Noise

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 Transmission System

• Goal is to send as much data as possible

– In time allowed
– Using available bandwidth
– Using available power

Transmission medium
Information Transmitter Information
Source Receiver Destination

Noise

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 Noise Analysis

• What is noise generally?

– Example?
• What is electrical noise
– Any undesired electrical energy
• Results of noise is that original signal may be
– Distorted in shape
– Increased or decreased in amplitude
– Delayed in time
• Noise is random
– Cannot be described by simple signal/time equation
James Nevin
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 Noise: Effect on System Performance
• Reciver may misunderstand or be unable to understand signal
– General example?
• May cause receiver to malfunction
– Receiver may have assumptions about shape of received signal
– Noise may cause circuitry to malfunction
– Example?
• Loss of efficiency
– System must compensate for errors
– Overhead
– Retransmission
– Example?

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 Noise: Categories

• Two general categories

– Correlated
• Relationship between signal and noise
– Uncorrelated
• Present at all times

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 Correlated Noise

• Implies relationship between signal and

noise
• Exists only when signal is present
• No signal...no noise!
• Categories
– Harmonic distortion
– Intermodulation distortion

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 Uncorrelated Noise

• Present at all times

• Categories
– External
• Generated outside cct.
– Internal
• Interference generated within cct.

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 Uncorrelated Noise: External
• Atmospheric noise
– Naturally occurring electrical disturbances
– Originate within earth’s atmosphere
– Examples?
• Extraterrestrial noise
– Signals that originate outside earth’s atmosphere
– Sub-categories
• Solar noise
– Generated by sun’s heat
– Sun spot activity follows a cyclic pattern
• Cosmic noise
– From sources distributed throughout galaxies
– Noise intensity relatively small because of distance
• Man-made noise
– Noise produced by man
– Examples?
– RFI, Impulse noise, power lines
– Reduction?

James Nevin
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 Impulse Noise
• High amplitude peaks of short duration in total noise
spectrum
• Sudden bursts of irregularly shaped pulses
• Duration s to fraction of a ms
• Sharp popping or cracking sound on voice channels
• Mutual induction and EMR
• Sources
– Relays and solenoids
– Electric motors
– Fluorescent lights
– Power lines
– Ignition systems

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Impulse Noise: Digital Signal

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 Interference

• Form of external noise

• Information signals from one source produce
frequencies outside allocated bandwidth
• Affect signals from another source
• Example:
– Harmonics or cross-products from one source fall
within passband of neighbouring channel
• Mostly occurs in RF spectrum

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 Uncorrelated Noise: Internal

• Three primary types

– Thermal noise (Johnson noise, white noise)
– Shot noise
– Transit-time noise

James Nevin
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 Features of Thermal Noise

• Thermal noise is the most significant of noise sources

• Random
• Continuous
• Present at all frequencies
• Predictive
• Additive
• Present in all devices

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 Noise Power

Noise power N = KTB

B = Bandwidth
K= Boltzmann’s constant (1.38*10-23 joules per kelvin)
T = absolute temperature (kelvin) (T=oC +273)

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 Example

A communications system operating at a temperature of

25O C and a bandwidth of 1 kHz.
Determine the noise power

Determine the thermal noise present in channel with a

bandwidth of 10 kHz operating at a temperature of 50o C.

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 White Noise
• Thermal noise equally distributed throughout frequency
spectrum
• Thermal noise source sometime called a white noise
source
– rms noise power measured at any frequency is the same as that at
any other frequency from same noise source
– rms noise power measured in any fixed bandwidth is equal to
total noise power measured in an equal bandwidth anywhere else
in total noise spectrum

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 Signal-to-Noise Ratio
S Ps
=
N Pn
S Ps
(dB)=10log
N Pn

• Shannon Capacity: C=B log2(1+SNR)

OR C=3.32B log10(1+SNR)
• Nyquist Formula: D = 2B log2M

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 Noise: Summary

N o is e

C o rre la te d U n c o rre la te d

H a rm o n i c In te rm o d u la tio n E x te rn a l In te rn a l
d is to rtio n d is to rtio n

A tm o s p h e ri c E x tra te rre s tria l S o la r C o s m ic M a n -m a d e Im p u ls e In te rfe re n c e T h e rm a l S hot T ra n s it-tim e

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