Microwave Communications

Principles
Radio
 Radio is the wireless transmission of signals, by
modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies
below those of visible light
 When radio waves pass an electrical conductor, the
oscillating fields induce an alternating current in the
conductor. This can be detected and transformed into
sound or other signals that carry information.
 The word 'radio' is used to describe this phenomenon,
and radio transmissions are classed as radio frequency
emissions.
 Today, the term 'radio' often refers to the actual
transceiver device or chip, whereas 'wireless' refers to
the system and/or method used for radio communication
Uses of radio
 Radar (RAdio Detection And Ranging)
 WLAN
 Mobile communications
 Radio broadcasting (AM or FM)
 Aircraft comm using VHF.
 Marine voice
 Government, police, fire and commercial voice services
 Civil and military
 TETRA (Terrestrial Trunked Radio) is a digital cell phone system
for military, police and ambulances
 TV
 satellite navigation
 GPS
Radio Frequencies
 Ultra-low frequency (ULF): 0-3 Hz
 Extremely low frequency (ELF): 3 Hz - 3 kHz
 Very low frequency (VLF): 3kHz - 30 kHz
 Low frequency (LF): 30 kHz - 300 kHz
 Medium frequency (MF): 300 kHz - 3 MHz
 High frequency (HF): 3MHz - 30 MHz
 Very high frequency (VHF): 30 MHz - 300 MHz
 Ultra-high frequency (UHF): 300MHz - 3 GHz
 Super high frequency (SHF): 3GHz - 30 GHz
 Extremely high frequency (EHF): 30GHz - 300 GHz
Microwaves
 Microwaves generally refers to radio signals with
frequencies between 300 MHz and 300 GHz (UHF, SHF,
EHF)
 However, its range is usually defined as 1 to 1000 GHz
 Most common applications are within the 1 to 40 GHz range
 Microwave radio is used in broadcasting and
telecommunication transmissions because, due to their
short wavelength, highly directive antennas are smaller and
therefore more practical than they would be at longer
wavelengths
 There is also more bandwidth in the microwave spectrum
than in the rest of the radio spectrum; the usable bandwidth
below 300 MHz is less than 300 MHz while many GHz can
be used above 300 MHz.
Microwave: Frequency Bands
 L band  Q band
 1 to 2 GHz  30 to 50 GHz
 S band  U band
 2 to 4 GHz  40 to 60 GHz
 C band  V band
 4 to 8 GHz  50 to 75 GHz
 X band  E band
 8 to 12 GHz  60 to 90 GHz
 Ku band  W band
 12 to 18 GHz  75 to 110 GHz
 K band  F band
 18 to 26.5 GHz
 90 to 140 GHz
 Ka band
 D band
 26.5 to 40 GHz
 110 to 170 GHz
 Radio path

Reflections

1. Fresnelzone

Rain loss
ce loss
Free spa

Obstruction loss

Reflection
 Basic System Structure
Modulation
Spectrum forming
Coding
C

Radiation Interference

MOD TX 1 1

n POL POL n DEM

RX
Branching Branching

Fading
1
DEM RX 1 XPD

Free space loss

n TX MOD
n
Branching Branching

Adaptive Equalization System loss

Bit error correction Spectrum forming
Correctionektur Equalization

Split mounting System (Indoor-outdoor systems), or Fully indoor systems

 Antenna Radiation
Antenna and transmitter (receiver) have the same impedance.
Return loss is the ratio between the reflected power and
the maximum possible power related to a reference
impedance.
The real antenna of the parabolic antenna is a short dipole just
mounted at the transmitter output (receiver input); the parabolic
dish is used as reflector only in order to get the directivity
 Polarization: According to the direction of the electrical field with
respect to the ground
 polarization is vertical/horizontal if the electrical field is
vertical/horizontal
 At the receiver site the antenna has to have the same polarization as
at the transmitter site in order to transmit the maximum of energy.
 The de-coupling between vertical and horizontal polarization is called
Cross Polarization Discrimination (XPD)
Antenna Types
Line-of-Sight Considerations
 Microwave radio communication requires a clear line-of-
sight (LOS) condition
 Radius of the first Fresnel zone
R=17.32(x(d-x)/fd)1/2

where d = distance between antennas (in Km)

R= first Fresnel zone radius in meters
f= frequency in GHz

R y
x d=x+y
Link Budget
Receive Signal Level (RSL)
RSL = Po – Lctx + Gatx – Lcrx + Gatx – FSL
Link feasibility formula
RSL  Rx (receiver sensitivity threshold)

Po = output power of the transmitter (dBm)

Lctx, Lcrx = Loss (cable,connectors, branching unit) between transmitter/receiver and
antenna(dB)
Gatx = gain of transmitter/receiver antenna (dBi)
FSL = free space loss (dB)
 Free-space loss - when the transmitter and receiver have a
clear, unobstructed line-of-sight
Lfsl= 92.45 + 20log(f) + 20log(d) [dB]
where f = frequency (GHz), d = LOS range between antennas
(km)
Radio path link budget

waveguide
Transmitter 1 Transmitter 2
Splitter Splitter

Receiver 1 Receiver 2

Propagation
Antenna

Antenna
Output Branching

Losses
Gain

Gain
Power (Tx) Losses Branching
Losses
Received
Power (Rx)
Fade Margin
Receiver threshold Value
Microwave Applications
 Before the advent of fiber optic transmission, most long distance
telephone calls were carried via microwave point-to-point links
 Starting in the early 1950's, FDM was used to send up to 5400
telephone channels on each microwave radio channel, with as many
as ten radio channels combined into one antenna for the hop to the
next site, up to 70 km away.
 WLAN protocols, such as Bluetooth and the IEEE 802.11
 MAN protocols, such as WiMAX
 Wide Area Mobile Broadband Wireless Access (MBWA) protocols
based on standards specifications such as IEEE 802.20
 Cable TV and Internet access on coax cable as well as broadcast
television use some of the lower microwave frequencies
 Some mobile phone networks, like GSM
 Most radio astronomy uses microwaves.
Applications: Cellular backhaul

Mobile Switching Center

Base Station
Controller
Applications: Customers wireless access

Business
Districts
Central Office

High traffic
Customers
Applications: long distance connecting
regional networks

Local
Exchange
Regional
Network
Applications: private voice/data
networks
Universities

Headquarters
Hospitals

Corporate
Networks
Branch
Branch Office
Office