Advanced Digital Modulation Techniques applied in real life

Modulation- a technique to use high frequency carrier to the signal.

Modulation is a process of changing the characteristics of the wave to be

transmitted by superimposing the message signal on the high frequency signal.
In this process video, voice and other data signals modify high frequency signals
– also known as carrier wave.

Maybe either Analog or Digital Modulation.

In Digital Modulation the message signal is digital.

Basically digital modulation three types-

i) ASK

ii)FSK

iii)PSK

For many limitations we generally can not use these basic type of digital
modulations. We use some advanced techniques.

Advanced digital modulation techniques

 QAM (Quadrature amplitude modulation)

 QPSK (Quadrature phase shift keying)
 GMSK (Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying)
 OFDM (Orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing)
 MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output)
 Digital Modulation in real life

Technology used modulation technique

Satellite Communication • QPSK

• OQPSK

• QAM

• 16-QAM

Wi-Fi • QPSK

Wi-Max • 16-QAM

• 64-QAM

GSM(2G), GPRS (2.5G) • GMSK

3G (UMTS) • QPSK

3.5G (HSPA) • QPSK

• 16-QAM

4G LTE • OFDM

DSL • OFDM

QPSK (Quadrature Phase Shift Keying):

Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) is a form of Phase Shift Keying in which
two bits are modulated at once, selecting one of four possible carrier phase
shifts . QPSK allows the signal to carry twice as much information as ordinary
PSK using the same bandwidth.

QPSK is a modulation technique, and it’s a particularly interesting one

because it actually transmits two bits per symbol. In other words, a QPSK
symbol doesn’t represent 0 or 1—it represents 00, 01, 10, or 11.
This two-bits-per-symbol performance is possible because the carrier
variations are not limited to two states. In ASK, for example, the carrier
amplitude is either amplitude option A (representing a 1) or amplitude
option B (representing a 0). In QPSK, the carrier varies in terms of phase, not
frequency, and there are four possible phase shifts.

We can intuitively determine what these four possible phase shifts should
be: First we recall that modulation is only the beginning of the
communication process; the receiver needs to be able to extract the original
information from the modulated signal. Next, it makes sense to seek
maximum separation between the four phase options, so that the receiver
has less difficulty distinguishing one state from another. We have 360° of
phase to work with and four phase states, and thus the separation should be
360°/4 = 90°. So our four QPSK phase shifts are 45°, 135°, 225°, and 315°

Figure: QPSK waveform

The reason why it makes sense to choose 45°, 135°, 225°, and 315°: they are
easily generated using I/Q modulation techniques because summing I and Q
signals that are either inverted or non-inverted results in these four phase
shifts. The following table should clarify this:
 Advantage:

Compared to modulation schemes that transmit one bit per symbol, QPSK is
advantageous in terms of bandwidth efficiency. For example, imagine an
analog baseband signal in a BPSK (binary phase shift keying) system. BPSK
uses two possible phase shifts instead of four, and thus it can transmit only
one bit per symbol. The baseband signal has a certain frequency, and during
each symbol period, one bit can be transmitted. A QPSK system can use a
baseband signal of the same frequency, yet it transmits two bits during each
symbol period. Thus, its bandwidth efficiency is (ideally) higher by a factor of
two.

The OQPSK (Orthogonal Quadrature Phase Shift Keying) modulation is a

PSK modulation, using 2 bits per symbol and a delay of one bit in the in
quadrature signal.

OFDM:

Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) is a digital multi-carrier

modulation scheme that extends the concept of single subcarrier modulation by
using multiple subcarriers within the same single channel. Rather than transmit
a high-rate stream of data with a single subcarrier, OFDM makes use of a large
number of closely spaced orthogonal subcarriers that are transmitted in parallel.
Each subcarrier is modulated with a conventional digital modulation scheme
(such as QPSK, 16QAM, etc.) at low symbol rate. However, the combination of
many subcarriers enables data rates similar to conventional single-carrier
modulation schemes within equivalent bandwidths.
OFDM is based on the well-known technique of Frequency Division Multiplexing
(FDM). In FDM different streams of information are mapped onto separate
parallel frequency channels. Each FDM channel is separated from the others by
a frequency guard band to reduce interference between adjacent channels.

The OFDM scheme differs from traditional FDM in the following interrelated
ways:

1.Multiple carriers (called subcarriers) carry the information stream,

2.The subcarriers are orthogonal to each other, and

3.A guard interval is added to each symbol to minimize the channel delay spread
and intersymbol interference.

Figure: Basic concept of OFDM, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing

Advantage:

One of the main advantages of OFDM is that is more resistant to frequency

selective fading than single carrier systems because it divides the overall channel
into multiple narrowband signals that are affected individually as flat fading sub-
channels.

OFDM, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing has gained a significant

presence in the wireless market place. The combination of high data capacity,
high spectral efficiency, and its resilience to interference as a result of multi-
path effects means that it is ideal for the high data applications that have
become a major factor in today's communications scene.
QAM:

QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation) is a method of combining two

amplitude-modulated (AM) signals into a single channel, thereby doubling the
effective bandwidth. QAM is used with pulse amplitude modulation (PAM) in
digital systems, especially in wireless applications.

In QAM, the digital information is contained in both the amplitude and the
phase of the transmitted signal.

In a QAM signal, there are two carriers, each having the same frequency but
differing in phase by 90 degrees (one quarter of a cycle, from which the term
quadrature arises). One signal is called the I signal, and the other is called the Q
signal. Mathematically, one of the signals can be represented by a sine wave,
and the other by a cosine wave. The two modulated carriers are combined at
the source for transmission. At the destination, the carriers are separated, the
data is extracted from each, and then the data is combined into the original
modulating information.

Quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) requires changing the phase and

amplitude of a carrier sine wave. One of the easiest ways to implement QAM
with hardware is to generate and mix two sine waves that are 90 degrees out of
phase with one another. Adjusting only the amplitude of either signal can affect
the phase and amplitude of the resulting mixed signal.

These two carrier waves represent the in-phase (I) and quadrature-phase (Q)
components of our signal. Individually each of these signals can be represented
as:

I = A cos(φ) and Q = A sin(φ).

Note that the I and Q components are represented as cosine and sine because
the two signals are 90 degrees out of phase with one another. Using the two
identities above and the following trigonometric identity

cos(α + β) = cos(α)cos(β) – sin(α)sin(β),

rewrite a carrier wave A cos(2πfct + φ) as

A cos(2πfct + φ) = I cos(2πfct) – Q sin(2πfct).

As the equation above illustrates, the resulting identity is a periodic signal
whose phase can be adjusted by changing the amplitude of I and Q. Thus, it is
possible to perform digital modulation on a carrier signal by adjusting the
amplitude of the two mixed signals.

Quadrature amplitude modulation, QAM, when used for digital transmission for
radio communications applications is able to carry higher data rates than
ordinary amplitude modulated schemes and phase modulated schemes.

Basic signals exhibit only two positions which allow the transfer of either a 0 or
1. Using QAM there are many different points that can be used, each having
defined values of phase and amplitude. This is known as a constellation diagram.
The different positions are assigned different values, and in this way a single
signal is able to transfer data at a much higher rate.

Figure:- Constellation diagram for a 16QAM signal showing the location of the
different points

As shown above, the constellation points are typically arranged in a square grid
with equal horizontal and vertical spacing. Although data is binary the most
common forms of QAM, although not all, are where there constellation can
form a square with the number of points equal to a power of 2 i.e. 4, 16, 64 . . . .
, i.e. 16QAM, 64QAM, etc.

By using higher order modulation formats, i.e. more points on the constellation,
it is possible to transmit more bits per symbol. However the points are closer
together and they are therefore more susceptible to noise and data errors.

The advantage of moving to the higher order formats is that there are more
points within the constellation and therefore it is possible to transmit more bits
per symbol. The downside is that the constellation points are closer together
and therefore the link is more susceptible to noise. As a result, higher order
versions of QAM are only used when there is a sufficiently high signal to noise
ratio.

To provide an example of how QAM operates, the constellation diagram below

shows the values associated with the different states for a 16QAM signal. From
this it can be seen that a continuous bit stream may be grouped into fours and
represented as a sequence.

Figure: Bit sequence mapping for a 16QAM signal

Normally the lowest order QAM encountered is 16QAM. The reason for this
being the lowest order normally encountered is that 2QAM is the same as binary
phase-shift keying, BPSK, and 4QAM is the same as quadrature phase-shift
keying, QPSK.

Additionally 8QAM is not widely used. This is because error-rate performance of

8QAM is almost the same as that of 16QAM - it is only about 0.5 dB better and
the data rate is only three-quarters that of 16QAM. This arises from the
rectangular, rather than square shape of the constellation.
Advantages :

Although QAM appears to increase the efficiency of transmission for radio

communications systems by utilising both amplitude and phase variations, it has
a number of drawbacks. The first is that it is more susceptible to noise because
the states are closer together so that a lower level of noise is needed to move
the signal to a different decision point. Receivers for use with phase or
frequency modulation are both able to use limiting amplifiers that are able to
remove any amplitude noise and thereby improve the noise reliance. This is not
the case with QAM.

GMSK:

GMSK stands for Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying. This is a modulation scheme in
which the phase of the carrier is instantaneously varied by the "modulating"
signal (i.e. the information to transmit).

GMSK modulation is based on MSK, which is itself a form of continuous-phase

frequency-shift keying, CPFSK. One of the problems with standard forms of PSK
is that sidebands extend out from the carrier. To overcome this, MSK and its
derivative GMSK can be used.

MSK and also GMSK modulation are what is known as a continuous phase
scheme. Here there are no phase discontinuities because the frequency changes
occur at the carrier zero crossing points. This arises as a result of the unique
factor of MSK that the frequency difference between the logical one and logical
zero states is always equal to half the data rate. This can be expressed in terms

of the modulation index, and it is always equal to 0.5.

Figure: Concept of a minimum shift keying, MSK signal

There are two main ways in which GMSK modulation can be generated. The
most obvious way is to filter the modulating signal using a Gaussian filter and
then apply this to a frequency modulator where the modulation index is set to
0.5. This method is very simple and straightforward but it has the drawback that
the modulation index must exactly equal 0.5. In practice this analogue method is
not suitable because component tolerances drift and cannot be set exactly.

Figure: GMSK modulator using VCO

Advantages :

there are several advantages to the use of GMSK modulation for a radio
communications system. One is obviously the improved spectral efficiency when
compared to other phase shift keyed modes. Good choice for voice modulation
and Consequently it is a popular alternative to QPSK.

MIMO:

Multiple Input Multiple Output technology uses multiple antennas to make use
of reflected signals to provide gains in channel robustness and throughput.

A channel may be affected by fading and this will impact the signal to noise
ratio. In turn this will impact the error rate, assuming digital data is being
transmitted. The principle of diversity is to provide the receiver with multiple
versions of the same signal. If these can be made to be affected in different
ways by the signal path, the probability that they will all be affected at the same
time is considerably reduced. Accordingly, diversity helps to stabilise a link and
improves performance, reducing error rate.
Several different diversity modes are available and provide a number of
advantages:

Time diversity: Using time diversity, a message may be transmitted at different

times, e.g. using different timeslots and channel coding.

Frequency diversity: This form of diversity uses different frequencies. It may be

in the form of using different channels, or technologies such as spread spectrum
/ OFDM.

Space diversity : Space diversity used in the broadest sense of the definition is
used as the basis for MIMO. It uses antennas located in different positions to
take advantage of the different radio paths that exist in a typical terrestrial
environment.

The two main formats for MIMO are given below:

 Spatial diversity: Spatial diversity used in this narrower sense often

refers to transmit and receive diversity. These two methodologies are
used to provide improvements in the signal to noise ratio and they are
characterised by improving the reliability of the system with respect to
the various forms of fading.

 Spatial multiplexing : This form of MIMO is used to provide additional

data capacity by utilising the different paths to carry additional traffic, i.e.
increasing the data throughput capability.

Features:

As a result of the use multiple antennas, MIMO wireless technology is able to

considerably increase the capacity of a given channel while still obeying
Shannon's law. By increasing the number of receive and transmit antennas it is
possible to linearly increase the throughput of the channel with every pair of
antennas added to the system. This makes MIMO wireless technology one of the
most important wireless techniques to be employed in recent years. As spectral
bandwidth is becoming an ever more valuable commodity for radio
communications systems, techniques are needed to use the available bandwidth
more effectively. MIMO wireless technology is one of these techniques.