FoN Two

Wolkite University
Collage Of Computing
Software Engineering Department
Fundamentals Of Networking
Chapter 2: The Physical Layer

March 21, 2022
Bekretsyon B. (MSc.)
Introduction
Introduction
The layer that actually interacts with the transmission media
The physical part of the network that connects network components
together
Involved in physically carrying information from one node in the
network to the next
Position of the physical layer
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Introduction
Bit-to-Signal Transformation
Since a transmission medium (cable or air) cannot carry bits, the
bits must be represented by a signal, electromagnetic energy that
can propagate through a medium
Bit rate Control
The transmission medium determines the upper limit of the data
rate, the physical layer is the controller
Bit Synchronization
The timing of bit transfer is controlled by providing clocking
mechanisms that control both the sender and the receiver
Multiplexing
To share a transmission medium when its bandwidth is greater than
the bandwidth needs of the two communicating devices
Switching there are three methods (switching will be covered later after
the data link layer Chapter)
Circuit Switching - a physical layer function
Message Switching - data link and network layer function
Packet Switching - also data link and network layer function
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Analog and digital data/signals
Analog and Digital data/signals

Analog signal – varies continuously over continuous time
Has infinitely many levels of intensity over a period of time.
As the wave moves from value A to value B, it passes through and
includes an infinite number of values along its path.
Digital signal – varies in steps over discrete intervals of time

can have only a limited number of defined values.
Although each value can be any number, it is often as simple as 1 and 0.
Digital signals are less affected by noise
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Data - entity that conveys meaning

Signal - the electric/electromagnetic encoding (representation) of the
data
Transmission - communication of data by the propagation and
processing of signals
In analog transmission, signals are transmitted without regard to
content (E.g. attenuated signal is amplified and retransmitted)
In digital transmission, the content of message could be interpreted to
aid in faithful transmission (E.g. data encoded in attenuated signal is
recovered, a new signal is generated by encoding the recovered data and
then retransmitted)
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Bandwidth (the range of frequencies that a medium can pass - for analog
signals) and bit rate (bps, the number of bits transmitted per second - for
digital signals),
Transmission impairments
Attenuation: loss of energy
Distortion: the signal changes its shape; for signals made of different
frequencies
Noise: thermal, induced, crosstalk, . . . that corrupt the signal
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Data Transmission and Multiplexing Data Transmission
Data Transmission and Multiplexing

Information (digital or analog) must be converted to either digital or
analog signal
Digital transmission
Line coding and Block coding are used to convert binary data to digital
signals
Line Coding – process of converting binary data (sequence of bits) to a
digital signal
Block Coding – unlike line codes which operate on a stream of information
bits, block codes operate on block of information bits
Sampling - to convert analog data to digital data; then use line coding or
block coding or a combination to convert to digital signals
PAM - Pulse Amplitude Modulation - not used much in computer
communications
PCM - Pulse Code Modulation
The original signal is sampled at equal intervals
Quantization - a method of assigning integral values in a specific range of
sampled instances
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Data Transmission and Multiplexing Data Transmission

Transmission mode of binary data
Parallel - sending n bits with each clock tick to speed up transmission; n
lines are needed hence costly
Serial - 1 bit is sent with each clock tick; needs one line hence less
expensive but slow
Serial transmission could be synchronous or asynchronous
Analog transmission
Modulation of digital data - digital-to-analog conversion
Based on the three characteristics of a sine wave - amplitude, frequency,
phase
ASK (amplitude shift keying), FSK (frequency shift keying), PSK (pulse
shift keying)
MODEM - Modulator/Demodulator
Modulation of analog signals - representing analog information by analog
signal
AM (amplitude modulation), FM (frequency modulation), PM (pulse
modulation)
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Data Transmission and Multiplexing Multiplexing

The set of techniques that allows the simultaneous transmission of
multiple signals across a single data link
In a multiplexed system, n lines share the bandwidth of one link
MUX (multiplexer by the sender) and DEMUX (demultiplexer by the
receiver) required
Categories of multiplexing
For analog signals
FDM - Frequency-Division Multiplexing
WDM - Wave-Division Multiplexing; mainly for fiber optic cable
for digital signals
TDM - Time-Division Multiplexing
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Network Devices
Network Devices
NIC- Network Interface Card

Amplifies electronic signals
Packages data for transmission
Physically connects a computer to the transmission medium
Transmission Media - actually below the physical layer, but controlled
by it
Two categories
Guided (wired) - copper wire (twisted-pair cable, coaxial
cable) and fiber-optic cable
Unguided (wireless) - terrestrial radio, microwave, satellite -
signals broadcast through air
Comparison factors: bandwidth, delay, cost, ease of installation
and maintenance
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Network Devices
Network Devices
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Network Devices Transmission Media
Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

Twisted-Pair Cable
Consists of two insulated copper wires - one to carry signals and the
other to serve as a ground reference. The receiver uses the
difference between the two levels. If the two wires are equally
affected by noise or crosstalk, the receiver is immune (the
difference is zero). The twisting is important here
Repeaters needed for longer distances
Bandwidth depends on the thickness of the wire and distance
Two important varieties for computer communications
EIA (Electronic Industries Association) developed standards to classify UTP
cables; 7 categories - Category 1 to Category 7; 1 with the lowest quality and
7 the highest. Classification based on bandwidth, data rate, whether it can
carry analog, digital or both signals, and use (telephone, LANs)
STP - shielded twisted pair - by IBM where a metal foil covers each
insulated wire. Bulkier and expensive; hence not used outside of IBM
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Connectors
The most common UTP connector is RJ45 (RJ stands for registered
jack). The RJ45 is a keyed connector, meaning the connector can be
inserted in only one way.
15 / 40

Coaxial Cable
Better shielding than twisted pair can span longer distances at
higher speeds
Bandwidth dependent on cable quality, length, . . . - close to 1 GHz
for modern cables
Stiff copper wire at the core, surrounded by an insulating material in
turn covered by a cylindrical conductor, then by a protective plastic
sheath
The BNC connector is used to connect the end of the cable to a
device
16 / 40
A fiber-optic cable is made of glass or plastic and transmits signals in

the form of light.
Fiber-optic cabling consists of a signal-carrying glass core of 5 to 100
microns in diameter (a sheet of paper is about 25 microns thick and a
human hair about 75 microns thick), surrounded by a layer of pure silica
called cladding, which prevents light from escaping.
Network components use LED or laser diodes to convert electrical
signals into light pulses for transmission on fiber-optic cables.
An optical detector is used to convert the light pulses back into
electrical signals.
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Fiber-Optic Cable
Three key components
The light source (on one end): a pulse of light indicates a 1 bit,
absence of light indicates a 0 bit
The transmission medium: an ultra-thin fiber or glass
The detector (on the other end): generates an electrical pulse
when light falls on it
At the center is a glass core through which the light propagates;
it is surrounded by a glass cladding with a lower index of
refraction than the core to keep all the light in the core; then
comes a thin plastic jacket to protect the cladding (Fig. a)
Fibers are typically grouped in bundles, protected by an outer
sheath (Fig. b)
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Advantages of fiber optic cablesadvantages of fiber optic cables

Repeaters required only about every 50 km (saves cost)
Not affected by power surge, electromagnetic interference,. . .
Do not leak light and difficult to tap - security
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Connectors - to connect cables with devices

RJ45 (Registered Jack) connector for UTP cables
BNC (Bayone-Neill-Concelman) connectors for coaxial cables
ST (straight-tip) connector for fiber optic cables and
MT-RJ is a new one with the same size as RJ45
20 / 40
Transmission Media: Unguided (Wireless)
Unguided media transport electromagnetic waves without using any

physical conductor.
This type of communication is often referred to as wireless
communication.
Signals are normally broadcast through free space and thus are available
to anyone who has a device capable of receiving them.
Unguided signals can travel from the source to destination in several
ways: ground propagation, sky propagation, and line-of-sight
propagation.
21 / 40
1 In ground propagation, radio waves travel through the lowest portion of

the atmosphere, hugging the earth.
These low-frequency signals emanate in all directions from the
transmitting antenna and follow the curvature of the planet.
Distance depends on the amount of power in the signal: The greater
the power, the greater the distance.
2 In sky propagation, higher-frequency radio waves radiate upward into the
ionosphere (the layer of atmosphere where particles exist as ions) where
they are reflected back to earth.
This type of transmission allows for greater distances with lower
output power.
22 / 40
1 In line-of-sight propagation, very high-frequency signals are transmitted

in straight lines directly from antenna to antenna.
Antennas must be directional, facing each other, and either tall enough or
close enough together not to be affected by the curvature of the earth.
Line-of-sight propagation is tricky because radio transmissions cannot be
completely focused.
The section of the electromagnetic spectrum defined as radio waves and
microwaves is divided into eight ranges, called bands, each regulated by
government authorities.
These bands are rated from very low frequency (VLF) to extremely high
frequency (EHF).
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The electromagnetic spectrum and its uses for communication
24 / 40

We can divide wireless transmission into three broad groups: radio waves,
microwaves, and infrared waves.
Radio Waves
Although there is no clear-cut demarcation between radio waves and
microwaves, electromagnetic waves ranging in frequencies between 3
kHz and 1 GHz are normally called radio waves; waves ranging in
frequencies between 1 and 300 GHz are called microwaves.
However, the behavior of the waves, rather than the frequencies, is a
better criterion for classification.
Radio waves, for the most part, are Omni-directional that is, when an
antenna transmits radio waves, they are propagated in all directions.
This means that the sending and receiving antennas do not have to be
aligned. A sending antenna sends waves that can be received by any
receiving antenna.
25 / 40
Cont...
Radio Waves
The radio wave band is relatively narrow, just under 1 GHz, compared to
the microwave band. When this band is divided into sub bands, the sub
bands are also narrow, leading to a low data rate for digital
communications.
Almost the entire band is regulated by authorities (e.g., the FCC in the
United States). Using any part of the band requires permission from the
authorities.
Radio waves use omnidirectional antennas that send out signals in all
directions.
Based on the wavelength, strength, and the purpose of transmission, we
can have several types of antennas.
Applications
Useful for multicasting, in which there is one sender but many receivers.
AM and FM radio, television, maritime radio, cordless phones, etc are
examples of multicasting. 26 / 40
Microwaves
Electromagnetic waves having frequencies between 1 and 300 GHz are
called microwaves.
Microwaves are unidirectional. When an antenna transmits microwave
waves, they can be narrowly focused. This means that the sending and
receiving antennas need to be aligned (see each other). The
unidirectional property has an obvious advantage. A pair of antennas can
be aligned without interfering with another pair of aligned antennas.
The following describes some characteristics of microwave propagation:
Microwave propagation is line-of-sight. Since the towers with the
mounted antennas need to be in direct sight of each other, towers
that are far apart need to be very tall.
The curvature of the earth as well as other blocking obstacles do not
allow two short towers to communicate by using microwaves
27 / 40
Cont...
Microwaves
• Repeaters are often needed for long distance communication.
Very high-frequency microwaves cannot penetrate walls.
This characteristic can be a disadvantage if receivers are inside buildings.
The microwave band is relatively wide, almost 299 GHz.
Therefore wider subbands can be assigned, and a high data rate is possible
Use of certain portions of the band requires permission from authorities.
Microwaves need unidirectional antennas that send out signals in one
direction.
Two types of antennas are used for microwave communications: the
parabolic dish and the horn.
Useful when unicast (one-to-one) communication is needed between the
sender and the receiver.
They are used in cellular phones, satellite networks , and wireless LANs.
28 / 40

Infrared
Infrared waves, with frequencies from 300 GHz to 400 THz
(wavelengths from 1 mm to 770 nm), can be used for short-range
communication.
Infrared waves, having high frequencies, cannot penetrate walls.
This advantageous characteristic prevents interference between one
system and another; a short-range communication system in one room
cannot be affected by another system in the next room.
When we use our infrared remote control, we do not interfere with the
use of the remote by our neighbors!!!
However, this same characteristic makes infrared signals useless for
long-range communication.
In addition, we cannot use infrared waves outside a building because the
sun’s rays contain infrared waves that can interfere with the
communication.
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Cont...
Infrared
Applications
The infrared band, almost 400 THz, has an excellent potential for data
transmission.
Communication between devices such as keyboards, mice, PCs, and
printers.
The standard originally defined a data rate of 75 kbps for a distance up
to8 m. The recent standard defines a data rate of 4 Mbps.
Infrared signals can be used for short-range communication in a closed
area using line-of-sight propagation!!!
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The electromagnetic spectrum and its uses for communication
Official ITU names: low, medium, high, very high, ultra high, super high,
extremely high, tremendously high frequency
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Network Devices Connectors and Device Connectors
Connectors and Device Connectors

General scenario
1 A user generates data to be sent to a remote machine and passes them to
the transport layer
2 The transport layer adds a header, for example a TCP header, and passes
down to the network layer
3 The network layer adds its own header to form a network layer packet, for
example an IP packet (shaded part)
4 The data link layer adds its own header and checksum (CRC) and passes
to the physical layer for transmission, for example, over a LAN
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Encapsulation
33 / 40

Repeaters
To overcome attenuation; it receives a signal before it becomes too
weak or corrupted, regenerates the original bit pattern and then
sends the refreshed signal
For example, to extend the 500 m limit of 10Base5 Ethernet
Does not understand frames, packets, or headers; understands only
volts
34 / 40
Repeaters
It does not connect two LANs (of different protocols); it connects
segments of a LAN
The location of a repeater is important; it must be placed so that a
signal reaches it before any noise changes the bits completely
35 / 40

HUBs
Operating at a physical layer of the OSI model that are used to
connect multiple devices in a network.
They are generally used to connect computers in a LAN.
A hub has many ports in it.
A computer which intends to be connected to the network is
plugged in to one of these ports.
When a data frame arrives at a port, it is broadcast to every other
port, without considering whether it is destined for a particular
destination device or not.
36 / 40

Bridges and Switches
Connect two or more LANs and operate in both the physical and the
data link layers
As a physical layer device, it regenerates the signal it receives
As a data link layer device, it can check the physical addresses
(source and destination) contained in the frame
It has a filtering capability to decide whether a frame has to be
forwarded or dropped using a table (that maps addresses to ports)
37 / 40
Routers
operate at the network layer to connect different networks
when a packet arrives, the frame header and trailer are stripped off
and the packet located in the frame’s payload field is passed to the
routing software. The software uses the packet header to choose an
output line
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Gateways
Connects networks that use different protocols
Transport gateway: connects two computers that use different
transport protocols, reformatting packets as need be
Application gateway: understands the format and content of the
data and translates messages from one format to another, e.g., an
e-mail gateway could translate Internet messages to SMS messages
for mobile phones
39 / 40
Assignment
Discuss the following concepts in detail

1 Digital Transmission in Computer Network
Digital to Analog Conversion (Line Codding and Block Codding)

Analog to Digital Conversion (PCM)
2 Analog Transmission in Computer Network
Digital to Analog Conversion (ASK, FSK, PSK)
Analog to Analog Coversion ( Amplitude, Frequency and Phase Modulation)
3 Multiplexing in Computer Nework
Frequency Division, Wave Division, Time Division and Code Division
Multiplexing)
4 Twisted Pair, Coxial Cable and Fiber Optics Cable
40 / 40

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Wolkite University

Chapter 2: The Physical Layer

Analog and Digital data/signals

Digital signal – varies in steps over discrete intervals of time

Analog and digital data/signals

Data - entity that conveys meaning

Analog and digital data/signals

Data Transmission and Multiplexing

Data Transmission and Multiplexing

Data Transmission and Multiplexing

NIC- Network Interface Card

Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

A fiber-optic cable is made of glass or plastic and transmits signals in

Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

Advantages of fiber optic cablesadvantages of fiber optic cables

Transmission Media: Guided (Wired)

Connectors - to connect cables with devices

Transmission Media: Unguided (Wireless)

Unguided media transport electromagnetic waves without using any

Transmission Media: Unguided (Wireless)

1 In ground propagation, radio waves travel through the lowest portion of

Transmission Media: Unguided (Wireless)

1 In line-of-sight propagation, very high-frequency signals are transmitted

Transmission Media: Unguided (Wireless)

Transmission Media: Unguided (Wireless)

Transmission Media: Unguided (Wireless)

Transmission Media: Unguided (Wireless)

Transmission Media: Unguided (Wireless)

Connectors and Device Connectors

Connectors and Device Connectors

Connectors and Device Connectors

Connectors and Device Connectors

Connectors and Device Connectors

Connectors and Device Connectors

Discuss the following concepts in detail

Digital to Analog Conversion (Line Codding and Block Codding)

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