Wireless Communications and Networks

W23: EECE74110
Bachelor of Electronic Systems Engineering (ESE)

LECTURE 00: INTRODUCTION

Hassan Shakoor BASc, MASc

Professor, Electronic Systems Engineering
School of Engineering & Technology

Conestoga College | Cambridge Campus

850 Fountain St. S., Cambridge, ON, N3H 0A8
E: [email protected]
 Welcome!
• Welcome to EECE74110 – Wireless Communications and Networks
course!
• Wireless Communications is an exciting field
• It is the only wireless communications and networking course in the
program
• One of the most important infrastructure for any nation to develop is its
communication network
• For the past 40 years, the communications field has progressed from
analog 1G systems to 5G digital systems

2
 About the Instructor
• Academic Qualifications
– BASc in Electrical Engineering, University of Waterloo
– MASc in Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Waterloo

• Work Experience – Industry

– Several Intern/coop positions in hardware design at BlackBerry and Apple
– Analog Design Engineer, Semtech (based in Burlington, Ontario)
– Currently working for Peraso (semiconductor startup based in Toronto, Ontario)
– Actively involved in design of Wigig and 5G radio hardware
– Integrated Circuit Designer by profession

3
 Course Outline
• The course outline is vast touching all aspects of Wireless communication
and Network

• This semester, the course is designed to cover,

– Introduction to Wireless Communication and Networks
– Fundamental Concepts of Wireless Communications
– Radio Path Characteristics
– Cellular Communications Technology
– Antenna Fundamentals and Link Budget Analysis
– Radio Transceiver Architectures and Performance Metrics
– Advanced Digital Modulation Schemes
4
 Labs
• A total of 6 Labs are planned for this course

• Lab session will be held remotely

• Main tool to perform the lab – MATLAB (please make sure you have
access. Look in to https://it.conestogac.on.ca/Downloads for more details)

• MATLAB is excellent especially for communications

• It has various in-built functions for communication applications such as

channel modeling, modulations and error calculations 5
 Source of Information
• Course Outline
• Instructional plan (session plan) including class time-table, and dates for exams, labs
and assignments
• Lecture slides, lab and assignment documents
• Suggested learning resources
• Marks
• Course related notices/emails
• Discussion forum

6
 Textbook
Textbook which can be used for reference,

• ‘Wireless Communications and Networking’ by Vijay Garg, 2nd Edition

• ‘From GSM to LTE’ by Martin Sauter

• ‘RF Microelectronics’ by Behzad Razavi, 2nd Edition

• Lecture notes identify relevant sections of textbook

7
 Schedule
• We meet every Thursday ONLINE for lectures 5pm -7pm on Zoom

• ONLINE Labs scheduled for Wednesday 4pm – 6pm (Maybe replaced by lectures
from time to time)

• Stay tuned on Econestoga for schedule announcements for any extra or rescheduled
lectures

8
 Marks Distribution
Evaluation Item Weightage (total 100%)

Final Exam 40%

Midterm Exam 20 %

Labs 3 Labs x 10% = 30 %

Professionalism 10%

9
10
 Office Hours
• Office Hours are available on request and by appointment only

• All inquiries and appointment requests will only be entertained if email sent by your
conestoga ID

11
 Academic Policies
• Each student is expected to follow the policies of the college. Please check and familiarize
yourself with these policies under, https://www.conestogac.on.ca/about/corporate-
information/policies

12
 References
• H.Shakoor, ELCN71100_W21 Lecture Slides,
“ELCN71100_W22_Lecture0_Introduction&CourseOverview”, ELCN 71100 Offering in 2021,
Conestoga College, Accessed Jan 2022

• Z.Taha, EECE74110 Lecture Notes, “Course Information”, EECE 74110 Offering in 2021,
Conestoga College, Accessed Jan 2022

13
Wireless Communications and Networks
W23: EECE74110
Bachelor of Electronic Systems Engineering (ESE)

LECTURE 01A: INTRODUCTION TO WIRELESS

COMMUNATION & NETWORKING
Hassan Shakoor BASc, MASc
Professor, Electronic Systems Engineering
School of Engineering & Technology

Conestoga College | Cambridge Campus

850 Fountain St. S., Cambridge, ON, N3H 0A8
E: [email protected]
 Todays Agenda
• Discuss Brief history of wireless

• The Cellular Revolution

• Growth of ‘Wireless’

• The Radio Frequency Spectrum

2
 Introduction
• Wireless Communications means communication by radio
(Electromagnetic waves) via unguided media unlike guided media such as
coaxial cable, wave guides, fibre optic cable and others

• Unlike sound we don’t need air or medium to transmit radio signals

• Other forms of wireless communications are optical wireless or ultrasound

wireless communications

• Wireless communications and networks is one of the most fastest growing

fields in electronics
3
 Need for High Speed Wireless Communication
• Sprawling Growth: As of January
2021 there were 4.66 billion active
internet users worldwide – 59.5
percent of the global population.

• Of this total, 92.6 percent (4.32

billion) accessed the internet via
mobile devices

4
 Brief history of wireless communication
• In 1894, Guglielmo Marconi began developing a wireless telegraph system
using radio waves
• Marconi communicated across the English channel in 1899 and across the
Atlantic ocean in 1901
• In late 1906, Reginald Fessenden made the first public broadcast of voice and
music
• Two-way police radio began in mid-1930s. Amplitude modulation (AM) was
used until the late 1930s, when frequency modulation (FM) began to displace it
• During World War II, a two-way radio system known as “walkies-talkies’ that
could be carried in the field were developed
5
Brief history of wireless communication

Wikipedia

6
 Brief history of wireless communication
• In 1964, AT&T introduced its Improved Mobile Telephone Service (IMTS)
featuring automatic connection of mobile
• Citizens’ band (CB) radio (460 MHz) service was set up in 1947 by the
American government. In 1958, it became very popular when 27-MHz band
were allocated. The service was short-range, had no-connection to PSTN, and
offered users no privacy
• Cordless phones and pagers were other forms of wireless devices used for
wireless

7
 Frequency Bands
• To establish a unique
communication link,
wireless communication
networks and protocols use
unique frequency bands to
for link establish

• How Low or High is your

frequency??

8
Reference: Wikipedia, RF Spectrum
 Telecommunication Regulatory Authorities
• Most famous and important is the
International Telecommunication
Union (ITU)
• Specialized agency of the United
Nations
• Established 1865. Takes care of
world matters related to
communication technologies

• Federal Communications
Commission (FCC)
• Independent agency of the US
• Regulates communications by
radio, television, wire
Reference: Canadian Table of Frequency
• Canadian Radio-television Allocations <https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/>
and Telecommunications
Commission (CRTC)
9
• Similar role of FCC in Canada
 Frequency Allocation Table - Canada
• https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/smt-gst.nsf/eng/sf10759.html#s1.1

10
 References
• Z.Taha,PhD, EECE74110 Lecture Notes, “Wireless Communications-Fundamental
Concepts of Wireless Communications”, EECE 74110 Offering in 2021, Conestoga College,
Accessed Jan 2022

11
Wireless Communications and Networks
W23: EECE74110
Bachelor of Electronic Systems Engineering (ESE)

LECTURE 01B: FUNDAMENTALS OF WIRELESS

COMMUNICATIONS
Hassan Shakoor BASc, MASc
Professor, Electronic Systems Engineering
School of Engineering & Technology

Conestoga College | Cambridge Campus

850 Fountain St. S., Cambridge, ON, N3H 0A8
E: [email protected]
 Todays Agenda
• Modulation
• Transmission Modes
• Wireless Network
• Signal and Noise
• Noise Power Density
• Signal to Noise Ratio
• Frequency Domain

2
Elements of a wireless communication system

3
Modulation

4
Types of modulation

5
Transmission modes

6
Wireless network

7
Signal and Noise

8
Noise

9
Signal and Noise

10
Noise power density and white noise

11
Signal and Noise

12
Signal and Noise

13
Signal-to-Noise Ratio

14
Frequency Domain

15
 References
• Z.Taha,PhD, EECE74110 Lecture Notes, “Wireless Communications-Fundamental
Concepts of Wireless Communications”, EECE 74110 Offering in 2021, Conestoga College,
Accessed Jan 2022

16
Wireless Communications and Networks
W23: EECE74110
Bachelor of Electronic Systems Engineering (ESE)

LECTURE 02A: Radio Path Characteristics –

PART1
Hassan Shakoor BASc, MASc
Professor, Electronic Systems Engineering
School of Engineering & Technology

Conestoga College | Cambridge Campus

850 Fountain St. S., Cambridge, ON, N3H 0A8
E: [email protected]
 Todays Agenda
• Introduction
– Radio propagation attributes

• Free-space Attenuation

• Attenuation Over Reflection Surface

• Noise Figure/ Noise Factor

• Example Calculations
2
 Coverage from Course Outline
• Course Outcomes
– 8. Use appropriate radio-path models to calculate path-loss and fading, and design
power budget of a radio link

• Unit Outcomes
– 8. Radio Path Characteristics

Reference: EECE74110, Course Outline,

Posted on eConestoga

3
 Coverage from Text Book
• V.Garg , Wireless Communications and Networking,
– Chapter 3 – Radio Propagation and Propagation Path-Loss Models

4
Introduction

5
Radio propagation attributes

6
 Radio propagation attributes

Reference: Garg, “Wireless

Communications and Networking”

7
Free-space propagation

8
Free-space propagation

9
Free-space propagation

10
Attenuation Over Reflection Surface

11
 Attenuation Over Reflection Surface

Reference: Garg, “Wireless

Communications and Networking”

12
Attenuation Over Reflection Surface

13
Problem on Two-Ray Model

14
Problem on Two-Ray Model

15
 Noise Figure/ Noise Factor
• Recall from previous lecture,
𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃
SNR =
𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃
• Noise Factor (F) is measure of how SNR degrades across a device,
𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃_𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖
𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆
F= = 𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃_𝑖𝑖𝑖𝑖
𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃_𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜
𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆𝑆 𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃𝑃_𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜𝑜

• Assumption: Noise factor is specified with noise from noise source at room
temperature (Noise Density Nin = KT)
– KT ~ -174 dBm/Hz
Reference: https://www.microwaves101.com 16
 Noise Figure/ Noise Factor
• Noise Figure (NF) is defined as ,
NF = 10 X log (F)

• ‘Equivalent Noise Temperature (Teq)’

– Alternative measure for noise factor, F
– Defined as the temperature at which the noise resistor has to be maintained so that
by connecting the resistor of the input of a noiseless version of the system. It will
produce the same amount of noise power at the system output as the produced by
the system actually

Teq = (F-1)To
Reference: https://www.microwaves101.com 17
Problem 2

18
Problem 2

19
 References
• Z.Taha,PhD, EECE74110 Lecture Notes, “RadioPropagation_Week2”, EECE 74110 Offering
in 2021, Conestoga College, Accessed Jan 2022

• V.Garg, “Wireless Communications and Networks”, Chapter 3, pgs 47-83

20
Wireless Communications and Networks
W23: EECE74110
Bachelor of Electronic Systems Engineering (ESE)

LECTURE 02B: Radio Path Characteristics –

PART2
Hassan Shakoor BASc, MASc
Professor, Electronic Systems Engineering
School of Engineering & Technology

Conestoga College | Cambridge Campus

850 Fountain St. S., Cambridge, ON, N3H 0A8
E: [email protected]
 Todays Agenda
• Radio Wave Propagation

• Fading
– Slow fading
– Fast fading
– Statistical Properties

• Characteristic of Wireless Channel

• Propagation Path Loss Model

• Example Calculations 2
 Coverage from Course Outline
• Course Outcomes
– 8. Use appropriate radio-path models to calculate path-loss and fading, and design
power budget of a radio link

• Unit Outcomes
– 8. Radio Path Characteristics

Reference: EECE74110, Course Outline,

Posted on eConestoga

3
 Coverage from Text Book
• V.Garg , Wireless Communications and Networking,
– Chapter 3 – Radio Propagation and Propagation Path-Loss Models

4
Radio wave as TEM

5
Fading

6
Fading

7
Radio propagation attributes

8
Slow fading and fast fading picture

9
Slow fading and fast fading picture

10
Statistical properties of fading

11
Redefinition of Path Loss ‘Lp’

12
Problem - 3

13
Problem - 4

14
Characteristics of Wireless Channel

15
Time Dispersion

16
Characteristics of Wireless Channel

17
 Doppler Shift

Reference:
https://www.etti.unibw.de/labalive/experiment/dopplershift/
18
 Doppler Shift

Reference:
https://www.etti.unibw.de/labalive/experiment/dopplershift/
19
Propagation path-loss model

20
Okumura/Hata Models

21
Okumura/Hata Models

22
Okumura/Hata Models

23
 References
• Z.Taha,PhD, EECE74110 Lecture Notes, “RadioPropagation_Week2”, EECE 74110 Offering
in 2021, Conestoga College, Accessed Jan 2022

• V.Garg, “Wireless Communications and Networks”, Chapter 3, pgs 47-83

24
Wireless Communications and Networks
W23: EECE74110
Bachelor of Electronic Systems Engineering (ESE)

LECTURE 03: Fundamentals of Cellular

Communications – PART1
Hassan Shakoor BASc, MASc
Professor, Electronic Systems Engineering
School of Engineering & Technology

Conestoga College | Cambridge Campus

850 Fountain St. S., Cambridge, ON, N3H 0A8
E: [email protected]
 Todays Agenda
• Introduction

• Cellular Communication System

• System capacity

• Co-channel Interference

• Example Calculations

2
 Coverage from Course Outline
• Course Outcomes
– 5. Demonstrate knowledge of different technological aspects including frequency
bands, channelization & format, dynamic channel assignment, cell & traffic planning,
and coexistence of multiple systems in overlapping frequency bands
• Unit Outcomes Reference: EECE74110, Course Outline,
Posted on eConestoga
– 8. Radio-Frequency Resources for Wireless Communications

3
 Coverage from Text Book
• V.Garg , Wireless Communications and Networking,
– Chapter 5 – Fundamentals of Cellular Communications

4
 Cellular Communications
• The Cellular communication system is the most widely used form of
communication system used today

• The cellular communication system is based on the ‘cellular concept’

• Cellular concept: A system level idea which calls for replacing single
high-power transmitter with low power transmitters

• Cellular systems are designed to operate with groups of several low-

power transmitters (radios) spread over a service area
5
 Cellular Communications
• The area served by each group of radios is called a cell

• The radius of the cell varies depending upon the required capacity of
number of subscribers

• In a startup system with relatively few subscribers, cell radius may be 28

km

• In a developed area, the cell radius could be smaller than 2 km

6
 Cell Geometry

Reference: H.Tailor:Engineerin Mentor, “Cellular Concept, Cell

Shape & Frequency Reuse Fundamentals”, July 2,2022

7
 Cell Geometry
• Preferred/optimal shape of cell geometry is hexagons

• What is the shape of cell coverage in a real cellular network?

Ans: The cell coverage is an irregularly shaped circle. The exact coverage
depends on terrain and many other factors

• For design purposes and as a first-order approximation, we assume that

the coverage areas are regular polygons

• Hexagon is used for two reasons:

– 1) Hexagonal layout required fewer cells
8
– 2) Less expensive than square or triangular cells
 Cell Geometry

Reference: Garg, “Wireless

Communications and Networking”

9
 System Capacity
• System capacity basically dictates or quantifies the number of subscribe
or mobile traffic handling capability of a cellular system

• Important concept to understand is frequency reuse.

• By dividing an area within the boundaries of multiple cells, the same

group of channels may be used, given that they are separated by a
distance large enough to keep interference level within tolerable limits

10
 Frequency Reuse

Reference: H.Tailor: Engineering Mentor, “Cellular Concept, Cell 11

Shape & Frequency Reuse Fundamentals”, July 2,2022
 Reuse Distance

Reference: H.Tailor: Engineering Mentor, “Cellular Concept, Cell 12

Shape & Frequency Reuse Fundamentals”, July 2,2022
 Reuse Ratio

𝐷𝐷
• = 𝑞𝑞 = 3𝑁𝑁
𝑅𝑅
• Where q is the reuse ratio
• R is the radius a cell
• N is the reuse factor

Reference: Garg, “Wireless Communications and Networking 13

 Cluster Size

Reference: H.Tailor: Engineering Mentor, “Cellular Concept, Cell 14

Shape & Frequency Reuse Fundamentals”, July 2,2022
 Cluster Size

Reference: H.Tailor: Engineering Mentor, “Cellular Concept, Cell

Shape & Frequency Reuse Fundamentals”, July 2,2022
15
 System Capacity

Reference: H.Tailor: Engineering Mentor, “Cellular Concept, Cell

Shape & Frequency Reuse Fundamentals”, July 2,2022
16
System Capacity – Problem 1

Reference: Reference: Garg, “Wireless Communications and

Networking”
17
System Capacity – Problem 1 - Solution

Reference: Reference: Garg, “Wireless Communications and

Networking”
18
System Capacity – Problem 1 - Solution

Reference: Reference: Garg, “Wireless Communications and

Networking”
19
 Relationship between N and system capacity
• How can you explain the fact that decreasing N increases the system capacity?

• By reducing N or q, the number of cells per cluster is reduced and if total RF channels
are constant, then the number of channels per cell is increased, thereby increasing the
system capacity

• On the other hand, cochannel interference will increase

• What is the best value of N for achieving maximum system capacity?

• 1 (For UMTS and LTE, N = 1)

20
Cochannel Interference
• As seen in the figure, there are always six cochannel-
interfering cells in the first tier

• Contribution from second and higher tiers amounts to

less than 1% of the total interference

• Interference is the dominating factor and thermal noise

can be neglected

• The signal-to-interference ratio (S/I) at a mobile

receiver is given as:

21
 S/I and q (or N)
• The reuse factor N can taje several values 4, 7, 9, 12

• For the required, S/I ratio what is the optimum value of N for a hexagonal cell
with omnidirectional antennas?

22
 Problem 2

Reference: Reference: Garg, “Wireless Communications and

Networking”
23
 Problem 2 - Solution

Reference: Reference: Garg, “Wireless Communications and

Networking” 24
Worst-Case Cochannel Interference Scenario

25
 References
• Z.Taha,PhD, EECE74110 Lecture Notes, “FundamentalsCellularCommuncations”, EECE
74110 Offering in 2021, Conestoga College, Accessed Jan 2022

• V.Garg, “Wireless Communications and Networks”, Chapter 3, pgs 126-148

• H.Tailor, Engineering Mentor: “Cellular Concept, Cell Shape & Frequency Reuse
Fundamentals”, July 2, 2020

26
Wireless Communications and Networks
W23: EECE74110
Bachelor of Electronic Systems Engineering (ESE)

LECTURE 03: Fundamentals of Cellular

Communications – PART2
Hassan Shakoor BASc, MASc
Professor, Electronic Systems Engineering
School of Engineering & Technology

Conestoga College | Cambridge Campus

850 Fountain St. S., Cambridge, ON, N3H 0A8
E: [email protected]
 Todays Agenda
• Erlangs and Erlang B tables

• Cochannel Interference Reduction

• Adjacent Channel Interference (ACI)

• Segmentation

• Example Calculations

2
 Coverage from Course Outline
• Course Outcomes
– 5. Demonstrate knowledge of different technological aspects including frequency
bands, channelization & format, dynamic channel assignment, cell & traffic planning,
and coexistence of multiple systems in overlapping frequency bands
• Unit Outcomes Reference: EECE74110, Course Outline,
Posted on eConestoga
– 5. Radio-Frequency Resources for Wireless Communications

3
 Coverage from Text Book
• V.Garg , Wireless Communications and Networking,
– Chapter 5 – Fundamentals of Cellular Communications

4
 Traffic Usage
• Optimum size of a cell depends on the amount of traffic in a cellular
network

• How to quantify traffic through a telecommunication network?

– Calling rate: The number of times a traffic path (channel or time slot or frequency
band or switch) is used per unit time (i.e., calls per hour)
– Call holding time: The average duration of occupancy of a traffic path
– Offered load = carrier load + overflow
– Overflow: The amount of traffic that cannot be handled by the traffic path
– Blocking probability: (Gos: Grade of service) The average ratio of blocked calls to total
calls

5
 Erlangs
• Erlang, a Swedish engineer, studied the problem of call blocking using
statistical analysis early in the twentieth century

• Telecommunication traffic is measured in unit of Erlangs (E)

• One Erlang is equivalent to one continuous call

• Total Traffic, T = N p
– Where, N = number of subscribers
– P = probability that a given customer is using the traffic path
6
Problem - 1

7
Problem – 1 Solution

8
Problem – 2

9
Problem – 2 Solution

10
 Cochannel Interference Reduction
As the call traffic increases, the frequency spectrum should be used
efficiently

Increasing N, decreases the call capacity of the cell

Instead of increasing N, we can do two things:

1. Use directional antenna arrangement (sectorization) to reduce

cochannel interference

2. Perform cell splitting to subdivide a congested cell into smaller

cells 11
 Sectorized Cells
• In case of a sectorized cell, each cell is divided into three or six sectors and use three
or six directional antennas at the base station to reduce the number of cochannel
interferers 6 Sectors
3 Sectors

12
Sectorized Cells – Interference Reduction
3 Sectors 6 Sectors

Reference: H.Tailor: Engineering Mentor, “Cell Sectoring and Cell Splitting, 13

Improving Coverage and Capacity in Cellular System”, Dec 31,2020
 Cell Splitting
• After a cellular system has been in operation, traffic will grow in the
system and will require additional channels

• Cell Splitting: The process of subdividing a congested cell into smaller

cells, each with its own base station

• As a results of this subdivision, corresponding reduction in antenna height

and transmitter power is obtained

• The following splitting patterns can be used for various values of N:

• For N = 4, use 3:1 cell splitting
• For N = 7, use 3:1 or 4:1 splitting
14
 4:1 Cell Splitting

• The area covered by new cell#4 is one-fourth of the area of the old cell#4.
• The ratio of transmit powers Pt1/Pt2 = 16 (12 dB). That means, we achieve
power reduction of 12 dB. 15
 Adjacent Channel Interference (ACI)
• Signal which are adjacent in frequency to the desired signal cause ACI

• ACI occurs because of imperfect receiver filters which allows nearby

frequencies to move into the pass band, and nonlinearity of the amplfiers

• ACI can be reduced by:

1. Using modulation schemes which have low out-of-band radiation
2. Using better bandpass filter at the receiver front end
3. Assigning adjacent channels to different cells in order to keep the
frequency separation between each channel in a given cell as large as
possible
16
 Segmentation
• Sometimes engineers have to add an additional cell at less than the reuse
distance without using a complete cell splitting process

• Segmentation divides a channel group into segments of mutually exclusive

channel frequencies

• Then, by assigning different segments to particular cell sites, cochannel

interference between these cells can be avoided

• The disadvantage of segmentation is that capacity of the segmented cells is

lower than the unsegmented cell
17
 References
• Z.Taha,PhD, EECE74110 Lecture Notes, “FundamentalsCellularCommunications”, EECE
74110 Offering in 2021, Conestoga College, Accessed Jan 2022

• V.Garg, “Wireless Communications and Networks”, Chapter 3, pgs 126-148

• H.Tailor: Engineering Mentor, “Cell Sectoring and Cell Splitting, Improving Coverage and
Capacity in Cellular System”, Dec 31,2020

18
 Wireless Communications and Networks
W23: EECE74110
Bachelor of Electronic Systems Engineering (ESE)

LECTURE 04: Antennas, Diversity & Link Analysis – PART1

Hassan Shakoor BASc, MASc

Professor, Electronic Systems Engineering
School of Engineering & Technology

Conestoga College | Cambridge Campus

850 Fountain St. S., Cambridge, ON, N3H 0A8
E: [email protected]
 Todays Agenda
• Introduction to antennas

• Antenna fundamentals

• Antenna Parameters

• Example Calculations

2
 Coverage from Course Outline
• Course Outcomes
– 6. Interpret antenna specifications, select an antenna for a given application, and
design basic impedance matching network
• Unit Outcomes
Reference: EECE74110, Course Outline,
Posted on eConestoga

3
 Coverage from Text Book
• V.Garg , Wireless Communications and Networking,
– Chapter 10 – Antennas, Diversity and Link Analysis

4
 Introduction to Antennas
• What is an antenna?
– A transducer: converting energy from one form to another
– Interface between radio waves propagating through space and electric currents
– Array of conductor, electrically connected to receiver or transmitter

Electric symbol for antenna

Reference: Wikipedia 5
 Introduction to Antennas
• In the 1890s, there were only a few antennas in the world

• By 1950s, antenna transformed our lives via radio and television reception

• With the use of mobile phones, we carry multiple antennas with us such
as for cellular communication, GPS, wifi and NFC

• This growth is not slowing down with use the of IoT devices

• Hence, learning about antenna is essential

6
 Brief History of Antennas
• The first experiment that involved the coupling of electricity and
magnetism was performed by Faraday around 1830s

• Heinrich Hertz developed a wireless communication system in which he

forced an electrical spark to occur in the gap of a dipole antenna. (1886)

• By 1901, Marconi was sending information across the Atlantic. For a

transmit antenna, he used several vertical wires attached to the ground

7
 Why do Antennas radiate?
• Here we will discuss an intuitive understanding for why antennas radiate without
mathematics

• An electric charge will have an associated electric field with it.

• The electric field (E-field) is a vector quantity – it has a magnitude and a direction.
Magnitude depends on how much charge exists

• The magnitude of electric field decreases as distance from the charge increases

• Electric field lines point inward for a negative charge and outward for a positive charge.

8
 Why do Antennas radiate?
Stationary charge Charge in acceleration

9
 Why do Antennas radiate?
• Suppose this charge was set into motion

• This produces a changing electric field around the charge

• And changing electric field give rise to changing magnetic field (H-field),
hence we have electromagnetic radiation

• The subject of antenna theory is concerned with transferring power from

your receiver (the energy is contained in voltages and currents) into
electromagnetic radiation (where the energy is contained in the E- and H-
field) travelling away from the antenna 10
 Antenna Parameters – Radiation Pattern

• A radiation pattern defines the variation of the power radiated by an

antenna as a function of the direction away from the antenna

• Radiation pattern is plotted in 3-dimension or 2-dimension

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 Antenna Parameters – Radiation Pattern
Radiation Pattern 3D

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 Antenna Parameters –
Isotropic and Omnidirectional antenna
• What would be the 3d shape for the radiation pattern of an isotropic
antenna?
• ________
• Some antenna are described as “omnidirectional,” which for an actual
antenna means that the radiation pattern is isotropic in a single plane

• Dipole antenna is omnidirectional in the x-y plane

• Directional antennas do not have a symmetry in the radiation pattern

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 Antenna Parameters – Radiation Pattern
Radiation Pattern of a dish antenna

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 Antenna Parameters – Field Regions
• The fields surrounding an antenna are divided into 3 primary regions:
1. Reactive near field
2. Radiating near field or Fresnel Region
3. Far field or Fraunhofer Region
• The far field region is the most important, as this determines the radiation
pattern.
• In the far field region, the radiation pattern does not change shape with the
distance (R)
2𝐷𝐷 2
• Far field region, 𝑅𝑅 > , and R >> D and R >> λ. Where D is largest
λ
dimension of antenna
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 Antenna Parameters – Antenna Gain
• The task of a transmitting antenna is to convert the electrical energy into
electromagnetic wave

• The antennas are passive devices, the power radiated by the transmitted
antenna cannot be greater than the power entering from the transmitter

• Antenna gain in one direction results from a concentration of power in that

direction at the expense of other directions

• Antenna gain is one of the most important in the design of an antenna

system.
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 Antenna Parameters – Antenna Gain
• Antenna gain can be defined either with respect to an isotropic antenna or
with respect to a half-wave dipole
• A half-wave dipole is a simple, practical antenna which is in common use
• The gain of an antenna in a given direction is the ratio of power density in
that direction divided by the power density that would be produced by an
isotropic antenna
• The term dBi is used to refer to the antenna gain with respect to the
isotropic antenna
• The term dBd is used to refer to the antenna gain with respect to a half-
wave dipole (0 dBd = 2.1 dBi)
• Many antenna data sheets figures are quoted in dBi to give inflated gain
figure
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Antenna Parameters – Antenna Gain

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Antenna Parameters – Antenna Gain

19
Antenna Parameters – Power Received

20
Antenna Parameters – EIRP

21
Recall: “Two Ray Path Model”

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Example Problem - 1

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Solution- 1

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Example Problem - 2

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 Antenna Performance Metrics
• Performance Criteria of Antenna Systems

• Antenna pattern: the radiation pattern to understand coverage for a given

area/region

• Main and side lobe: main lobe makes up for the maximum concentration of radiation
energy from antenna. Side lobes form the low energy components of the radiation
pattern and can create potential problems by generating interference

• Radiation efficiency: ratio of total power radiated by an antenna to net power

accepted by an antenna from the transmitter

• Antenna bandwidth: operating range of frequencies of the antenna

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 Antenna Performance Metrics (continued)
• Performance Criteria of Antenna Systems

• Gain (G): ratio of the radiation intensity in a given direction to that of an isotropically radiated signal

• Directivity (D): gain calculated assuming loss less antenna

• Antenna Polarization: horizontal and vertical polarizations

• Input Impedance: Most cables used as feed line from the transmitter/receiver to antenna are
either 50 or 72/75 ohms.

• Front-to-back ratio (RFB): ratio in respect to how much energy is directed in the exact opposite
direction of the main lobe

• Front-to-side ratio (RFS): ratio in respect to how much energy is directed in the side lobes of the
main lobe of antenna
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 Antenna Performance Metrics
Main lobe, back lobe and side lobe

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 Antenna Performance Metrics (continued)
• Performance Criteria of Antenna Systems

• Power dissipation

• Construction

• Cost

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 References
• Z.Taha,PhD, EECE74110 Lecture Notes, “AntennasFundamentals”, EECE 74110 Offering in
2021, Conestoga College, Accessed Feb 2022

• V.Garg, “Wireless Communications and Networks”, Chapter 10, pgs 267-316

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