1 Introduction

1.1 How to use this manual

What you find here.

This booklet deals with applications (which is why it is called an application manual.) The main purpose
is to give the WinIQSIM and AMIQ user some advice how to use the software to obtain optimum results.
Concerning the topics, it focuses on the creation of multi-carrier signals. The applications reach from
CW carriers to multi-carrier setups for TDMA systems, as well as W-CDMA and IS-95 scenarios.
Another chapter explains how to get along with the AMIQ BER measurement function (option AMIQ-B1).
Finally, a palette of more exotic applications is presented.

Besides practice you’ll find some background explanations. This will sometimes require basic
mathematics. But don’t worry - theory doesn’t play a major role in this work. What you won’t find here
are algorithms or other „inner secrets“ of WinIQSIM. You may understand that we refuse to give away
arcana.

What you find elsewhere.

To get really familiar with WinIQSIM and to make the best use of the AMIQ capabilities you should also
read the user manuals of WinIQSIM and AMIQ. The WinIQSIM user manual describes all functions of
the program and gives some background information of the available digital modulation and filtering,
especially for W-CDMA signals.

This application manual doesn’t cover hardware properties. To learn more about the AMIQ hardware,
see the AMIQ user manual, where you’ll also find a chapter about remote control via the GPIB or serial
port.

What you should keep in mind.

This is not a tutorial for beginners. It’s recommended that you have already worked a little bit with
WinIQSIM and know how to create a waveform. If you’re not familiar with the program at all, have a look
at the WinIQSIM user manual first. Play around with the software, if you’ve got the 32bit version you
can also use the online help.

Most of the chapters are independent of each other, so you don’t need to read them in a special order.
However it may be useful to read the W-CDMA part in the WinIQSIM user manual before dealing with
multi carrier W-CDMA. On the other hand you should be familiar with the WinIQSIM data editor when
working with the BER measurement features.

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1.2 Conventions and definitions

The standard text font is Arial 12, italic letters denote emphasis on important terms. Expressions and
parameters of WinIQSIM are typed in bold font. Menus and paths in WinIQSIM are indicated by
Courier font.

References to equations are denoted by Eq., followed by the number of the equation. For example, „Eq.
2.5“ refers to equation number five in chapter 2.
In chapter 2 we will present some background information concerning properties of multi-carrier signals.
Therefore we need the Fourier transformation for time t and frequency f as mathematical tool. We will
use the following convention.

1 

s(t) 

 S( )e 
it
d Eq. 1.1

S( )   s(t)e it dt


with the angular frequency

 2f

The symbol to denote the Fourier transformation is

s(t) S( )

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Application Manual WINIQSIM Basics of Signal Generation

2 Basics of Signal Generation

2.1 Arbitrary waveform generators

Signal generators for today’s communication market have to provide digitally modulated signals of near
arbitrary complexity. To generate such complex signals, two different methods can be applied in
principle. One is to generate the digital data in real-time, then modulate and convert it to analog - this is
done for example with the SMIQ signal generator (options SMIQB10, B11).

The other way is to calculate a (finite) digitally modulated signal and store the values in a memory. The
values are then read out sequentially and converted to analog (this is done again in real-time). The
second solution is realized in arbitrary waveform generators.

The biggest advantage of an arbitrary waveform generator (ARB) comes from its flexibility. You can
create any kind of waveform you like, just like drawing on a computer spreadsheet. The signal’s value
as a function of time is stored as a sequence of samples in the ARB’s memory. This sequence is then
played over and over again. So an ARB could also be named a sample player.

The realization of this conception is shown - in principle - in the block diagram of Fig. 2-1. A clock
source delivers the time intervals for the samples following one another and controls the output of the
waveform values. These are converted into analog voltages by the DAC.

Clock Address Reconstruction

Waveform D/A Analog
Source Unit Filter
RAM Output

Start - n - bit
Stop - Waveform
Address Data

Fig. 2-1 Schematic block diagram of an ARB

2.2 Creating waveforms out of digital data

Although digital technology has provided lots of capabilities - and convenience - for signal generation,
there are certain inherent properties of digitally created signals that have to be taken into account. To
discuss this, we should remember some basic properties of time and frequency domains and the
Fourier transformation coupling them. This will lead to a better understanding although we will not reach
the level of a mathematical treatise. (A good introduction to the Fourier transformation and some of its
applications is provided in W. Stößel’s book „Fourieroptik“ - see References).

So let’s recall some rules before continuing with the topic:

 Time and frequency domains are reciprocal in several manners. Small quantities in time domain are
related to big ones in frequency domain and vice versa.
 Signals with short duration in time (like pulses) have broad frequency spectra
 Signals with sharp edges in time domain (like rectangles) have broader frequency spectra than
smooth signals. For example, a rectangular pulse has a spectrum of the shape sin(x)/x which
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approaches zero slowly for increasing frequencies. A Gauss shaped pulse, on the other hand, has a
Gauss shaped spectrum that approaches zero rather rapidly.
 With composite signals, fine structures in time domain are related to coarse structures in frequency
domain and vice versa. Regard, for example, a time signal where a short pulse is repeated over and
over again. This will lead to a frequency spectrum with spectral lines determined by the period of the
pulse repetition. The Fourier transform of the pulse itself will play the role of the envelope of the
spectrum 1.
 Periodically repeated sharp events (like jumps, edges) in the time domain will lead to equidistant
spectral lines in the frequency domain 2.

As shown in Fig. 2-2 an assumed ideal signal is approximated by a sequence of discrete rectangular
pulses. Representing a signal with discrete samples at defined time intervals generally leads to some
unwanted spectral properties. Besides a certain quantization noise - which can be decreased by using
high resolution D/A converters - one has to deal with two effects due to the discrete nature of the signal.
First, the use of rectangular pulses results in a very broad spectrum. On the other hand the discrete time
intervals lead to a repetition of the signal round the clock frequency, the so-called aliasing products.
These two effects can be eliminated by certain filtering techniques.

s(t)

ds

Tclk

Fig. 2-2: An ideal time signal (broken line) and its realization with digital technology. The signal is
approximated very closely by a sequence of rectangular pulses with equal width T clk and
varying heights (ds is the amplitude resolution). The inverse fclk=1/ Tclk of the pulse width is
called sample or clock rate.

(a) Limiting the spectrum - digital baseband filtering

A rectangular pulse has an unlimited bandwidth in frequency domain. If the pulse is decribed as

1  t 
s(t)  
 elsewhere

in time domain, the Fourier transform is

sin(  )
S( ) 2 with  2f


1 The mathematics behind this is the following. The composite time signal can be described with the convolution of the pulse signal with a so-called Dirac comb which
describes the periodic repetition. The Fourier transform of a Dirac comb is again a Dirac comb, these are the spectral lines. The convolution turns to a multiplication in
frequency domain. So one obtains a product of the frequency Dirac comb and the Fourier transform of the pulse. According to the reciprocity, the spectrum of the pulse is
much broader than the spectral lines and therefore becomes the envelope of the entire spectrum. For details see mathematical literature or the book by W . Stößel (see
References).
2 This is again based on the fact that the Fourier transform of a Dirac comb is also a Dirac comb.

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s(t)

S(f)

t f

s(t)
S(f)

t f

Fig. 2-3: Smoothing a rectangular pulse with a filter limits the spectral bandwidth.

This (amplitude) spectrum is shown in Fig. 2-3 (upper right). The hard steps at the edge of the pulse
lead to the ripples on both sides of the spectrum. Smoothing of the steps by filtering suppresses these
ripples, leading to a limited bandwidth (lower right). Mathematically this is done by convoluting the pulse
function with the filter response function in time domain.

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(b) Suppressing repetitions - antialiasing filtering

The discrete nature of the digital signal as a function of time, represented by rectangular pulses
following each other, leads to a sequence of hard steps in time. In every time interval T clk the value of
the signal changes instantaneously 3. This ends up in repeated spectra of the modulation at frequencies
n1/ T clk, which are called aliasing products. These are neither wanted nor needed, for all relevant
information is contained in the „original“ modulation spectrum around f=0 and one cannot transmit with
unlimited bandwidth. Therefore aliasing products are usually suppressed by (analog) low pass filters.

S(f)

0 fclk

Fig. 2-4: A hardware low pass filter with appropriate cutoff suppresses aliasing products.

3 This is the Dirac comb argument once more, just a little generalized.

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(c) Avoiding clock spurs - the continuous wraparound

The ARB conception of playing a waveform of finite length over and over again forces another
necessary property of the signal: the beginning and end of a sequence have to match. Otherwise a step
in the signal would be generated every time the waveform starts again - this would in turn again lead to
disturbances in the frequency spectrum 4. So the waveform has to be designed in a manner that it is
continuous, including the transition from one end to the next starting (called wraparound) 5.

To fulfill this condition one can either use more or less intelligent smoothing algorithms or design signals
that match the condition by themselves. WinIQSIM provides tools for both methods.

Fig. 2-5: If the beginning and the end of a waveform sequence don’t match, a jump occurs at the
wraparound. This leads to significant spurs in the frequency spectrum (upper figures). On
the other hand, a smooth signal gives a clean spectrum (lower figures).

4 As you see, the Dirac comb is a permanent guest in our discussion. The main difference to the case (b) is that the period of the steps in time domain is much larger now.
This gives in turn a small period in frequency domain, the teeth of the comb are close to each other in the spectrum.
5 In fact, the condition is even stronger: the waveform has to be continuous (= without steps) and differentiable (= smooth).

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Signal Generation with WinIQSIM Application Manual WINIQSIM

3 Signal Generation with WinIQSIM

Before we start with the application lectures, we will run shortly through the most important panels of
WinIQSIM. This is not an introduction for beginners or something like a tutorial. The aim is more to give
some advice on the different menus which is not so easily found in the user manual. Furthermore one
may focus on several points that can be clarified better from an integrative point of view. For a complete
description of all functions we refer to the WinIQSIM user manual.

3.1 Before calculation: from data source to graphic

settings
Data source

Fig. 3-1: Data source panel in Multi Carrier, W-CDMA and IS-95 systems.

The Multi Carrier, W-CDMA and IS-95 systems provide four different data sources. Sources 0 to 2 have
the same features as the data source in single carrier. The source named PRBS has some special
features. One is the function „different start values for PRBS“ in the system settings. This function
feeds each carrier (or code channel) using data source PRBS with a different start value for the
polynomial generation of the PN sequence. This leads to uncorrelated data in the different channels. 6

To set the data sources, one must choose the appropriate source from the pop-up table at the top of the
panel. Then one adjusts the parameters for this source. For example, in Fig. 3-1 Data Source Type 0 is
chosen and set to data type PRBS 16,

WinIQSIM systems and settings

WinIQSIM provides five different complete systems of digital modulation: Single Carrier, Multi
Carrier, Multi Carrier Mixed Signal, W-CDMA and IS-95. In the Single Carrier system
the modulation settings follow the data source in the block diagram. With W-CDMA and IS-95
the modulation settings are integrated as a submenu in the system settings. The latter are called

6 The other data sources can also be set to generate PRBS sequences, but don’t have the „different start values“ option.

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W-CDMA configuration or IS-95 configuration, respectively. In W-CDMA the modulation

parameters are partly fixed according to the standard, so only the filter parameters are accessible.
In Multi Carrier the system settings (here called Carrier Settings) are placed right at the end
of the block diagram. The reason for this is that Multi Carrier allows combinations of modulated
and unmodulated carriers. All parts of the block diagram before the carrier settings - including
modulation and all kind of impairments - affect only the modulated carriers, not the unmodulated.

The system settings are the principal menues, defining the signal setup in such essential parameters as
number and relative power of carriers or code channels, respectively. In these menues one also links
the carriers (or channels) to the possible signal sources.

Fig. 3-2: An example for system settings: the W-CDMA configuration panel in the W-CDMA system.

Modulation settings

The modulation settings are described in depth in the WinIQSIM user manual. We only want to state
some additional hints at this point.

The purpose of the modulation type CW is to create an unmodulated RF carrier. With an I/Q modulator
this is done by a DC voltage on the I and Q outputs (usually +0.5 V on I and zero voltage on Q, with
variations depending on the required phase of the carrier). Therefore CW delivers a constant baseband
signal rather than a sinewave. As WinIQSIM is not designed for function generation, there is no
sinewave function implemented. Despite this one may create a baseband sinewave signal using the
frequency offset function (see chapter 6).

To generate signals of textbook character, i.e. digital signals without any baseband filtering, a careful
use of filter parameters is recommended. The modulation types PSK and QAM use Dirac pulses as
baseband impulses. To obtain a sequence of rectangular pulses one has to use the filter type rect, not
none, with Dirac baseband impulses. Filter type none leaves the baseband impulses unchanged and
has to be used only with modulations where the baseband impulses have rectangular shape (e.g. FSK
in default settings).

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Fig. 3-3: Modulation settings panel in the single carrier system (shown as an example).

Offset and add signal functions in Multi Carrier system

One special issue of the offset function in the Multi Carrier system should be mentioned here. In
the Single Carrier, IS-95 and W-CDMA systems the frequency offset values refer to symbol rate
times oversampling which is equal to the overall sample rate in these cases. In Multi Carrier
system, although the values also refer to symbol rate times oversampling this is not the overall sampling
rate which is defined by (see the WinIQSIM user manual)


f sample mSOV  N car 1 f car lOV f sym 

with the sampling rate fsample, the super oversampling factor m SOV, the number of carriers Ncar, the carrier
spacing Dfcar, the oversampling factor lOV and the symbol rate fsym.

The offset and add signal functions affect all modulated carriers in the same way - as everything
else in the block diagram before the Carrier Settings. In practice, they can be used to shift those
carriers a little to the left or right and, respectively, to add e.g. an interferer to each modulated carrier. It
is not possible to realize complex „multiple multi carrier setups“ in this way.

3.2 After calculation: antialiasing, resampling and

waveform transmission
The waveform calculated in WinIQSIM must be transmitted to AMIQ to be realized. This can be done in
a number of ways and with several options. Therefore some additional explanations might be useful.

WinIQSIM can prepare the waveform data for use in AMIQ in several ways. In any case, the signal is
recalculated for sin(x)/x compensation to get best performance out of the hardware for the digital

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WinIQSIM

communication systems. This may result in some overshooting with textbook-like unfiltered
rectangular sequences 7. On the other hand, precise rectangular sequences can easily be
realized by writing a sequence of appropriate I and Q values in an ASCII file and converting these
with AMIQ-K2 software.

The resampling process

Sometimes a waveform has to be recalculated to meet the AMIQ hardware requirements. This is
done in two different cases.

First, the AMIQ needs a total number of samples that is a multiple of four if the AMIQ works in clock
rate mode 2 (fast mode, for clock rates > 4 MHz). WinIQSIM recalculates the waveform to
fulfill this condition. The physical parameters of the waveform itself (symbol rate, sequence
length, and so on) naturally remain unchanged. This process is called resampling.

The automatic resampling function (AMIQ --> low pass filter... menu)

Resampling may also be needed to use the AMIQ low pass filters. For example, think of a
waveform with a symbol rate of 1 MHz and oversampling 5. The sample rate is then 5 MHz.
Although, if one wants to use the 2.5 MHz low pass filter to suppress aliasing products, the sample
rate has to be at least 7.5 MHz plus half of the bandwidth of the signal. The automatic resampling
function can be used to modify the sample rate automatically without touching the physical
parameters of the signal (see Fig. 3-4). This function can be found in the menu AMIQ -->
Lowpass filter... Preparation for the 2.5 MHz or the 25 MHz AMIQ internal filters can be
selected. It is also possible to prepare for external filters if one knows the parameters of the filter
shape. Choosing no filter turns off the resampling function.

To wipe out some misunderstanding: the menu AMIQ --> Lowpass filter... has nothing
to do with turning on or off the AMIQ filters themselves! Control of the AMIQ filtering is done
in the menu AMIQ --> Remote Control and BERT --> Hardware Settings. Of course
it is possible to use the filters without the automatic resampling. (If one designs the signal with the
right clock rate from the beginning, one doesn’t need the automatic resampling.)
S(f)

a
u
t
o
m
a
t
i
c
r
e
s
a
m
p
li
n
g

0 2.5 MHz fclk 7.5 MHz f'clk

Fig. 3-4: The automatic resampling function of WinIQSIM prepares a waveform for
use of antialiasing low pass filters before transmission to AMIQ (here shown for the
AMIQ internal 2.5 MHz filter). If the sampling rate of the waveform is too small,
leading to aliasing products inside the filter range, the signal is resampled. The
sampling rate is increased by introducing a higher oversampling factor while the
physical parameters of the signal remain unchanged. Then the aliasing products
are shifted towards higher frequencies into the stopband range and can be
suppressed by the antialiasing filter.

7 One should not mix up this internal compensation for optimizing AMIQ performance with the function sin(x)/x compensation in the Modulation Settings panel of
WinIQSIM. With the latter, the user may introduce additional sin(x)/x compensation for special purposes.