Introduction to Communication Systems

Course Code: ECEG-4111

Program: BSc In Electrical & Computer Engineering
Course credit (hours/week): 5 ECTS (2 Hrs-Lec, 2 Hrs- lab & 3 - Hrs
Tutorial)
1
Year / Semester: 4 / 1
Course Instructor: Kassaye Hailu
E-Mail: [email protected]
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 CHAPTER 3
TRANSMITTERS AND RECEIVERS

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CHAPTER OUTLINES
➢ AM Radio Transmitters

➢ FM Transmitters

➢ AM Receivers

➢ FM Receivers

➢ Transceivers

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CHAPTER OBJECTIVE
At the end of the chapter students are expected to:

➢ Understand the construction of AM and FM Transmitters

➢ Understand the operation of AM and FM Transmitters

➢ Understand the construction of AM and FM Receivers

➢ Understand the operation of AM and FM Receivers

➢ Understand Image Frequency and its Rejection

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 Radio Transmitters
❖ The transmitter is the electronic unit that accepts the information signal

to be transmitted and converts it to an RF signal capable of being

transmitted over long distances.

❖ Transmitter must generate a signal with the right type of modulation,

with sufficient power, at the right carrier frequency, and with reasonable
efficiency.

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 Radio Transmitters
❖ Every transmitter has four basic requirements.

1. It must generate a carrier signal of the correct frequency at a desired point in the
spectrum.

2. It must provide some form of modulation that causes the information signal to
modify the carrier signal.

3. It must provide sufficient power amplification to ensure that the signal level is high

enough to carry over the desired distance.

4. It must provide circuits that match the impedance of the power amplifier to that of
the antenna for maximum transfer of power. 3/14/2023 6
 classification of RF Transmitters
Based on the type of modulated signal to be transmitted, Transmitters are
mainly classified into two:

1. AM Transmitter

2. FM transmitter.

Based on the power level of the signal to be transmitted, Transmitters are

mainly classified into two:

1. Low Level Transmitter

2. High Level Transmitter

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 3.1 AM Radio Transmitters
❖ Transmitters that transmit AM signals are known as AM transmitters.

❖ AM transmitters are used in medium wave (MW) and short wave (SW)
frequency bands for AM broadcast.

❖ The MW band has frequencies between 550 kHz and 1650 kHz, and the SW
band has frequencies ranging from 3 MHz to 30 MHz.

❖ The two types of AM transmitters that are used based on their transmitting
powers are:

1. Low Level Transmitter

2. High Level Transmitter

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 3.1 AM Radio Transmitters
1. Low level modulation

❖ Where only a few watts of transmitting power is required , low level modulation is used.

❖ In low level modulation, the generation of AM wave takes place at a low power level.

❖ Low level AM transmitter performs the process of modulation near the beginning of the

transmitter.

❖ With low-level modulation, less modulating signal power is required to achieve a high

percentage of modulation

❖ Low-level modulation is not suitable for high-power applications when all the amplifiers

that follow the modulator stage must be linear

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 3.1 AM Radio Transmitters

Figure 3.1 : AM transmitter Block diagram with Low-Level Transmitter

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 3.1 AM Radio Transmitters
❖ The stabilized RF crystal oscillator
➢ Is used to generate the correct RF signal

➢ is a critical stage in a transmitter

Two techniques commonly used to stabilize the oscillator, buffering and voltage regulation.
❖ Buffer Amplifier

➢ The buffer amplifier is a relatively low-gain amplifier that follows the oscillator.

➢ It has a constant input impedance (resistance).

➢ it always draws the same amount of current from the oscillator.

➢ This helps to prevent "pulling" of the oscillator frequency. 3/14/2023 11

 3.1 AM Radio Transmitters
❖ Voltage Regulation

➢ In most transmitters, the supply voltage to the oscillator is regulated at a constant value.

➢ Zener diodes and three-terminal regulator ICs are commonly used voltage regulators.

❖ Modulator

➢ The modulator is a variable-gain (nonlinear) amplifier.

➢ it must have an RF carrier signal and an AF information signal.

➢ In a low-level transmitter, the power levels are low in the oscillator, buffer, and modulator

stages; typically, the modulator output is around 10 mW (700 mV RMS into 50 ohms) or less
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 3.1 AM Radio Transmitters
❖ AF Voltage Amplifier

➢ A microphone is used to covert sound wave into electrical signal of very few millivolts.

➢ a voltage amplifier is used to boost the microphone's signal.

➢ The signal level at the output of the AF voltage amplifier is usually at least 1 volt RMS; it

is highly dependent upon the transmitter's design.

➢ Notice that the AF amplifier in the transmitter is only provide a voltage gain, and not

necessarily a current gain for the microphone's signal.

➢ The power levels are quite small at the output of this amplifier; a few mW at best.

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 3.1 AM Radio Transmitters
❖ RF Power Amplifier

➢ The RF power amplifier is normally built with several stages to increase both the
voltage and current of the AM signal.

➢ In order to accurately amplify the tiny AM signal from the modulator, the RF power
amplifier stages must be linear

➢ Amplifiers are divided up into "classes," according to the conduction angle of the active
device within.

➢ Class A and class B amplifiers are considered to be linear amplifiers, so the RF power
amplifier stages will normally be constructed using one or both of these type of
amplifiers.
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3.1 AM Radio Transmitters

Figure 3.2: AM transmitter Block diagram with High-Level Transmitter

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 3.1 AM Radio Transmitters
❖ In low level modulation system amplifier efficiency and bandwidth preservations
are important factors since audio signal is having low power.

❖ For high level modulation other than efficiency of amplifier power handling
capability, distortion, capability of handling amplitude variations are important
parameter.

❖ The output of final amplifier is passed through an impedance matching network

that includes the tank circuit of the final amplifier.

❖ For tank circuits, Q is kept low enough to pass all sideband signals without
amplitude and frequency distortion
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 3.2 FM Transmitters
❖ FM signals have no amplitude variation.

❖ Therefore, FM transmitter can employ class-C throughout, even

after modulation.
❖ There are two types of FM transmitters
1. Directly modulated (Variable Reactance Type) FM transmitter
2. Indirectly (phase) modulated FM transmitter

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 3.2.1 Directly Modulated FM Transmitter
❖ Direct frequency modulation can be employed using FM circuits.

❖ Does not maintain high frequency stability of the carrier while at the same

time obtaining adequate frequency deviation.

❖ The frequency modulation is carried out at a lower frequency and with a

smaller frequency deviation.

❖ Passing this FM wave through frequency multiplier circuit, the desired
carrier frequency and desired frequency deviation is achieved.

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 3.2.1 Directly Modulated FM Transmitter
❖ With frequency multiplication, the instantaneous frequency is multiplied.

With frequency mixing, the deviation is not altered.

❖ Because of the variable nature of the tuning of the tank circuit, crystal-

controlled oscillators cannot be used in direct FM.

❖ The stability inherent in such crystal-controlled units is not available.

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3.2.2 Indirect (Phase) Modulated FM Transmitter
❖ The indirect method permits use of crystal –control.

❖ In this technique, the phase angle is made to vary while holding the

frequency constant.

❖ By this technique a phase modulated signal is generated and it can

be passed off as an FM signal.

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3.2.2 Indirect (Phase) Modulated FM Transmitter

Figure3.4 : FM transmitter in which FM is achieved through Phase Modulation 3/14/2023 21

3.2.2 FM Transmitter (Armstrong Method)
❖ The initial modulation takes place as an amplitude modulated DSBSC signal so that a
crystal- controlled oscillator can be used if desired.
❖ The crystal oscillator generates the subcarrier, which can be low, say on the order of
100 KHz.
❖ One output from the oscillator is phase shifted by 90 degrees to produce the sine
term, which is then DSBSC modulated in the balanced modulator by Vm(t).
❖ This is combined with the direct output from the oscillator in the summing amplifier,
the result then being the phase modulated signal.
❖ The modulating signal is passed through an integrator to the modulated to get the
frequency modulated signal. At this stage, the equivalent frequency deviation will be
low. 3/14/2023 22
3.2.2 FM Transmitter (Armstrong Method)

Figure3.5 : FM transmitter in which FM is achieved through Armstrong Method 3/14/2023 23

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Adjacent Channel Selectivity (Double Spotting):

❖This is well known phenomenon, which manifests itself by the picking up

of the same short wave station at two near by points on the receiver dial.

❖ It is caused by poor front-end selectivity.

❖The front-end of the receiver does not select different adjacent signals very
well, but the IF stage eliminating almost all of them.

❖ Double spotting may be used to calculate the intermediate frequency of an

unknown receiver, since the spurious point on the dial is precisely 2fi below
the correct frequency.
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Reasons for use and functions of RF amplifier:
❖ Greater gain i.e. better sensitivity

❖ Improved image-frequency rejection

❖ Improved signal-to-noise ratio

❖ Improved rejection of adjacent unwanted signals. better selectivity

❖ Better coupling of the receiver to the antenna

❖ Prevention of spurious frequencies from entering the mixer and heterodyning there
to produce an interfering frequency equal to the IF from the desired signal.

❖ Prevention of re-radiation of the local oscillator through the antenna of the receiver.

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Intermediate Frequencies and IF amplifiers:
The following are the major factors influencing the choice of
the intermediate frequency in any particular system
1. If the IF is too high, poor selectivity and poor adjacent channel rejection result
unless sharp cutoff filters are used in the IF stages.
2. A high value of IF increases tracking difficulties
3. As the IF is lowered, image frequency rejection becomes poorer.
4. A very low IF can make the selectivity too sharp, cutting off the sidebands. This
problem arises because the Q must be low when the IF is low and therefore the gain
per stage is low.
5. If IF is very low, the frequency stability of the local oscillator must be made
correspondingly higher because any frequency drift is now a larger properties of the
low IF than of a high IF.
6. The IF must not fall within the tuning range of the receiver, or else instability will
occur and heterodyne whistles will be heard, making it impossible to tune to the
frequency band immediately adjacent to the IF. 3/14/2023 55
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Frequencies Used:

❖ Standard broadcast AM receivers use an IF within the 438- 465 KHz range, with 455
KHz by far the most popular frequency.
❖ AM, SSB and other receivers employed for shortwave or VHF reception have a first IF
often in the range from about 1.6 to 2.3MHz, or else above 30 MHz.

❖ FM receivers using the standard 88-108 MHz band have an IF which is almost always
10.7 MHz

❖ Television receivers in the VHF band and in the UHF band uses an IF between 26
and 46 MHz, with approximately 36 and 46 MHz the two most popular values.

❖ Microwave and Radar receivers, operating on frequencies in the 1-10 GHz range, use
intermediate frequencies depending on the application, with 30, 60 and 70 MHz .
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Tracking:

❖ The super heterodyne receiver has number of tunable circuits which must all be
tuned correctly if any given station is to be received.

❖ The ganged tuning is employed to do this work, which mechanically couples all
tuning circuits so that only one tuning control or dial is required.

❖ Usually there are three tuned circuits: Antenna or RF tuned circuit, mixer tuned
circuit and local oscillator tuned circuit. All these circuits must be tuned to get
proper RF input and to get IF frequency at the output of the mixer.

❖ The process of tuning circuits to get the desired output is called tracking.

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❖ Any error that exists in the frequency difference will result in an incorrect
frequency being fed to the IF amplifier. Such errors are known as
“Tracking errors” and these must be avoided.

❖ To avoid tracking errors standard capacitors are not used, and ganged capacitors with
identical sections are used. A different value of inductance and special extra capacitors
called trimmers and padders are used to adjust the capacitance of the oscillator to the
proper range.

❖ There are three common methods used for tracking.

i. Padder Tracking

ii. Trimmer Tracking

iii. Three-Point Tracking 3/14/2023 70

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 TRANSCEIVER
❖A transceiver is a system that contains both a transmitter and a receiver.

❖The transmitter from one transceiver sends a signal through space to the receiver

of a second transceiver.

❖After receiving the signal, the transmitter from the second transceiver sends a

signal back to the receiver of the first transceiver completing a two-way

communications data.

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Proper transceiver design is critical in the cost and performance of a data link.
❖ In order to provide the optimal design for the transceiver, a link budget is used to
allocate the gains and losses in the link and to perform trade-offs of various parts of the
system.
❖ The link budget also uses the required signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) or the ratio of bit
energy to noise spectral density (Eb/No) for a given probability of error.
❖ These required levels are derived by using probability of error curves given a certain
type of modulation.

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Link margin for analog systems = SNR (calculated) - SNR (required)
Link margin for digital systems = Eb/No(calculated) -Eb/No(required).
This link margin is used to provide a margin of error in the analysis,
hardware implementation, and other factors that can affect the desired
performance.

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thank you!!!!!

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