Communications Equipment II

CM 417

Satellite Communications Subsystems

and Link Design

By:
MEng. HOSAM ALMQADIM
 Satellite Subsystems and Functionality
 Generally satellites have many subsystems which join together for the fully operation
of the satellite.
 The various subsystems in a general communication satellites are:
1) Attitude Control and Propulsion Subsystem: Rocket motors to correct satellite
orbit.
2) Power Subsystem: Generates, stores, regulation and distributes a satellites
electrical power.
3) Communication Subsystem: Receive, amplify, and retransmit the incoming
signals, receive-transmit units are called Transponders.
4) Antenna Subsystem: Absorption and radiation over wide bandwidths at
microwave frequencies, beam shape, and antenna gain and pattern.
5) Telemetry, Tracking, and Command Subsystem: Telemetry system collects data
(pressure, fuel, temperatures, ..) from sensors and sends them to the control earth
station. Tracking system determine the current orbit, position, velocity and
acceleration. Command system receive the uplink commands, process and send
them to other subsystems for implication,
Block Diagram of a Communication Satellite
 Earth Station Subsystem and Functionality
 The earth station on the ground is the terrestrial base of the system. The
earth station communicates with the satellite to carry out designated
mission. Many earth stations are now located on top of tall buildings or
in other urban areas directly where the end user resides.
 The various subsystems in an Earth Station are:
1) Antenna Subsystem: It consists of an antenna, with an associated
tracking system, a transmitting section and a receiving section with a
diplexer that implements frequency domain multiplexing.
2) Receive Subsystem: Receive a very weak signal coming from the
satellite and amplify it, down-convert its frequency to a level suitable
for further processing, then routing the received carriers to the
demodulating channels.
 Earth Station Subsystem and Functionality
Cont..
3) Transmit Subsystem: Up-converting frequency, amplify carriers
coming from the modulating channels and pass them to the antenna
subsystem.
4) Ground Communication Equipment (GCE) Subsystem
1. GCE Transmit Subsystem: Modulation and Multiplexing
2. GCE Receive Subsystem: Demodulation and Demultiplexing
5) Power Subsystem: Ac source and Ac/Dc convert system, regulation
and distributes AC or DC power to all subsystems, backup power
systems that take over if an ac power failure occurs.
Block Diagram of an Earth Station
Satellite Communications Links
Satellite communications links are important in order to determine antenna size on
transmit and receive stations making up the communications system, transmit output
power, required values for satellite mission devices, etc.

7
Configuration of Satellite Communications
Links and Transmit/Receiver Power

• To specify the characteristics of the satellite portion of the link, the carrier-
to-noise-power-density ratio (C/N0) is normally used. C: power of the
propagation wave; N0: noise power density per 1 Hz.
• Given a signal (Pt in dBW) transmitted from a transmit earth station,
determine at what power this signal can be received at a receive earth
station (Pr in dBW).
• All sources of noise in the link contribute to the system noise temperature T.
This system noise temperature conditions the noise power spectral density
N0, and therefore the link performance C/N0 can be calculated at the
receiver input. The receiving equipment performance is measured by its
figure of merit, G/T, where G represents the overall receiving equipment
gain.
• The following sections present definitions of the relevant parameters that
condition the link performance and provide useful equations that permit the
calculation of C/N0.
Configuration of Satellite Communications
Links and Transmit/Receiver Power
Configuration of link:
 The Power Balance Equation simplifies the analysis of microwave links:
 The Power Received = The Power Transmitted plus all gains, minus all losses.

[Pr]: Receive power at the receive earth station

[Pt]: Transmit power from the transmit earth station
[Gt]: Gain of the transmit-earth-station antenna using absolute gain with respect to an isotropic antenna
[Lta]: Feeder Loss, tracking loss, and polarization-mismatch loss of the transmit-earth-station antenna
[Lu]: Up-link propagation loss (including free space loss, atmospheric absorption loss, and rain attenuation loss)
[Gsu]: Gain of satellite receive antenna
[Lua]: Feeder Loss, tracking loss, and polarization-mismatch loss of the satellite receive antenna
[Gs]: Amplification Gain of the satellite transponder
[Gsd]: Gain of satellite transmit antenna
[Lda]: Feeder loss, tracking loss, and polarization-mismatch loss of the satellite transmit antenna
[Ld]: Down-link propagation loss (including free space loss, atmospheric absorption loss, and rain attenuation loss)
[Gr]: Gain of receive-earth-station antenna
[Lra]: Feeder loss, tracking loss, and polarization-mismatch loss of the receive-earth-station antenna
Noise Considerations in Satellite Comm. Link
Noise (1): Noise included in signal source plus thermal noise generated by modulator, frequency
converter, and power amplifier. In most cases, this noise is sufficiently small compared to signal power
and is negligible compared with other noise sources.
Noise (2): Thermal noise from ground received by satellite antenna (often at 300K).
Noise (3): Thermal noise generated by the satellite transponder and governed by the low-noise
performance of the transponder’s first stage.
Noise (4): Noise received by the ground antenna in addition to the signal from the satellite; includes sky
noise, atmospheric thermal noise, and terrestrial thermal noise.
Noise (5): Thermal noise generated by the ground receiver and governed by the low-noise performance of
the first-stage amplifier.
Main Link Parameters
 Antenna gain
 EIRP
 Free space loss
 Atmospheric absorption loss
 Receiver noise power density
 Antenna noise
 Noise temperature
 Noise figure
 Equivalent input noise temperature
 G/T
Antenna Gain
 The gain of an antenna is the ratio of the power radiated (or received) per unit solid
angle by the antenna in a given direction to the power radiated (or received) per unit
solid angle by an isotropic antenna fed with the same power.
 Gain in the direction (θ,Φ), G(θ,Φ), can be given by
where w(θ,Φ) is power flux density in the (θ,Φ) direction
 The gain of parabolic antennas that are often used in satellite communications is
4𝜋
 𝐺= 𝜆2
𝐴𝑒𝑓𝑓  𝐴𝑒𝑓𝑓 = 𝜂 𝐴 = 𝜂 𝜋𝐷2 /4

𝝅𝑫 𝟐
𝐺= 𝜼 𝝀

where η is aperture efficiency (50-70%), D is antenna diameter,

λ is wavelength, and Aeff is the effective aperture area of the antenna.
 In logarithmic form,
𝝅𝑫 𝟐
[𝑮] = 𝟏𝟎 𝐥𝐨𝐠 𝜼 = 𝟏𝟎𝐥𝐨𝐠(𝟏𝟏𝟎. 𝜼. 𝒇𝟐 . 𝑫𝟐 )
𝝀
Antenna Gain cont..

 Example:
Calculate the gain of a 3.80 m parabolic antenna operating frequency of 6.175
GHz & aperture efficiency of 0.55?
Solution:

 Example:
Calculate the gain of a 4 m parabolic antenna operating frequency of 8 GHz &
aperture efficiency of 0.6?
Solution:
Effective Isotropic Radiated Power (EIRP)
 EIRP is used as an index of transmission performance, and it is the product of
transmit antenna gain (Gt) and transmitter output power (Pt), EIRP = PtGt
 As an example, suppose the radiated power is measured for an arbitrary antenna.
Suppose the peak power is measured at θ=Φ=90 degrees, and the value is EIRP =
20 dBm = -10 dB = [0.1 W = 100 mW]. Then a perfectly isotropic antenna
radiating 20 dBm would produce the same measured power for the peak angles of
our antenna.
Effective Isotropic Radiated Power (EIRP) cont..

 Example:
Calculate the transmit EIRP for an antenna having the following data.
Transmit power per carrier 0.28 W, antenna feeder loss 1.00 dB, antenna
pointing loss 0.70 dB And transmitter antenna gain 45.21dB.
Solution:
Free Space Path Loss
 A basic quantity in link budget is propagation loss in free space. In a satellite
link, it is assumed that transmit and receive antennas face each other but are
separated by a sufficient distance d [m] in free space.
 Gains of the transmit and receive antennas: Gt and Gr, Effective area of receive
antenna Aeff, Transmit power Pt, Wavelength λ.
 Power flux density at the reception point: F=PtGt/4πd2
 Received power:
 Pr=F*Aeff =
𝑃𝑡 𝐺𝑡
 𝑃𝑟 = 𝐹 ∗ 𝐴𝑒𝑓𝑓 = 𝐴𝑒𝑓𝑓
4𝜋𝑑2

 Since we have Aeff = Gr λ2/4π, thus

𝜆2
 𝑃𝑟 = 𝑃𝑡 𝐺𝑡 𝐺𝑟
(4𝜋𝑑)2
Free Space Path Loss cont..
 Free space loss can be given as the ratio of receive power to transmit power
𝑷𝒓 𝝀𝟐
= 𝑮𝒕 𝑮𝒓
𝑷𝒕 (𝟒𝝅𝒅)𝟐
 If we treat the transmit and receive antennas as isotropic antennas, we have
“basic transmission loss”
𝝀𝟐
𝑳𝑭 = Where d,λ are in meters
(𝟒𝝅𝒅)𝟐
 In logarithmic form:
𝟐
𝝀 𝝀
𝑳𝑭 = 𝟏𝟎𝒍𝒐𝒈𝟏𝟎 = 𝟐𝟎𝒍𝒐𝒈𝟏𝟎
𝟒𝝅𝒅 𝟒𝝅𝒅

 For typical radio applications, it is common to find f measured in units of MHz and d
in km, in which case the FSPL equation becomes

𝑳𝑭 = 𝟐𝟎𝒍𝒐𝒈𝟏𝟎 𝒅 + 𝟐𝟎𝒍𝒐𝒈𝟏𝟎 𝒇 + 𝟑𝟐. 𝟒𝟓

Free space Path loss cont..
 For other units of f and d
𝑳𝑭 = 𝟐𝟎𝒍𝒐𝒈𝟏𝟎 𝒅 + 𝟐𝟎𝒍𝒐𝒈𝟏𝟎 𝒇 + 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕

 For d, f in meters and kilohertz, respectively, the constant becomes -87.55 .

 For d, f in meters and megahertz, respectively, the constant becomes -27.55 .

 For d, f in kilometers and Gigahertz, respectively, the constant becomes +92.45 .

 For d, f in kilometers and megahertz, respectively, the constant becomes +32.45 .

Free space Path loss cont..
 Example:
Distance between satellite & earth station is ‘d’= 37,000 Km, Up link frequency
‘f’= 6.175 GHz, calculate uplink loss or free space loss
Solution:
 Dependency of the FSPL on Distance and Frequency
 Dependency of the FSPL on distance is caused by the spreading out of
electromagnetic energy in free space.
 Frequency dependency of the path loss is caused by the frequency dependency
of the receiving antenna's aperture in case the antenna gain is fixed.

The FSPL for a range of fixed frequencies The FSPL against distance for fixed frequencies
of 2.4 GHz, 5.1 GHz and 5.7GHz
Atmospheric Absorption Loss

 Among gaseous molecules, oxygen and water vapor are the primary factors
underlying the attenuation of radio waves through resonance absorption.
 The attenuation is caused by the scattering and absorption of electromagnetic
waves by drops of liquid water.
 The scattering diffuses the signal, while absorption increases the molecular
energy, corresponding to a slight increase in temperature, and results in an
equivalent loss of signal energy.
 In the case, absorption is the main cause of attenuation if the radius of the
drops or particles is sufficiently small with respect to radio wavelength, while
attenuation due to scattering increases as the size of drops or particles
increases.
Atmospheric Absorption Loss cont..
 The attenuation due to scattering increases as the wavelength approaches the
size of a typical raindrop, which is about 1.5 millimeters. Wavelength and
frequency are related by the equation c = λ f, where λ is the wavelength, f is
the frequency, and c is the speed of light (approximately 3 x 108 m/s).
 For example, at the C-band downlink frequency of 4 GHz, the wavelength is
75 millimeters. The wavelength is thus 50 times larger than a raindrop and the
signal passes through the rain with relatively small attenuation. At the Ku-band
downlink frequency of 12 GHz, the wavelength is 25 millimeters. Again, the
wavelength is much greater than the size of a raindrop, although not as much
as at C-band. At Ka-band, with a downlink frequency of 20 GHz, the
wavelength is 15 millimeters and at V-band, at a downlink frequency of 40
GHz, it is only 7.5 millimeters. At these frequencies, the wavelength and
raindrop size are comparable and the attenuation is quite large.
Atmospheric Absorption Loss
Gaseous Attenuation at Sea Level
 The model For water vapor attenuation; which is valid to 350 GHz, is:

Where ρ is the water vapor concentration in g/m3 and f is the frequency in GHz.
 Two models for Oxygen attenuation, one for frequencies below 57 GHz and one for
above frequencies 63 GHz. For 57-63 GHz, an averaged value of 14.9 dB/km is used.
Slant Paths Gaseous Attenuation
 The model for sea level assumes pressure, temperature and humidity do not change,
which is a reasonable assumption for short paths over land but not for slant paths to
satellites. For higher altitudes, there is a reduction in atmospheric density of the water
vapor and Oxygen compared to sea level.
 The scale height approximation:

where hw0 = 1.6 km during clear periods, 2.1 km during wet weather.
 Therefore, the total atmospheric absorption loss for Slant Paths is:

where Φ is the elevation angle, usually between 5 and 90 degrees.

Receiver Noise Power Density
 Thermal noise on the transmit side is relatively small compared to signal
power. It can be ignored.
 However, on receive side, thermal noise has to be considered.
 A convenient method: select one point in the system, convert the noise in each
section of the system to the value of noise at the selected point, get the total
value.
 Selected point is the receiver’s input port.
 Receiver noise mainly consists of antenna noise, feed-system noise, and noise
from the low-noise amplifier.
Antenna Noise
 A receive antenna receives noise radio wave in addition to the desired signal.
 Thermal loss of the antenna will be output as thermal noise.
 Noise presents a problem in the reception of weak signals as in satellite
communications.
 Noise power arriving at the antenna from the sky is expressed as absolute
temperature, Ts. It consists of cosmic noise, and thermal noise based on
atmospheric absorption.
 Antenna thermal noise: (1-η)T0, η is antenna radiation efficiency and T0 is
ambient temperature.
 Antenna noise Ta = Ts + (1-η)T0. This is called the antenna’s “equivalent noise
temperature”.
Noise Temperature
 Because the faint signals in satellite communications, noise level in the receivers must be
made extremely low.
 Low-power noise can be expressed in terms of absolute temperature.
 Thermal noise power per unit bandwidth (N0) = thermal noise generated by resistance at T.
 Noise power: N = k T B (in watts). Where k is Boltzmann’s Constant, 1.38×10-23 J/K, B is
noise bandwidth in which the noise is measured, in hertz and T is noise temperature.
 In logarithmic form, we have

 T is in Kelvin, B is in Hz.
Noise Figure (NF)
 Noise figure (NF) is a quantity that used to specify the noise generated within a
device. NF is defined by the following formula:

 Noise temperature is more useful in satellite communication systems, to

convert noise figure to noise temperature:
Td= T0(NF-1)
 Where Td is the noise temperature in linear ratio (no in dB), and T0 is the
reference temperature used to calculate the standard noise figure which is
usually 290 K.
Noise Figure and Noise Temperature
 Example: An amplifier has a quoted noise figure of 2.5 dB. What is its
equivalent noise temperature?

Td = 290 ( 1.78-1) = 226 K

 This value of noise temperature could then be used to calculate the system
noise temperature.
Equivalent System Noise Temperature
 In addition to the external noise coupled into the receiver through the antenna, each
component of a receiver generates its own internal noise.

Simplified earth station receiver

Equivalent System Noise Temperature
 The total noise power at the output of the IF amplifier of the receiver is given by:

 Then the System Noise Temperature can be written as:

Equivalent System Noise Temperature
 Example: Suppose we have a 4 GHz receiver with the following gains and noise
temperatures: Grf = 23 dB, Gif = 30 dB , Tin = 25 K, Tm = 500 K, Tif =1000 K and Trf = 50 K.
a) Calculate the system noise temperature assuming that the mixer has a gain Gm = 0 dB.
b) Recalculate the system noise temperature when the mixer has a 10 dB loss.
c) How can the noise temperature of the receiver be minimized when the mixer has a loss of 10 dB?
 Solution:
Figure of merit G/T (Gain/Temperature)
 G/T is the ratio of receiver antenna gain G to receive-system noise temperature T.
 Since the C/N ratio is the ratio of signal power to noise power, we have that:

 Where is constant for a given operational mode of the satellite, thus C/N
α G/T. The ratio Gr/Ts (or simply G/T) is known as the Figure of Merit. It indicates
the quality of a receiving satellite earth system and has a unit [dB/K].
 G/T variation is due to antenna thermal distortion, satellite attitude instability,
receiver thermal characteristics, etc
 Because of the very low signal strength received at the satellite, it is essential to
maximize the G/T performance.
Figure of merit G/T (Gain/Temperature)
 Example: An earth station has a diameter of 30 m, and an overall efficiency of 69%. It
is used to receive a signal of 4150 MHz, at this frequency, the system noise temperature
is 79 K when the antenna points at the satellite at an elevation angle of 28°.
a) What is the earth station G/T under these conditions?
b) If heavy rain causes the sky temperature to increase so that the system noise
temperature increases to 88 K what is the change in G/T value?
 Solution:
Multiple Access Techniques
 With the increase of channel demands and the number of earth stations, efficient use of
a satellite transponder in conjunction with many stations has resulted in the
development of multiple access techniques. Multiple access is a technique in which the
satellite resource (bandwidth or time) is divided into a number of non-overlapping
segments and each segment is allocated exclusively to each of the large number of earth
stations who seek to communicate with each other. There are three known multiple
access techniques. They are:
(1) Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)
(2) Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA)
(3) Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)
Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA)
 The most widely used of the multiple access techniques is FDMA. In FDMA, the
available satellite bandwidth is divided into portions of non-overlapping
frequency slots which are assigned exclusively to individual earth stations. A
basic diagram of an FDMA satellite system is shown:
Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA)
 In search of an alternative multiple access technique; attention was focused on
the possibilities afforded by TDMA. In TDMA, the sharing of the communication
resource by several earth stations is performed by assigning a short time (time
slot) to each earth station in which they have exclusive use of the entire
transponder bandwidth and communicate with each other by means of non-
overlapping burst of signals. A basic TDMA system is shown:
Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)
 In CDMA satellite systems, each uplink earth station is identified by an address code
imposed on its carrier. Each uplink earth station uses the entire bandwidth transmits
through the satellite whenever desired. No bandwidth or time sharing is required in
CDMA satellite systems. Signal identification is achieved at a receiving earth station by
recognizing the corresponding address code.