver, it
is known as a Synchronous method, as the frequency gets synchronized. Otherwise, it is
known as Asynchronous.
Asynchronous ASK Demodulator
The Asynchronous ASK detector consists of a half-wave rectifier, a low pass filter, and a
comparator. Following is the block diagram for the same.

Figure 4. Asynchronus ASK detector

The modulated ASK signal is given to the half-wave rectifier, which delivers a positive half
output. The low pass filter suppresses the higher frequencies and gives an envelope detected
output from which the comparator delivers a digital output.
Synchronous ASK Demodulator
Synchronous ASK detector consists of a Square law detector, low pass filter, a comparator, and
a voltage limiter. Following is the block diagram for the same.

Figure 5. Synchronus ASK detector

The ASK modulated input signal is given to the Square law detector. A square law detector is
one whose output voltage is proportional to the square of the amplitude modulated input voltage.
The low pass filter minimizes the higher frequencies. The comparator and the voltage limiter
help to get a clean digital output.

Page 5 of 10
4.0 PROCEDURE

Simulations: ASK Modulation and Demodulation

TP1
Carrier
Signal

TP4
OUTPUT
Demodulated
Signal

TP3
TP2 OUTPUT
Binary Modulated
Input Signal
Message
Signal

Figure 6. ASK Modulation: Modulation Circuit

1. Figure 6 shows the schematic diagrams of ASK modulation and demodulation.

2. Referring to Figure 6, construct the ASK modulation and demodulation circuit in Multisim.
3. At carrier signal, input a 10 KHz sine wave with 10v peak amplitude and at the message
signal input a 1 KHz TTL with 5v peak amplitude signal.
4. Use a 4-channel oscilloscope, and record the signals at TP1 (carrier signal), TP2
(Message signal) and TP3 (Modulated signal). Adjust Y-axis of the signal outputs for
clear representation. Save the results and plot in Section 5.1.

5. Input the modulated signal at the input of demodulator as shown in Figure 6. Record the
demodulated signal.
6. Use a 4-channel oscilloscope, and record the signals at TP1 (carrier signal), TP2
(Message signal), TP3 (Modulated signal) and TP4 (Demodulated signal). Adjust Y-axis
of the signal outputs for clear representation. Save the results and plot in Section 5.2.

7. Vary the carrier and message signal input frequency/amplitude and observe the effect on
modulated and demodulated signals.
8. Repeat the steps 4-6 and record the results in Section 5.3.

Page 6 of 10
5.0 RESULTS

1.1 Results of ASK Modulation

(Carrier Signal 10 KHz, 10Vp, Message Signal 1KHz, 5vp)

Page 7 of 10
1.2 Results of ASK Modulation and Demodulation
(Carrier Signal 10 KHz, 10Vp, Message Signal 1KHz, 5vp)

Page 8 of 10
1.3 Results of ASK Modulation and Demodulation
(Specify the variation done)

Page 9 of 10
6.0 DISCUSSION

Answer all questions and discuss your results.

1. Explain the functioning of the modulator and demodulator circuit (Figure 6) in your own
words, based on the role of different electronic components used.
2. Explain the effect of varying the carrier and message signal frequencies on the modulated
and demodulated signals.
3. Explain the effect of varying the carrier and message signal amplitudes on the modulated and
demodulated signals.
4. Identify, weather the demodulation, carried out in this experiment, is synchronous or
asynchronous as per discussion in Section 2.

7.0 CONCLUSION

Page 10 of 10