COMMUNICATIONS

SYSTEM

A2 Level
Modulation of Radio waves
• Radio that we listened to these days is a part of communication
system
• Sound signal  Radio signal  Sound signal
• Each signal has a different carrier wave frequency
• The signal is carried by modulating the carrier wave
• Modulation is the variation of either the amplitude or the frequency
of the carrier wave
• The modulated wave is the actual wave transmitted
Amplitude
Modulation
(AM)
Amplitude Modulation (AM)
• The amplitude of the modulated wave is proportional to and in phase
with the signal
• The modulated wave is the carrier wave but its amplitude rise & falls
to match the value of the signal at any instant
• The amplitude of the signal must be less than half of the carrier
wave’s amplitude
• The frequency of modulated wave is constant
Frequency
Modulation
(FM)
Frequency Modulation (FM)
• The frequency of modulated wave varies with time
• Without the signal, frequency of modulated wave is equal to
frequency of carrier wave
• When input signal is positive, the frequency of modulated wave
increased, and therefore grater than the frequency of carrier wave
• The larger the signal, the greater is the change of the frequency
• The amplitude of modulated wave is constant
• The frequency deviation of the carrier wave may be given a value
Sidebands &
Bandwith

• When carrier wave modulated, it is found to contain 2

more frequency other than its initial frequency
• Those frequencies known as sidebands frequency (upper
& lower)
• The range of those frequnecies called bandwith
AM vs FM
Analogue & Digital Signal
• Analogue quantity is one that can have any value
• Digital quantity has only few values, usually just two (binary)
Advantages of Digital Signal
• Can deal with “noise” produced over long distance
• Noise is random, unwanted signal that adds to and distorts a
transmitted signal
• Both analogue & digital will be weakened by noise after traveled long
distance.
• Noise can’t be removed from analogue signal
• Diginal signal can be cleansed from noise through regeneration
process
Advantages of Digital Signal
ADC
ADC
• ADC process involves sampling
• Sampling is the measurement of
the analogue signal at regular
time intervals
• The value of the sampled signal is
used to produce a binary number
• If the sampled signal is not a
whole number, then the nearest
number is chosen
DAC
• The output analog signal is not exactly similar with the input
• To improve the sampling, decrease the voltage that corresponds to
the difference between 0 & 1 in binary
• Adding extra bit on the binary number will increase accuracy
• Higher sampling rate will also increase accuracy
Crosstalk & Attenuation
• Crosstalk occurs when a transmitted signal from one channel creates
an undesired effect on another channel
• Attenuation is the gradual decrease in the power of signal the further
it travels
• Check your book p. 329-330
Comparison of different channel of communication
Wire pairs vs Coaxial cable
 Comparison of
different
channel of
communication
Radio wave & Microwave link
Comparison of different channel of communication
Advantages of radio wave & microwave
Comparison of different channel of communication
How to communicate using satellite
• The satellite receives a space wave from a transmitter on Earth, the
uplink, with a carrier frequency in the microwave region.
• The satellite re-transmits the signal it receives as the downlink back to
Earth, on another frequency and with more power than it received.
• If the downlink and uplink frequencies were the same, then the much
larger signal sent from Earth would swamp the signal sent from the
satellite, so different frequencies are used.
• The satellite transmits the signal back to an individual satellite dish
back on Earth or to many dishes, over a wide area, particularly when
broadcasting television programmes.
 Comparison of
different
channel of
communication

Advantages of communicating
using Satellite
Geostationary vs Polar

Geostationary Orbit Polar Orbit