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Wireless Channels
Wireless Channels
Wireless Channels
Communication typically exposed to several kinds of impairments, some of which are unique to the wireless environment.
Assumptions
Bandwidth B [Hz] available for communications, on a carrier frequency fc [Hz]. Digital communications with linear modulation (e.g. QAM, QPSK) is used. I.e., transmitted waveform represents a sequence of complex-valued modulation symbols, modulated onto a complex sinusoidal carrier. Communications take place at Nyquist rate, i.e. 2B channel symbols are transmitted per second (highest possible rate where intersymbol-interference can be compensated for). Perfect synchronization in time and frequency is available [no timing errors or oscillator drift].
Assumptions, contd
Thus, the complex baseband representation of transmitted signals can be used:
Transmitted waveform x(t) is represented by a sequence of complex-valued discrete samples x(k), where sampling has taken place at Nyquist rate.
Real part corresponds to in-phase (I) component of modulation symbol/waveform, and imaginary part corresponds to quadrature (Q) component.
where y(k) is received symbol at discrete time instant k, (k) is the fading envelope, x(k) is the transmitted information channel symbol, and w(k) is (complex-valued) AWGN. (k) is modelled as a temporally correlated random variable. Distribution (pdf) given by multipath model. Correlation properties given by multipath model and transmitter-receiver motion assumptions.
Nakagami-m fading: More general statistical model which encompasses Rayleigh fading as a special case, and can also approximate Ricean fading very well.
Multipath transmission
As waves are radiated from a transmitter antenna, they will be reflected from reflecting objects. Waves are also scattered from objects with rough surfaces. Thus a transmitted signal will typically travel through many different transmission paths, and arrive at the receiver as a sum of different paths, coming in at various spatial angles. Typical assumption in mobile systems (at mobile side): Isotropic scattering Transmitted energy arrives equally distributed over all possible spatial angles, with uniformly distributed phases. In addition, a stronger line-of-sight (LOS) component may be present.
Interference
Electromagnetic disturbances from different sources within a frequency band may interfer with the desired information signal. These disturbances may come from other users (intra- or inter-cell), or from other systems sharing the same frequency band (may be problem in unlicensed bands). In our discussion we shall either disregard such interference, or model it simply as an increased noise floor (appropriate if there are many independent interference sources). I.e., our additive noise term may encompass certain types of interference (e.g., inter-user interference in a fully loaded cellular network).
Path loss
In free space, received signal power typically decays with the square of the path length d [m] experienced by the signal during transmission. However, real-life environments are not free space, since the earth acts as a reflecting surface: Other (maybe even more severe) models may apply. Power may decay even faster with increased d. Transmit and receive antenna gains (and heights above ground) and carrier frequency will also influence the path loss. Several analytical and empirical models developed for different environments (macro-/microcell, urban/rural). We refer to [Stber, Ch. 2.5] for details [self-study]. In our presentation, path loss will manifest itself as a (constant) expected power attenuation G [-].
System noise
Noise in a communication system typically comes from a variety of mutually independent sources:
thermal noise in receiver equipment atmospheric noise various kinds of random interference
Noise is typically independent of the information signal, and of the fading characteristics of the channel. Thus it usually is modelled as Additive White Gaussian Noise (AWGN). [NB: law of large numbers!] Constant power spectral density N0/2 [W/Hz] over the total (two-sided) bandwidth 2B. I.e., total noise power N0.