Mobile Radio Propagation -

Small-Scale Fading and

Multipath
CS 515
Mobile and Wireless Networking
Fall 2002
brahim Krpeolu
Computer Engineering Department
Bilkent University

1
Relationship between Bandwidth and
Receiver Power
What happens when two different signals with
different bandwidths are sent through the channel?
What is the receiver power characteristics for both signals?
We mean the bandwith of the baseband signal
The bandwidth of the baseband is signal is inversely
related with its symbol rate.

One symbol

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Bandwidth of Baseband Signals
Highbandwidth
(Wideband)
Signal

Lowbandwidth
(Narrowband)
Signal

Continuous
Wave (CW)
Signal
t

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 A pulsed probing signal (wideband)
Tbb

Transmitter
p(t) x(t): transmitted signal
TREP

TREP max ( max : maximum measured excess delay)

x(t ) Re{ p(t )e j 2f ct } p(t ) cos(2f ct )

x(t) Multipath y(t) p(t) Multipath r(t)

Wireless Channel Wireless Channel

Bandpass signals Baseband signals

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Received Power of Wideband
Sgnals
p(t) Multipath r(t)
Wireless Channel

The output r(t) will approximate the channel impulse response since
p(t) approximates unit impulses.

1 N 1 ji
r (t ) ai e p(t i )
2 i 0
Assume the multipath components have random amplitudes and phases at
time t.

N 1 j i 2
N 1
Ea , [ PW B ] Ea , ai e i E[ PW B ]

2
a
i 0 i 0

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Received Power of Wideband
Sgnals
This shows that if all the multipath components of a transmitted signal is
resolved at the receiver then:
The average small scale received power is simply the sum of
received powers in each multipath component.

In practice, the amplitudes of individual multipath components do not

fluctuate widely in a local area (for distance in the order of wavelength or
fraction of wavelength).

This means the average received power of a wideband signal

do not fluctuate significantly when the receiver is moving in a local area.

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Received Power of Narrowband
Sgnals
A CW Signal x(t): transmitted signal
Transmitter

c(t)

Assume now A CW signal transmitted into the same channel.

Let comlex envelope will be: c(t ) 2
N 1
The instantaneous complex envelope r (t ) ai e ji (t , )
of the received signal will be: i 0

N 1 2

r (t ) i j i ( t , )
2
The instantaneous power will be: a e
i 0

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 Received Power of Narrowband
Sgnals
Over a local area (over small distance wavelengths), the amplitude a
multipath component may not change signicantly, but the phase may change a lot.

For example:
- if receiver moves l meters then phase change is 2.
In this case the component may add up posively to the total sum S.

- if receiver moves l/4 meters then phase change is /2 (90 degrees) .

In this case the component may add up negatively to the total sum S, hence
the instantaneous receiver power.

Therefore for a CW (continues wave, narrowband) signal, the small

movements may cause large fluctuations on the instantenous
receiver power, which typifies small scale fading for CW signals.

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Wideband versus Narrowband
Baseband Signals
However, the average received power for a CW signal over a local area
is equivalent to the average received power for a wideband signal on the
local area.
This occurs because the phases of multipath components at
different locations over the small-scale region are independently distributed
(IID uniform) over [0,2].

In summary:
1. Received power for CW signals undergoes rapid fades over small distances
2. Received power for wideband signals changes very little of small distances.
3. However, the local area average of both signals are nearly identical.

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Small-Scale Multipath Measurements

Several Methods
Direct RF Pulse System
Spread Spectrum Sliding Correlator Channel
Sounding
Frequency Domain Channel Sounding
These techniques are also called channel
sounding techniques

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Direct RF Pulse System
Tx

fc

Pulse Generator

RF Link

Rx

BPF Digital
Detector
Oscilloscope

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Parameters of Mobile Multipath
Channels
Time Dispersion Parameters
Grossly quantifies the multipath channel
Determined from Power Delay Profile
Parameters include
Mean Access Delay
RMS Delay Spread
Excess Delay Spread (X dB)

Coherence Bandwidth
Doppler Spread and Coherence Time

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Measuring PDPs

Power Delay Profiles

Are measured by channel sounding techniques
Plots of relative received power as a function of
excess delay
They are found by averaging intantenous power
delay measurements over a local area
Local area: no greater than 6m outdoor
Local area: no greater than 2m indoor
Samples taken at l/4 meters approximately
For 450MHz 6 GHz frequency range.

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Timer Dispersion Parameters
Determined from a power delay profile.

k k
a 2
P( )( ) k k
Mean excess delay( ): k
k

k
a 2

k
P( )
k
k

Rms delay spread (:

2
(2

k k
a 2 2
k k)
P ( )( 2

2 k
k

k
a 2

k
P(
k
k )

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Timer Dispersion Parameters

Maximum Excess Delay (X dB):

Defined as the time delay value after which the multipath energy
falls to X dB below the maximum multipath energy (not necesarily belonging
to the first arriving component).

It is also called excess delay spread.

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RMS Delay Spread

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PDP Outdoor

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PDP Indoor

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Noise Threshold

The values of time dispersion parameters

also depend on the noise threshold (the level
of power below which the signal is
considered as noise).
If noise threshold is set too low, then the
noise will be processed as multipath and thus
causing the parameters to be higher.

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Coherence Bandwidth (BC)

Range of frequencies over which the channel can be

considered flat (i.e. channel passes all spectral
components with equal gain and linear phase).
It is a definition that depends on RMS Delay Spread.
Two sinusoids with frequency separation greater than Bc
are affected quite differently by the channel.
f1

Receiver
f2

Multipath Channel Frequency Separation: |f1-f2|

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Coherence Bandwidth
Frequency correlation between two sinusoids: 0 <= Cr1, r2 <= 1.

If we define Coherence Bandwidth (BC) as the range of frequencies over which

the frequency correlation is above 0.9, then
1 is rms delay spread.
BC
50

If we define Coherence Bandwidth as the range of frequencies over which

the frequency correlation is above 0.5, then
1
BC
5
This is called 50% coherence bandwidth.

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Coherence Bandwidth

Example:
For a multipath channel, is given as 1.37ms.
The 50% coherence bandwidth is given as: 1/5 =
146kHz.
This means that, for a good transmission from a transmitter
to a receiver, the range of transmission frequency (channel
bandwidth) should not exceed 146kHz, so that all
frequencies in this band experience the same channel
characteristics.
Equalizers are needed in order to use transmission
frequencies that are separated larger than this value.
This coherence bandwidth is enough for an AMPS channel
(30kHz band needed for a channel), but is not enough for a
GSM channel (200kHz needed per channel).

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Coherence Time

Delay spread and Coherence bandwidth

describe the time dispersive nature of the
channel in a local area.
They dont offer information about the time varying
nature of the channel caused by relative motion of
transmitter and receiver.
Doppler Spread and Coherence time are
parameters which describe the time varying
nature of the channel in a small-scale region.

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Doppler Spread

Measure of spectral broadening caused by

motion
We know how to compute Doppler shift: fd
Doppler spread, BD, is defined as the
maximum Doppler shift: fm = v/l
If the baseband signal bandwidth is much
greater than BD then effect of Doppler spread
is negligible at the receiver.

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Coherence Time
Coherence time is the time duration over which the channel impulse response
is essentially invariant.

If the symbol period of the baseband signal (reciprocal of the baseband signal
bandwidth) is greater the coherence time, than the signal will distort, since
channel will change during the transmission of the signal .

TS Coherence time (TC) is defined as:

TC TC 1
fm

f2
f1

t1 Dt=t2 - t1 t2

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Coherence Time
0.423
Coherence time is also defined as: TC 9
16f m2

fm

Coherence time definition implies that two signals arriving with a time
separation greater than TC are affected differently by the channel.

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Types of Small-scale Fading
Small-scale Fading
(Based on Multipath Tme Delay Spread)

Flat Fading Frequency Selective Fading

1. BW Signal < BW of Channel 1. BW Signal > Bw of Channel

2. Delay Spread < Symbol Period 2. Delay Spread > Symbol Period

Small-scale Fading
(Based on Doppler Spread)

Fast Fading Slow Fading

1. Low Doppler Spread

1. High Doppler Spread
2. Coherence Time > Symbol Period
2. Coherence Time < Symbol Period
3. Channel variations smaller than baseband
3. Channel variations faster than baseband
signal variations
signal variations

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Flat Fading

Occurs when the amplitude of the received

signal changes with time
For example according to Rayleigh Distribution
Occurs when symbol period of the
transmitted signal is much larger than the
Delay Spread of the channel
Bandwidth of the applied signal is narrow.

May cause deep fades.

Increase the transmit power to combat this situation.

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Flat Fading
s(t) r(t)
h(t,

<< TS

0 TS 0 0 TS+

Occurs when: BC: Coherence bandwidth

BS << BC BS: Signal bandwidth
and TS: Symbol period
TS >> : Delay Spread

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Frequency Selective Fading

Occurs when channel multipath delay spread

is greater than the symbol period.
Symbols face time dispersion
Channel induces Intersymbol Interference (ISI)
Bandwidth of the signal s(t) is wider than the
channel impulse response.

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Frequency Selective Fading
s(t) r(t)
h(t,

TS

0 TS 0 0 TS TS+

Causes distortion of the received baseband signal

Causes Inter-Symbol Interference (ISI)

Occurs when:
BS > BC As a rule of thumb: TS <
and
TS <

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Fast Fading

Due to Doppler Spread

Rate of change of the channel characteristics
is larger than the
Rate of change of the transmitted signal
The channel changes during a symbol period.
The channel changes because of receiver motion.
Coherence time of the channel is smaller than the symbol
period of the transmitter signal

Occurs when: BS: Bandwidth of the signal

BS < BD BD: Doppler Spread
and TS: Symbol Period
TS > TC TC: Coherence Bandwidth

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Slow Fading

Due to Doppler Spread

Rate of change of the channel characteristics
is much smaller than the
Rate of change of the transmitted signal

Occurs when: BS: Bandwidth of the signal

BS >> BD BD: Doppler Spread
and TS: Symbol Period
TS << TC TC: Coherence Bandwidth

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Different Types of Fading
TS

Flat Fast
Flat Slow
Fading
Fading

Symbol Period of
Transmitting Signal

Frequency Selective Frequency Selective

Slow Fading Fast Fading

TC
TS
Transmitted Symbol Period

With Respect To SYMBOL PERIOD

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Different Types of Fading
BS
Frequency Selective Frequency Selective
Fast Fading Slow Fading
Transmitted
Baseband BC
Signal Bandwidth

Flat Fast Flat Slow

Fading Fading

BD
BS
Transmitted Baseband Signal Bandwidth

With Respect To BASEBAND SIGNAL BANDWIDTH

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Fading Distributions

Describes how the received signal amplitude

changes with time.
Remember that the received signal is combination of multiple
signals arriving from different directions, phases and
amplitudes.
With the received signal we mean the baseband signal,
namely the envelope of the received signal (i.e. r(t)).
Its is a statistical characterization of the multipath
fading.
Two distributions
Rayleigh Fading
Ricean Fading

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Rayleigh and Ricean Distributions

Describes the received signal envelope

distribution for channels, where all the
components are non-LOS:
i.e. there is no line-ofsight (LOS) component.
Describes the received signal envelope
distribution for channels where one of the
multipath components is LOS component.
i.e. there is one LOS component.

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Rayleigh Fading

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Rayleigh

Rayleigh distribution has the probability density function (PDF) given by:

r2

2 2
r
e
p ( r ) 2

(0 r )

0 ( r < 0)

2 is the time average power of the received signal before envelope detection.
is the rms value of the received voltage signal before envelope detection

Remember: P (average power) Vrms

2
(see end of slides 5)

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Rayleigh
The probability that the envelope of the received signal does not exceed a
specified value of R is given by the CDF:

R R2

P( R) Pr (r R) p(r )dr 1 e 2 2

rmean E[r ] rp (r )dr 1.2533
0
2
rmed ian
1
rmedian 1.177 found by solving
2
p(r )dr
0

rrms 2

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Rayleigh PDF
0.7

0.6065/
0.6
mean = 1.2533
median = 1.177
0.5
variance = 0.42922
0.4

0.3

0.2

0.1

0
0
1 2
2 3
3 4
4 5
5

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Ricean Distribution

When there is a stationary (non-fading) LOS

signal present, then the envelope distribution
is Ricean.
The Ricean distribution degenerates to
Rayleigh when the dominant component
fades away.

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Level Crossing Rate (LCR)

Threshold (R)

LCR is defined as the expected rate at which the Rayleigh fading

envelope, normalized to the local rms signal level, crosses a specified
threshold level R in a positive going direction. It is given by:

2
N R 2 f m e
where

R / rrms (specf ied env elope v alue normalized to rms)

N R : crossings per second

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Average Fade Duration
Defined as the average period of time for which the received signal is
below a specified level R.

For Rayleigh distributed fading signal, it is given by:

1
NR
Pr[ r R]
1
NR
1 e 2
(
2
e 1 R
,
f m 2 rrms

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 Fading Model
Gilbert-Elliot Model
Fade Period
Signal
Amplitude

Threshold

Time t

Good Bad
(Non-fade) (Fade)

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Gilbert-Elliot Model
1/AFD

Good Bad
(Non-fade) (Fade)
1/ANFD

The channel is modeled as a Two-State Markov Chain.

Each state duration is memory-less and exponentially distributed.

The rate going from Good to Bad state is: 1/AFD (AFD: Avg Fade Duration)
The rate going from Bad to Good state is: 1/ANFD (ANFD: Avg Non-Fade
Duration)

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